On view from October 15, 2005 – January 29, 2006, Murano: Glass from the Olnick Spanu Collection features over 200 pieces of breathtakingly beautiful 20th- and 21st-century Venetian glass from the outstanding collection of Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu of New York.
Murano became the center of Venetian glassmaking in 1291 when officials ordered that all furnaces be moved to that island as a precaution against fire. From the Middle Ages until the 17th century, the glass produced on the island was celebrated worldwide because of its superb design and technical innovation, which result from a collaboration between designers and master glassworkers.
Murano’s glassmakers were so highly regarded because they had developed or refined technologies such as crystalline glass, enameled glass (smalto), glass with threads of gold (aventurine), multicolored glass (millefiori), milk glass (lattimo) and imitation gemstones made of glass. For many years, they were also the only craftsmen who could create mirrors.
The glass industry in Venice fell into decline in the early 19th century when the city was occupied by Austria. Although there was a revival of historically based styles after 1860, it was not until the 20th century that Murano again assumed world leadership in glass design. Manufacturers such as Artisti Barovier, Barovier & Toso, M.V.F. Cappellin, Aureliano Toso, Seguso Vetri d’Arte and Venini found ways to ally the age-old craft traditions of the Murano glass masters with the style and modern taste of internationally famous designers such as Alfredo Barbini, Ercole Barovier, Tomaso Buzzi, Fulvio Bianconi, Dino Martens, Flavio Poli, Gio Ponti, Carlo Scarpa, Archimede Seguso, Ettore Sottsass, Massimo Vignelli, Tapio Wirkkala and Vittorio Zecchin. The result of this collaboration was phenomenal works in glass of a rare beauty.
Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu discovered the allure of Italian glass almost by chance in the 1980s when they saw and acquired their first piece, an hourglass made by Paolo Venini in 1955, a work on view in this exhibition. Once they placed this piece next to their Andy Warhol painting Flowers, their infatuation with Murano glass began. Since that time, their collection of Murano glass has achieved international prominence and developed into a comprehensive collection of more than 500 objects.
Today, the collection contains many works from the 1950s: among them are the bright polychrome Pezzati, designed by Fulvio Bianconi for the Venini workshop; the series Oriente by Dino Martens for Aureliano Toso; and the ethereally elegant Merletti of Archimede Seguso. The collection also embraces works by the renowned glasshouse Artisti Barovier, the architect Tomaso Buzzi, the sculptor Napoleone Martinuzzi and the painter Vittorio Zecchin, who had helped to restore the brilliance of the glass art tradition in Venice in the early 20th century. The collection also features contemporary glass made in Murano by such artists as Yoichi Ohira, Laura Diaz de Santillana, Toots Zynsky and Giorgio Vigna, who carry on the tradition of exquisite glassworking today.
The Olnick Spanu collection concentrates primarily on vessels, particularly vases created at the major glass workshops of Murano from 1910 to the present. Olnick and Spanu make their decisions based on the extent to which a piece “seduces” them and are always excited about innovative new pieces. This has resulted in informed selections, which are made in consultation with scholars’ knowledge about Murano glass. The collection and exhibition testify to the vision and passion of collectors and their love of the decorative arts.
The exhibition was curated by glass scholar Marino Barovier. The design and graphics of the exhibition are provided by Lella and Masimo Vignelli. Massimo Vignelli is himself a designer of glass featured in the exhibition. A smaller selection of glass from the Olnick Spanu Collection was seen in New York at the Museum of Arts and Design in 2000 and at the Spazio Oberdan in Milan, Italy, in 2001. This exhibition is touring North America venues, including the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia; the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; the Museum of Glass, Tacoma, Washington; the Detroit Institute of Arts; and the Mint Museum of Craft + Design, Charlotte, North Carolina.
This exhibition was organized and is circulated by Exhibitions International, NY. The national tour of this exhibition is made possible by Venini USA. Presenting sponsor of the exhibition is Regions Bank.
RELATED PROGRAMMING:
Saturday, October 15 Collector’s Perspective: Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu
2:00 p.m. on Murano Glass
Auditorium
Free
No reservations are required but seating is limited and is provided on a first-come first-seated basis
Join Frist Center Associate Curator Katie Delmez-Welborn, Nancy Olnick, and Giorgio Spanu for a lively conversation about collecting Murano glass.
Sunday, October 23 Family Day
1:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Free
Enjoy an exciting day of interactive and live programs at the Frist during this free day as you explore the masterworks on view in Hudson River School and Murano: Glass from the Olnick Spanu Collection with your friends and family.
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The Frist Center for the Visual Arts, located at 919 Broadway in downtown Nashville, Tenn., is an art exhibition center dedicated to presenting the finest visual art from local, regional, U.S. and international sources in a program of changing exhibitions. The Frist Center’s Martin ArtQuest Gallery features 30 interactive stations relating to Frist Center exhibitions. Gallery admission to the Frist Center is free for visitors 18 and under and to Frist Center members. Frist Center admission for adults is $8.50, $7.50 for seniors and military, and $6.50 for college students with ID. Discounts are offered for groups of 10 or more with advance reservation by calling 615.744.3246. Special pricing for select exhibitions may apply. The Frist Center is open Monday through Saturday 10:00 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. and Sundays 1:00 until 5:00 p.m. The Frist Center is open extended hours Thursdays until 8:00 p.m. and Fridays until 9:00 p.m. The Frist Center website can be accessed at www.fristcenter.org.
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