Art Glass
New, vintage, and antique Art Glass is commonly found at our estate sales.
Items we regularly curate are ashtrays, cigar ashtrays, bowls, vases, paperweights, and sculptures.
Occasionally however we will see lamps, chandeliers, windows, and wall art.
What is Art Glass?
Art glass is an item made of glass as a form of art and often for use. It is often combined with other materials and there are many special techniques that are used to create a wide range of looks and values.
The oldest technique in working with glass is glassblowing. It involves heating glass in a furnace, gathering the heated glass on the end of a blowpipe and blowing it into shape.
The two other methods are casting, and lamp working.
Casting glass involves pouring molten glass into a mold, and allowing it to melt in a furnace and the lamp work (or flame work) technique involves heating pencil thin glass canes and fusing them over an open flame using a torch, tweezers, and other small tools.
Murano glass is a commonly used term. It is simply art glass that was made on the Venetian Island of Murano Italy which has produced glassware for centuries.
Some of the special techniques used that people like most are Bullicante and Sommerso.
The Bullicante effect is the techniques where small air bubbles are trapped in the inside in a controlled fashion. It is done by placing a piece of molten glass inside a metallic mold with spikes that cause the bubbles. After it’s cooled the whole piece is submerged in glass again creating a second layer that completely covers the first one. This technique is highly desirable and very popular today.
Sommerso is another common and highly desirable technique which in Italian means “submerged”.
This technique is when several layers of colored glass are used that give the illusion that the colored glass is layered on top of each other without the colors mixing. This is done by repeatedly immersing the piece in pots of different colored molten glass waiting for it to cool in between the layers.
What makes these types of pieces valuable is that there is no margin for error. If a mistake is made the artist must start over. It is easy to see how only true experts create these treasures and how their values are warranted.
Two of the most famous glassmakers are Paolo Venini and Seguso d’Arte. It was these artists who elevated these techniques around 1950’s. Later gold leaf, minerals, and controlled bubbles were added which gave the pieces even more beauty.
Some of the most sought after artists are;
Venini, Seguso, Murano, Holmegaard Per Lutken, Flavio Poli, Fratelli Toso, Pino Signoretto, Dino Rossini, Fucina Degli Angeli, Dino Martins, Barovier, and Gino Cenedese.
If you are a buyer or seller of Art Glass contact us. If you are a seller we can get top dollar for your collection or single items. If you are a buyer contact us so we can enter you in our data base of buyers.
Our 30 years of service in the Austin Texas area gives clients the confidence to trust us with their treasures. We are licenced and bonded of course and should an estate sale be applicable, we always provide security all days of the event.
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