Glass Message Board
Glass Discussion & Research. NO IDENTIFICATION REQUESTS here please. => Murano & Italy Glass => Topic started by: TxSilver on January 28, 2008, 06:37:33 PM
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Fratelli Toso makes many paperweights that have grounds made of pasty appearing glass. Is this type of glass pasta? I have attached a picture of one of the paperweights. I have owned many of these weights, but was never sure what term to use for the glass.
Anita
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I've never heard of pasta glass, but this almost looks like what they call sulphide? Of course, I knwow nothing about that either, so I should probably just keep my trap shut. :D
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Yeah... pasta glass is loaded with calcium compounds calcium carbonate I suspect.
That is what it looks like. Though I've never heard the term associated with paperweights.
Sulphides are metallic looking figurines embedded in glass.
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An example of pasta glass on Laura's website HERE (http://www.trocadero.com/laurasf/items/424133/item424133store.html#item) - on a vase not a paperweight though, and another on Javier's site HERE (http://www.trocadero.com/svazzo/items/555210/item555210store.html) - again not a weight, but it gives you the idea of how it looks. :)
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Sulphides are ceramic plaques or figurines embedded in glass
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I've never come across this term*. Of course that doesn't mean that it is incorrect. But I suspect it is not in common use and although I'm guessing, I have a feeling that with the possible exception of one or two Murano glassmakers who might have used this term, it is in fact a description created or misapplied by collectors or dealers after the event, so to speak.
The vase shown on Laura's site is described as having "pasta glass bands". I find that a little surprising, since to most glassmakers, all over the world, these are "trails" or possibly in the US a glassmaker would refer to the one on the rim as a "wrap". I'm certainly not averse to being contradicted on this as I know that Laura has much more expertise in area than I do. :)
I can see why the figure on Javier's site could be described as "pasta" because it looks as of it could have been assembled from different types of pasta. There is a niggling memory at the back of my mind regarding that type of figure being described as pasta before, but the point I'm getting at is was this the original marketing term or has it become a generic description later?
I wonder if ArtofVenice has an opinion on this and could shed some light on the description and when and where it originated.
*but I will go through all my Italian books tonight and have a look, if I remember!
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This site about Venetian beads refers to 'pasta glass' decoration on one variety of beads, but it doesn't give any hints as to what it is. :-\ From the picture, it just appears to be 'trails' again! :spls: http://perle-veneziane.com/Beads%20Gallery/decoration.html (Look for 'Pagliaccio' beads)
So we can see what it was generally used for, but still don't know exactly what it was made from! :huh:
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There are a few examples of pasta vitrea for Scarpa and Martinuzzi in the Olnick-Spanu collection online. The link is http://www.olnickspanu.com/Collection.html. I don't know how it is made. The texture looks similar to Fratelli Toso's black nerox glass to me, so I thought it might be made in the same way. The textures look pasty. It is what made me wonder if the pasty looking glass in the Toso paperweights that are like the one I showed above are pasta vitrea.
Anita
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The paperweight shows signs of less-than-perfect temperaure control during the making. It has many "wreathing" lines in the dome. It is therefore possible that the blue coating of the ground was also affected, producing a rather pitted surface. This in turn has resulted in air bubbles being formed when the first coating of clear was applied to the blue.
I don't imagine the weight was made as an example of any particular type of decorative technique.
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I believe that the concentric form of the dome may be done on purpose. I attached a picture of another Fratelli Toso paperweight with the pasty looking glass. When one has the weights in hand, they give a moon rock type of look. The paperweight shown below reminds me of the moon with a large crater filled with millefiori. The canes look out of focus from above because of the concentric wreathing of the dome, but at a 45 degree angle, it gives a beyond-world appearance. I wondered if it was the look FT was going for.
Both weights I've shown are blue, but the weights are done in at least one other color. I had a lavender one, also.
Anita
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It would be unusual for a clear dome to be formed with wreathing through choice or design so that the interior elements cannot be clearly seen from the top. Maybe Adam A. or another glassworker could say how simple or hard it is to include wreathing as a design feature?
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I'm not sure if the term "pasta glass" was used in Murano, or if it is a term used by collectors.
It refers to opaque glass that is not cased under clear. If you look closely, you'll see that almost all Murano glass is cased inside a clear layer - sometimes this layer is extremely thin, but it's what makes the glass shiny. With pasta glass, the glass takes on a dull look that resembles cooke, dry spaghetti, hence the name. I think you see it best in the picture of Javier's figurine, as with my vase, only the blue bands are pasta - the white portions are cased in clear.
Usually you see this technique in circa 1920s and 30s items.
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I'm not sure if the term "pasta glass" was used in Murano, or if it is a term used by collectors.
But in the link I posted, Venetian bead makers are using the term - see post above.
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Could pasta glass be a sort of pate de verre?
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I reckon that could well be it, Christine! :hiclp:
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I found a definition of pasta vitrea on the Fossilfly site, http://www.fossilfly.com/Murano_Glass_Glossary.htm. The definition is that it is a difficult technique where an opaque colored glass is made by adding clear or colored crystals to molten glass. I read on artofvenice that the glass has the appearance of ceramic.
Anita
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If the glass looks like ceramic then it is because the enamels are marvered into the surface. In Monart we collectors coined the term 'Surface-decorated' to distinguish it from clear cased enamels.
Here is a raspberry and two dark coloured examples (http://www.scotlandsglass.co.uk/cms/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.view_images&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=2672&category_id=195&Itemid=51) these have also been lustred.
If less reheating is used an gritty, almost sandpaper-like, quality of texture can be achieved.
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The surface pitting is achieved by mixing charcoal or some similar vaporisable material with the enamel on the marver. As it gets to a high enough temperature small bubbles or voids are created.
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I think we can say that it is not pasta glass. It looks more like paper mache than it does ceramic. It may be a thin layer of colored lattimo on the framework of the weight. I was thrown off by the word pasta and thought it may be glass that was applied like, or looked pasty.
Anita
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Here a definition of Pasta Vitrea:
" Opaque coloured glass with a ceramiclike consistency, obtained by mixing large quantities of pigments followed by micro particles of white opal and/or pigmented molted mixture."
Concerning the "Pasta", no it isn't related with that kind of pasta (to eat).
Sincerely
Alex
www.artofvenice.com (http://www.artofvenice.com)