A Taste of Venice: meet our partners Fabricharte

Real Artisans in Venice

fabricharte

Fabricharte Book binding by Blog Ciao Tutti

Fabricharte: The Art of Bookbinding in Venice

When people come to Venice, most often than not they are overwhelmed by the huge amount of fake Chinese souvenir shops, which the city is filled by.

Fake cheap Carnival masks, horrendous plastic little gondolas, cheap and ugly FAKE Murano glass: a sea of rubbish, a mass of junk which people only buy because they are cheap.

Tourists have totally lost the idea of what bringing a souvenir home from visiting a beautiful spot on earth really means!

I am pretty sure, you all remember the days when visiting a new location meant purchasing local hand crafted items, which would then be given as gifts or would proudly sit on display in the various parts of our home.

Surprisingly in Venice you can still do that, if you take the time and the care to look for them. We tried to show this side of Venice with A Taste of Venice.

Fabricharte

Fabricharte Accessories by Blog Ciao Tutti

One of these local artisans is Andrea Andreatta of Fabricharte, a bookbinder located in one of the most residential parts of Venice.

Andrea is a craftsman bookbinder, the founder of this tiny but cute binding shop, located in Castello, where he carries on the tradition of Venetian bookbinding.

As you walk into his “bottega”, as small artisan shops like this are called in Venice, you are greeted by a huge display of exercise books, albums, diaries, address books, frames and other custom accessories, all strictly made by hand.

Andrea has learnt from the best Venetian master bookbinders, since bookbinding was one of the major arts of the Republic of Venice.

What is bookbinding

Fabricharte

Andrea from Fabricharte by Blog Ciao tutti

Bookbinding was born from the need to preserve old books in the best conditions without causing them damage.

The binding of old books and rare books over time has turned into a real art, giving the book a more elegant and sometimes even more valuable garment.

The first form of binding is considered the cord that kept united the primitive wooden or ivory tablets.

But to speak of real art of bookbinding and of bookbinders in general, we have to wait until the book took the form of a code, with a set of stitched sheets, all covered with an outer cover.

The binders gave rise to increasingly real works of art, where they even put their own signature, thus developing the bookbinding art, which later reached significant peaks in terms of value and elegance.

Towards the end of the XV century, in Florence, the first golden applications  (doratura) were used, which developed mainly in the following century, especially in Venice. Here the local binders were inspired by the Persian bindings, imported by the Venetian merchants in their travels, introducing the use of “Moroccan”, i.e. goatskin subjected to special treatment.

Fabricharte

Andrea of Fabricharte shows how to bind a book by Ciao Tutti

The Venetian bookbinders, began to use, instead of wooden boards, some paper plates, obtained by pressing several sheets of paper, to reduce the volume weight.

In many cases they used scraps of previous ancient books to make new ties.

In Italy the best works came from the workshop of Aldo Manuzio (Aldus Manutius) in Venice, whose influence soon spread all over the north, especially on ancient books of small size, today called pocket sized.

But let’s Andrea explain how he came to love this art.

 

  • Introduce yourself to our readers: who is your company and what does it do?

 

Fabricharte was born in 2013, for the love of Venice and media print. Venice, from Aldo Manuzio onwards, has represented an important point of reference in global bookselling production.

fabricharte

Hand made paper by hand Fabricharte by Ciao Tutti

The history of Bookbinders evolves hand in hand with the history of books and in Venice we can see the highest of its technical and art expressions.

Today the tradition of Bookbinding in Venice is getting lost: a bit due to the fierce competition of technology against the printed paper, a bit due to mass tourism that “prefers” to purchase other types of items.

This is why I chose this job: to preserve from oblivion the techniques and the art of Venetian Bookbinding, learning all the secrets from the elderly Masters (very few) that still operate in Venice; to return a service to the city, that of binding and repairing books; to get people to discover this semi-disowned art in which Venice excelled in the world, becoming an icon like the famous art of glass and the production of fabrics.

Fabricharte’s characteristic imprint is the great care and attention to detail. The whole production is completely manual, and the entire process is performed in the workshop.

press

Fabricharte small press type by Ciao tutti

The products are made only by natural and first quality materials. The design is tailor-made to customer requirements, each item is totally customizable in shapes, colors, decorations and accessories. We also accept orders through Internet and deliver all over the world.

