The M.V.M. Cappellin Glassworks and the Young Carlo Scarpa 1925-1931

The autumn exhibition of LE STANZE DEL VETRO features M.V.M. Cappellin & C., the furnace founded by Giacomo Cappellin in 1925 and focuses in particular on the company’s production from the end of 1926 to early 1932, the year it went bankrupt. In the 1920s the furnace was described as being on par in terms of excellence with V.S.M. Venini & C., its rival in producing glass of exceptional quality, both as regards the vitreous textures and the design of the objects. The exhibition project aims to retrace the history of this glassworks for the first time, highlighting its importance on Murano in the 1920s and early 1930s. Driven by the passion of Giacomo Cappellin, from late 1926 the furnace also saw the involvement of the young architect Carlo Scarpa, who was to collaborate with the company until 1931. Scarpa was soon fairly independently designing models, which were notably distinguished by the use of geometric forms. In those years the M.V.M. designed new series of glass objects, the result of constant research into vitreous matter and into form,
often involving reviving ancient glass-working techniques, such as the filigree reticello and the Phoenician decoration. It then also succeeded in the challenge of opaque glass, obtaining textures with a powerful chromatic impact.
The history of the glassworks will be retold by reconstructing for the first time the entire production
catalogue thanks to the availability of various archives.