Murano glass table lamp help

[2higuy]

Hello all, long time reader first time poster. I am writing today in hopes of gaining some information regarding a glass table lamp I have recently found while browsing the local thrift stores. I am nearly certain it is a Murano glass piece with a bit of age, it caught my eye due to its odd yet elegant style and appearance. It immediately struck me as mid century/atomic era. There are no manufacture stickers or engraved signatures of any kind. There is one small paper "price tag" type label on the underside of the metal base that simply says "AR/8". I have done a fair amount of internet searching and Murano glass research but still unsure where to go next.

An internet image search has led me to one nearly identical example of this piece which was sold as a piece by Luciano Vistosi, however I was unable to gain any further information about that piece from that website. I say nearly identical because the shape and design are the same however the ribbon of clear glass was, as expected with blown glass, not the same and my piece seems to possibly be missing a plastic base that it sits in. Upon doing research on Luciano Vistosi, I have not been able to find this identical shape and form although there are numerous examples that would likely be in the same time frame and style etc. I have attached a photo of my lamp. Any help and information is greatly appreciated. I will also include the web link to the piece I have found that is nearly identical and attributes their piece to Vistosi. http://www.bondandbowery.com/printitem.php?itemid=13215

[diggummup]

Not sure what exactly your looking for. It's not signed so you can't attribute it to a particular artist of the company. Are you trying to confirm that it is a piece made by the Vistosi company? I would think that the one example you found is identified correctly, that website is pretty upscale as to the merchandise that is presented there for sale. Here is a clip from there site, the last few words being the most important and applicable-
Bond & Bowery was created to provide a web-based global marketplace for the highest quality antiques, fine art and design. Through a collaboration of dealers, designers and savvy business people, we built a web portal that is intuitive and easy to use (by buyers and sellers alike) and represents a "best in class" in terms of Internet presence, marketing, web site features and unique merchandise that is carefully pre-screened by industry experts
As to some more information on the Vistosi Company here goes-

Guglielmo Vistosi - opened this furnace in 1945. After his death in 1952, his brother Oreste, and nephews Gino and Luciano carried on, adding a "Who's Who" of independent designers. Allesandro Pianon, Peter Pelzel, Fulvio Bianconi, Gae Aulente, and Ettore Sottsass Jr. all created designs for the company. The company closed in the early 90's.
About a decade ago the brand was revived and restructured. Arguably the most interesting period of their output was during the late sixties and early seventies. Vistosi's designs from this era seem to anticipate both minimalism and 80's excess — especially the lighting. There is a predominance of white or completely translucent glass and an emphasis on form, whether elongated/curvaceous or bulbous.
While Vistosi's current operations have a dynamic and interesting website there is a scant amount of effort to document their patrimony. We do know that Vistosi worked with a significant number of important designers notably Ettore Sottsass, Gae Aulenti and Vico Magistretti. Their creations are well documented but it is the quirky one-offs and experiments that are hard to date, identify and authenticate.


Sources-http://www.italian-glass.net/vistosi.html
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/bost...objects-142187

Hope this helps and welcome to Treasurenet.

[2higuy]

Not sure what exactly your looking for. It's not signed so you can't attribute it to a particular artist of the company. Are you trying to confirm that it is a piece made by the Vistosi company? I would think that the one example you found is identified correctly, that website is pretty upscale as to the merchandise that is presented there for sale. Here is a clip from there site, the last few words being the most important and applicable-
Bond & Bowery was created to provide a web-based global marketplace for the highest quality antiques, fine art and design. Through a collaboration of dealers, designers and savvy business people, we built a web portal that is intuitive and easy to use (by buyers and sellers alike) and represents a "best in class" in terms of Internet presence, marketing, web site features and unique merchandise that is carefully pre-screened by industry experts
As to some more information on the Vistosi Company here goes-

Guglielmo Vistosi - opened this furnace in 1945. After his death in 1952, his brother Oreste, and nephews Gino and Luciano carried on, adding a "Who's Who" of independent designers. Allesandro Pianon, Peter Pelzel, Fulvio Bianconi, Gae Aulente, and Ettore Sottsass Jr. all created designs for the company. The company closed in the early 90's.
About a decade ago the brand was revived and restructured. Arguably the most interesting period of their output was during the late sixties and early seventies. Vistosi's designs from this era seem to anticipate both minimalism and 80's excess — especially the lighting. There is a predominance of white or completely translucent glass and an emphasis on form, whether elongated/curvaceous or bulbous.
While Vistosi's current operations have a dynamic and interesting website there is a scant amount of effort to document their patrimony. We do know that Vistosi worked with a significant number of important designers notably Ettore Sottsass, Gae Aulenti and Vico Magistretti. Their creations are well documented but it is the quirky one-offs and experiments that are hard to date, identify and authenticate.


Sources-http://www.italian-glass.net/vistosi.html
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/bost...objects-142187

Hope this helps and welcome to Treasurenet.

I agree that the website that I found it on should be fairly reputable, I am however surprised that I am unable to find any other example of this lamp aside from the one on this site. When researching other vistosi lamps it has been fairly easy to locate multiple examples of other designs, but not this one. What I was hoping is that someone would possibly be able to direct me to other samples of this same lamp. Is my lamp that rare that only one other is on the internet, and if so where does this lead when trying to determine value, etc. Secondly, I am wondering if the sticker that is on the base of the lamp (AR/8) a possible manufacture sticker. I know one of the research criteria for Murano glass is to determine the actual furnace that it was manufactured in and all furnaces are numbered. My question therefore being, is the sticker possibly a tool in helping determine the origine of the lamp. I'm thinkin that someone with more Murano glass knowlege than I would be able to say if the sticker is of help or not.

Thanks for the warm welcome and your help.