 

  • How long have you been operating in Venice?

I have been in Venice since 2013. Before in San Maurizio area (San Marco), then Castello. I love the quiet areas, where you can work in peace without the frenzy of hit and run tourism.

 

  • What do you love the most about Venice?

Tranquillity. Except for the usual famous places (Rialto, San Marco, Strada Nova ….), Being able to walk in peace, with no  cars or frenzy.

Venice is a city suspended in time and space. Here everything flows with a different time, on different distances. And I realize that every time (and only) when I go away from Venice.

a taste of venice

The press of Fabricharte for A taste of Venice by Ciao tutti

I come from a small valley in Trentino, I could not bear to live in the city. Venice is the only exception, because it is unique.

 

  • What would you change in Venice?

As often happens, what you would like to change in a place is the people.

Venice needs to be loved, unfortunately it is only exploited and mistreated on a daily basis.

I do not think that the problem is the tourists, not even mass tourism (it is yet another escape goat), but those who live there and who run the city.

press

Pressing by Fabricharte by Ciao tutti

A city lives if it is inhabited, however it annually loses more and more inhabitants. The houses die, the city dies. At this rate, and without any intervention at the administrative level, in a few years it will be a Disneyland, which opens in the morning and closes at night, dead and soulless.

The Venice I do not like is the district of San Marco, dead and soulless if not the touristy one.

The Venice I like is the Castello area, a living area, with the children playing in the squares.

 

For information contact:

cropped-fabricharte-giallofc1

 

Fabricharte

Castello 6477/A,

Barbaria dele Tole

I – 30122 Venezia

tel: +39 041 200 6743

cell: +39 327 497 2022

Website: Fabricharte

Facebook: Fabricharte

#atasteofvenice #vivovenetia #ifabricharte #veniceartisans

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A Taste of Venice: meet our partners Il Forcolaio Matto

Venice Artisans

Venice Artisans

Piero Dri aka Il Forcolaio Matto

Venice Artisans: A Taste of Venice Blog tour was characterized by the large support of local businesses and artisans, who fully understood our mission to present the real Venice to the world, to try to help the rebirth of this beautiful city exposing to everyone the Venetian people and their centuries old crafts.

Piero Dri of Il Forcolaio Matto was the first one I contacted and who immediately gave us his support, his time, his passion and his knowledge to this project!

I met Piero a few years ago when we both got involved in the filming of Secret Italy with Alex Polizzi. Piero took the British presenter on his boat along the narrow and hidden canals of Venice, to show her the side of the city which usually all tourists miss. 

Venice Artisans

Alex Polizzi and Piero Dri in the filming of Secret Italy by Daily Mail

After the filming we got talking and we immediately realized we were on the same wave of length when talking about Venice, the future of the city and how people like us could help change the way tourists see our city.

Piero had just opened his shop crafting and selling oars and oarlocks and it is a real pleasure for me seeing that his gamble paid off and he is becoming more and more well-known both locally and internationally and he is slowly but surely reaching his goals. 

He is a man full of passion for this ancient craft but at the same time he is young enough to be opened to the changes which this modern world has brought. He has managed to combine old and new in a unique way and I truly respect him for this! 

venice artisans

A taste of Venice meets Il Forcolaio Matto

I just wish the people who run the city could learn from the way he, and many other local young artisans like him, operate and manage to use their skills and the city, without abusing and destroying Venice.

But let’s Piero Dri tell you all about himself!

 

  • Introduce yourself to our readers: who is your company and what does it do?

My name is Piero Dri, and Il Forcolaio Matto (The crazy Oarlock maker) is the name of my company.

I am a oar maker and I build the oars for the typical Venetian lagoon boats.

Next to the construction of the oars there is also the realization of the so called Forcole, the typical Venetian oarlocks. The Forcola is an object that exists only in Venice; it is a particular wooden row lock on which the oar of the rower rests.

venice artisans

Forcola by Piero Dri

The Voga alla Veneta is a unique standing rowing technique, where the oar must be free to move from the oarlock at every opportunity.

Venice is in fact made up of narrow canals, it has a very particular geography and steering a boat is not always so easy, especially if it’s windy or if the tide is high. The gondolier must be able to manoeuvre his gondola in the most efficient and rapid possible way and this can be done only through the Forcola.

