Alfredo Barbini (Murano, Italy) Art Glass 11" Conch Shell, in Alabastro Pink *RARE FIND*

$0.85 AUD
$0.85 AUD
$1.00 AUD
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Model Conch Shell
Colour Alabastro Pink

Production 1960s

Dimensions 10cm (4") tall, 28cm (11") long

Condition Excellent condition with no wear that we can see. Retains its original label on the base.

 

Alabastro - translating to alabaster in English - meaning ghostly, or white, used to describe this style and finish of these incredible Italian pieces.

We've included a picture of the original Barbini catalogue from 1961, which shows this model which was made available for Weil Ceramics & Glass Inc. The full catalogue can be viewed at 20th Century Glass, here. 

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About the Maker

Alfredo Barbini

Alfredo Barbini was a Murano glassblower, designer and entrepreneur whose work helped shape twentieth-century Italian art glass. His career brought together the practical skill of the furnace maestro and a sculptor’s interest in volume, balance and the expressive possibilities of molten glass.

His early career included work at Ferro Toso and a formative collaboration with sculptor Napoleone Martinuzzi at the Zecchin-Martinuzzi furnace during the 1930s. Working with Martinuzzi was particularly important to his development in massiccio, or solid-mass glass, a medium that became central to his sculptural approach.

In 1937, Barbini became a partner and leading maestro at V.A.M.S.A., where he continued experimenting with thick glass and executed designs by artists including Ermenegildo Ripa and Luigi Scarpa Croce. In 1946, he joined Gino Cenedese & C. as a partner and artistic director. His work with Cenedese included the acid-textured sculptures shown at the 1948 Venice Biennale.

In 1950, he established Vetreria Alfredo Barbini with financial assistance from Salviati & C., for whom the new workshop also produced glass. Having his own furnace allowed Barbini to develop a more individual body of work, exploring increasingly essential forms alongside the heavy, sculptural glass for which he is remembered.

His practice extended across solid glass sculpture and substantial vessels, with colour, transparency and surface treatment playing an important part. He explored sommerso glass, in which coloured layers are enclosed within transparent glass, as well as engraving and textured finishes. Fish and tulip forms presented at the 1960 Venice Biennale, followed by thick glass vessels with finely engraved surfaces in 1962, demonstrate the breadth of this experimentation.

Barbini’s son Flavio joined him in 1968, continuing the family’s involvement in the glassworks. Alfredo remained active as a maestro and artistic director for decades, and his work is represented in museum collections, including the Corning Museum of Glass. His legacy rests not simply on the weight of his glass, but on his ability to make that material feel fluid, expressive and sculptural.

Read more about Alfredo Barbini’s career here, and explore works in the Corning Museum of Glass collection here.

Shop more from Alfredo Barbini
About the Region

Murano Glass

Murano, a group of islands in the Venetian Lagoon, has been a major centre of glassmaking for centuries. Its history encompasses delicate vessels, elaborate decoration and sculptural art glass, with techniques and designs developed by many different workshops rather than a single uniform style.

In 1291, the Venetian authorities ordered glass production to move to Murano to reduce the risk of fires from furnaces in Venice. Over subsequent centuries, the island's glassmakers developed and refined methods that became influential far beyond the lagoon. This long history provides the background to the inventive forms and colour combinations associated with twentieth-century Murano glass.

During the mid-century decades, established skills were adapted to modern interiors through sculptural bowls, vases, centrepieces and animal figures. Some designs emphasised substantial bodies and flowing outlines; others explored lighter forms, surface decoration or intricate pattern. The variety is an important part of Murano's appeal, and no one shape or finish defines everything made there.

Techniques encountered in this collecting area include sommerso, in which layers of glass are enclosed within further layers, and bullicante, with deliberately arranged bubbles. Avventurina glass contains sparkling copper crystals that can appear golden; this is distinct from decoration using actual gold leaf. These techniques are useful descriptive terms, but their presence alone does not establish a maker or place of manufacture.

Related collections include Fratelli Toso, Formia Glass and Oball Glass, alongside glass bearing the Cristallo Venezia CCC brand. Individual collection pages distinguish documented maker histories from the more limited evidence available for some labels and commercial brands.

Labels, signatures, contemporary catalogues and documented comparisons can all contribute to attribution. A generic 'Murano Glass, Made in Italy' label does not identify a particular workshop, and neither a missing label nor a familiar-looking form settles an object's origin. Specific maker attributions need supporting evidence, with uncertainty retained where the surviving record is incomplete.

Shop more Murano glass →

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