Seguso opens the doors of its furnace to excite the audience of the Biennale of Architecture 2012 from August 27 – September 10 beginning at 9 pm each evening.
The furnace. An exceptional place where sand and fire mark the beginning of a journey that transforms incandescent matter into precious objects. Few people know that when the sun sets and the island of Murano becomes silent, the fire continues to burn in the furnace making this place of work and art even more magical and dreamlike.
That is why Seguso, one of the oldest families on the island, dedicated to the art of glassmaking for 22 generations since 1397, has for the first time in the history of the island chosen to open the doors of their furnace in Fondamenta Venier during the night. It does so during the Biennale of Architecture 2012 from August 27 through September 10, to share with designers, artists, journalists and the public, a manifestation that is elicited by an authentic furnace, where every day the glass takes on colors and shapes that contribute to the beauty of countless architectural projects around the world.
With the nights in the furnace, opens, what we significantly want to call SEGUSO EXPERIENCE, an innovative experiential concept that marks a new path of shared values and culture of Murano glass.
The Wisdom of Italian Emotion
The Seguso Experience descends into the alchemy of sand, transformed by fire into a noble material, grasping the know-how of creating with ones hands, following the breath that gives life to matter rendered in a unique and original form, because it is never perfectly repeated; it is the wonder of the elicit gestures of the glassmasters, at times rapid and decisive, occasionally slow and gentle; it is to witness step by step that the path of Murano glass has remained unchanged for centuries, following the knowledge and techniques handed down generation by generation; it is the realization that to create works of excellence that can withstand time, one must know how to respect the time of the material and the creative gesture.
In an atmosphere full of fascinations that affect sight, hearing, smell and touch, the Seguso Experience traces an untold story that celebrates glass, its alchemists, the creative genesis, the hands that give shape, and shows a future of innovation and research that joins the tradition. Along the path marked by impressive Seguso chandeliers that display themselves in all of their beauty, you can see the glassmasters busy at work, the various phases of glass production such as tempering, finishing, decoration … and discover the existence of the Room of Secrets, where the formulas for the compositions of glass colors are guarded.
But it is also an opportunity to understand how the architecture of the Seguso furnace – crossed by narrow roads similar to the streets of the entire island, with high red brick buildings that rise along large windows, small stairs leading to rooms of the different processes – combines with Murano and its architecture, integral and alive.
As a village of handcraft know-how
Monday, August 27, for the opening of Notte in Fornace, accompanying the Seguso Experience participants on their journey will be the twenty-second Seguso generation that has offered a new challenge for Murano, making a production space, a space of collective emotion: Gianluca, CEO of the group that includes the brands Seguso Viro, Seguso Vetri d’Arte, Seguso Interiors, and Cenedese, and Pierpaolo – Group Creative Director.
Together, the two brothers maintain a family tradition at the highest level and the strength of 600 years of history, that thanks to them has further enhanced its reputation through important contract and residential projects in collaboration with international architectural firms including Studio Peter Marino of New York, Studio Pinto of Paris, Studio Gonzalez of Miami .. and private label projects for luxury brands such as Fendi, Dior, Swarovski, Blumarine, Rolex…
“Through Seguso Experience – explains Gianluca Seguso – we want to convey the excellence of Murano glass, tell the tale of its magic but also its truth, the commitment its beauty requires from Man. Our know-how is transmitted only through the hands and gestures of the glass masters, for this reason we wanted to create a new way to share it with the world and – in keeping with the theme of the Biennale – propose a “common ground” of emotions that only glass is capable of arousing.”