I carve the Forcola from a single piece of walnut wood, carefully and naturally seasoned in my own workshop. I follow the traditional processing technique, all by hand and each piece is unique, tailored to the client, which is more often than not a gondolier.

venice artisans

Carving a Forcola by Piero Dri

Each Gondolier has therefore his own oar and his own oarlock.

The particular shape of the forcola makes possible the positioning of the oar in 7 different push or support points, so to always have a perfect control of the boat.

The sculptural lines and the special surfaces of the Forcola do bring out the beautiful grain of the wood and make it an object of great beauty, especially appreciated as a piece of furniture.

  • How long have you been operating in Venice?

I was born in Venice in 1983. I have always lived here. I opened my own business, The Forcolaio Matto, in early 2013, after a 7 year long period of apprenticeship in the workshop of my master teacher, Paolo Brandolisio.

  • What do you love the most about Venice?

I decided to embark on this career path in my city because I love Venice and I consider it a wonderful place to live.

I love the tranquillity of Venice, I love its colours, its silences. I love the water noise, the shouting of the people talking to each other on the street.

venice artisans

Bloggers meeting Piero Dri

I love the size, large enough to be able to have different zones, which are all individual for history and conformation, but small enough to be crossed on foot in no more than an hour. I love the Lagoon of Venice, its rhythms, the sunrises and the sunsets which it offers every day.

I love Venice, its proximity to the sea and at the same time also to the Dolomites, which in the most clear days, stand out on the horizon of water. I love the Venetian social dimension, the streets and the campi are always a meeting place for people and the exchange of greetings. I think it is unique for all this, in addition to the artistic, architectural, cultural site of which Venice is so rife.

  • What would you change in Venice?

I would not change a thing in Venice, but I would change the way of living it. Here tranquillity, peace of life, serenity should reign.

We live in a busy world, where everything has to be fast, quick, efficient. Living in Venice should mean adapting to its urban structure, that of a city of water, a unique city. Instead people want to try to fit the new needs of modern man, which I think ends up being more technological, but also more stressed and less happy than he could have been 50 years ago. It is no coincidence that in recent years many young people in Italy not only choose to return to work the land, but also to return to simple jobs.

venice artisans

Oarlock by Piero Dri

For many years we thought we could do without menial jobs, making us blinded by the illusion of a comfortable life in all respects. I, in a sense, feel part of this new generation of “rebels” in the sense of youth in contrast. Opening my business I decided to return to the past, to keep it alive, to keep the tradition. That’s why I called it “Il Forcolaio Matto”, because sometimes you feel like a fish out of water.

But I firmly believe, and I am not the only one, Venice could be a gem, an exemplary city, where you can build a model life, a happy life, on a human scale. It could be a city where technology goes hand in hand with respect for the land, very fragile in this case, where you can enjoy human relationships in these little alleyways. It would take a lot of intelligence and foresight.

Alas, these are rare qualities and today everything is more confined to easy speculation, the vile exploitation of the territory, the worship of Tourism, easy for immediate gain, without realizing that there is no longer a social fabric living through the historic buildings , that the invasion of tourists is sweeping away the residents. For now the majority choose to destroy Venice.

venice artisans

Forcola e remo by Piero Dri

But not myself and others like me! A Taste of Venice is one of us!

For information contact:

venice artisans

Il Forcolaio Matto

Il Forcolaio Matto

Ramo dell’oca
Cannaregio 4231
30121 Venezia – Italy

tel/fax +39 041 8778823
mob +39 348 2528611

Website: Il Forcolaio Matto

Facebook: Il Forcolaio Matto

#atasteofvenice #vivovenetia #ilforcolaiomatto #veniceartisans

A Taste of Venice: meet our partners Plum Plum Creations

Etching in Venice

Meet our partners: Plum Plum Creations

etching in venice

Arianna from Plum Plum Creations by Vivo Venetia

Etching in Venice: there are printing activities that are part of a craft of which Italy, and above Venice, are the unsurpassed interpreters, but which nevertheless today are in danger of disappearing.

On the one hand this is caused by a totally changed market, on the other it is also caused by the running out of vocations.

This is happening with the printing of works of art, etchings in particular, an artistic tradition that is struggling to survive.

etching in venice

Works by Plum plum Creations

The art of engraving is an artistic technique that was born and flourished because of the ability to multiply images, before the advent of printing with the movable type.

