Massimo Micheluzzi: Master of Venetian Glass

NEW YORK, NY — Ippodo Gallery and Barry Friedman Ltd. are pleased to present their first collaborative exhibition: Massimo Micheluzzi: Master of Venetian Glass. This exhibition is unique due to the fact that Ippodo Gallery normally represents living Japanese artists who continue traditional crafts. The merger with Barry Friedman’s history as a top art dealer in painting and decorative arts creates this exciting exhibition. The imaginative displays of vases will fill the serene space of Ippodo Gallery. We invite you to see the juxtaposition of a Venetian artist in what may seem to be an unusual space. Witness the transcendence of forms and colors. The variety of shapes and patterns create a lovely amalgamation of ultramodern landscapes. This extensive collection contains about 40 pieces from Barry Friedman Ltd.’s collection and new works which have just arrived from Venice. Massimo Micheluzzi (b.1957) uses traditional techniques to achieve a uniquely modern aesthetic. 

During the beginning of his career, Micheluzzi created mostly mono or dichromatic forms as a backdrop for fluid vessels, which are similar to the gently curving canals and waterways of Venice. His approach allows him to create infinite possibilities of vessels shifting between fluid and organic shapes, transparency and opacity, color combinations, mosaic patterns, and sculptural forms.

Many of Micheluzzi’s glass vessels employ classic murrine and battuto techniques. Murrine are cross-sections of multi-patterned glass canes which are then laid out on a plate, fused into a sheet in a furnace, and blown into a vessel. While infinite designs can be created, the process is painstaking and difficult to execute. Battuto, meaning struck or beaten, is a meticulously tedious cold working carving technique which produces the rhythmic channels and grooves apparent in many of Micheluzzi’s works. While many glass artists employ artisans for the latter, Micheluzzi performs the battuto carving himself.

Throughout the exhibition, one can see Micheluzzi’s transformation while keeping with the time-honored Muranese glassmaking methods. Walk through the gallery to witness the evolution from his earlier monochromatic vessels to pieces that mimic terrazzo, marble, and intarsio inlay.

This exhibiton is open to the public from October 12 - November 21, 2021.