Venice’s Last Glass Factory Makes Mosaics for Dolce & Gabbana and The Emir of Dubai | Still Standing

The Orsoni Furnace in Venice has been crafting colored glass mosaics for 135 years. They use techniques that have been passed down for four generations. Each piece of glass is handmade, and they can be seen on buildings all over the world. Today, Orsoni is the last of its kind - the only historical furnace permitted to operate in the city of Venice. But finding the next generation is a struggle. So what does its future hold? We visited the artisan mosaic glass maker to find out how it is Still Standing.

00:00 - Introduction
01:04 - Preparing the Color
02:01 - Making the Glass Slabs
02:26 - The Color Library
02:49 - Cutting Tiles
03:08 - Building a Mosaic
03:48 - Making Gold Glass Tiles
06:48 - History of Glass Making in Venice
07:53 - Glassmakers in Murano
10:56 - Most Famous Orsoni’s Mosaic Projects
12:11 - Orsoni’s Future

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#Lebanon #Glass #Manufacturing

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How Venice's last glass factory makes mosaics for Dolce & Gabbana and the Emir of Dubai | Still Standing

[sharonkaczorowski]

Japan has a policy of declaring artisans of ancient art and artifacts to be cultural treasures. They are given support, recognition and apprentices so the art is not lost. That should’ve done everywhere.

[kind.geese]

People who do not work as craftsmen or artists don't understand that it is not simply a lack of interest from young people that makes it hard to find apprentices for the next generation. Jobs like these more often than not don't pay a living wage and cant afford to because there is no larger financial support system for the arts in many different countries. I know so many artists and craftsmen that dream of apprenticeships like these (including myself) but they cannot afford them. Work like this is also extraordinarily hard on the body and often can have long term impacts on your health. It's hard to justify putting yourself through that when you cant even put food on the table even if you do love what you do.

[AimAssistonGeo]

I am from Venice and I find incredible how many people love the glass made in Venice.. It makes me so proud :)

[DippedInInk]

As an artist I’m very hurt watching this cuz certain art techniques if not passed on to the newer generations will die out. We must preserve this type of skill set.

[vincentcolavin]

My grandfather was a student at a mosaic school in Friûl (Scuola Mosaicisti del Friuli), which is not too far from Venice. For work, he was a tile layer, which is kind of like big mosaics if you think about it! Now in retirement he has returned to mosaic, and makes his art from stones he collects from the Tagliamento river.

[gaia]

I'm from there, glasswork is too expensive to learn and live in the city at the same time, that Is why there are almost no venetians left living in the city, I am young and I made some stained glass work on my own, It was my dream to do that job but it's impossible now

[EdMcB]

Fascinating and beautiful. The Italians are the greatest artists in the world. One small error at 8:23 Russia did not restrict gas supplies. The price of gas surged because Russian Gas was the subject of western sanctions. The international markets and domestic suppliers then leveraged the price and made vastly increased profits at the expense of ordinary people.

[Automedon]

I am so grateful that I have lived in a time where such craftsmen exist. They will leave behind timeless treasures that will be adored by people hundreds of years from now. In the scheme of things, government assistance to the glass makers of Murano would be a small investment in a national treasure.

[largolt]

I actually have visited Murano in Venice and they still make the glass the traditional way. At least in Murano, the entire thing is a family business, the sons are apprentices and they learned the skills from their fathers, who learned it from the grandfathers and so on. They had a massive showroom and said they can ship anywhere in the world. It was gorgeous but also quite expensive too.

[racheeerach]

The idea that they are struggling to find people who want and are capable of learning this skill is wild to me. If only I had been born Italian and heard of this fifteen years ago. 😭

[justinbennett]

This video reminds me of what it takes to operate a shoe repair shop. Crazy how these old crafts are thriving but still facing similar challenges. Insider Business should do a story about shoe repair in USA like they did for this glass video.

[AdamMociak]

As an artist I’m very hurt watching this cuz certain art techniques if not passed on to the newer generations will die out. We must preserve this type of skill set.

[petertwining]

Business lnsider that was a seriously awesome video. I thoroughly enjoyed watching it and seeing the Orsoni Masters at work. Thankyou so much. 😊

[thebassassin]

There’s a CO-OP in the city I live in for glassblowers to cut and share costs. It’s literally the only way you can afford to keep going. They need to come together and start one over there if they haven’t already. This art can’t die.

[MicaFarrierRheayan]

I love Dolce & Gabanna. This artisanal's touch and seasonal demand makes the technique preserved and one of a good effort to expose it further for crowds to indulge in this art!

[asasdevidro]

Ive never had any ideia of how precious and super delicate this work with glass were, its just...wow, knowing now the true dedication and complexity of this works make me proud of knowing now

[ellypeach]

I would LOVE to work in the glass mosaics factory in Venice. I have the weird patience to sit, for days and work colours. As i've aged i wondered what would call to me, I think i may have found it!

[prawnstar]

If I could do this for a living I would never work.. it’s a dream. To me, mosaics are the coolest most beautiful pieces of art humans have created. Every time a mosaic is uncovered by an archeologist I screenshot it and draw it. I put mosaics in every bathroom and over the stove but I don’t want to get too nuts.. I mean I could do every floor in the house and adore it.. I want to build a courtyard.. please lord don’t let this die.

[BradenDiaz-py]

11:46 The detail! :O. This is SO satisfying.

[rosa]

as a kid i went to venice on a school trip and fell in love with the glassmaking process, its still a job that i would love to do