It was only from the Renaissance the engraving was applied to the preparation of printing plates, first for xylography, then for the various chalcographic techniques up to screen printing and lithography.

Engraving was loved since ancient times: the stone in Prehistory, on ceramics and in metal decoration in the Classical age as well as on walls (see Pompeii and Herculaneum).

It was used in the decoration of the most diverse objects, often associated with other technical materials.

Engraving on metal plates had parallel development in Italy and Germany in the sixteenth century, and was born from the effect of testing on paper in the Florentine goldsmith workshops.

During the sixteenth century in Europe we can observe the spreading of the etching technique, also known as acquaforte : it allowed the creation of a variety of effects.

Etching in Venice

Etching in Venice

It was an intaglio technique consisting in corroding a metal plate (usually, copper zinc for large runs) with an acid, to obtain images to be transposed on a support (normally paper) by means of colors.

It was first tested by people like Parmigianino and Barocci and in the seventeenth century by Guido Reni, Guercino and Della Bella, culminating in the work of Rembrandt in the Netherlands.

As for Venice, the eighteenth century is the century of the qualitative recovery of a sector that in the seventeenth century had favored the quantitative aspect as well as a scientific and topical reproduction.

In the same period when Canaletto starts to experiment with etching,  Giambattista Tiepolo begins to work with this technique, and his masterpieces Capricci and Scherzi di Fantasia consecrate him as a renown artist.

etching in venice

The art of printing in Venice by Vivo Venetia

In the eighteenth century new techniques arise such as aquatint and the “manner in pencil”, claimed by various artists. Next to the great Tiepolo, the new type of engraved views spreads to Rome and Venice, with Canaletto, Bellotto and Ricci being the most significant representatives.

In the nineteenth century etching experienced a decline in favor of lithography, which allows larger print runs, but the preparation of etching matrices was always the favorite technique by artists who gave back an impulse to original incision and its collections. From here on, the commercial value is defined by the number of short runs.

Almost all modern painters will have a go at this technique: Chagall, Derain, Nolde, Kokoschka, Picasso, Miro, Carra, Morandi, Campigli, Guttuso.

In Venice the technique of etching still lives on, thanks to people like Arianna Sautariello of Plum Plum Creations, a young artist who finally, after years of struggles and persevering, has managed to accomplish her dream: owning her own Art Etching Studio!

etching in venice

Printing in Venice

Arianna is a gentle, sweet and very interesting person, make sure to stop by her studio and listen to her explanations of the etching technique. You can also take etching lessons with Arianna in Venice.

But let’s hear it from this young talented woman!

  • Introduce yourself to our readers: who is your company and what does it do?

My name is Arianna Sautariello, I was born in Venice in 1982 and here I completed my studies at the Art School and then at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice.

I inherited from my mother the passion for Art: she had a bookbinding shop in Salizada San Canzian, and there I tried to learn the trade secrets – the love for printmaking did the rest.

In 2013 I decided to turn my passion for printmaking into a job: I created the website www.plumplumcreations.com where it’s possible to see and buy my creations (mainly art prints but also linocuts, watercolors, tempera paintings). Now, after this trial period, I finally decided to open my own Art studio/workshop in Venice, in Fondamenta dei Ormesini (in Cannaregio district), where I can show my work, making printing demonstrations and explaining how this ancient art works, organizing etching courses and also workshops for children.

etching in venice

Arianna in Bottega del Tintoretto by Plum Plum Creations

  • How long have you been operating in Venice?

The shop will officially open in April 2016, but I have been collaborating with “La Bottega del Tintoretto”, a historic printing house close to Madonna dell’Orto, for over an year and a half.

  • What do you love the most about Venice?

Venice is the ideal city, the real city on a human scale. I love almost everything about Venice: the colors, the silence, the views, the calm, the pauses, the tranquility, the story.

etching in venice

Works by Plum Plum Creations

Unfortunately, now the city has lost a little bit of the original poetry, but I know there are many people like me who keep on loving her deeply and who try to show the world the city as I have known when I was younger.

In a word: magical.

  • What would you change in Venice?

I would change the way of understanding tourism and also the housing policy.

Unfortunately we are moving towards a not-anymore-sustainable mass tourism which is deleterious to the city: what should be the first resource threatens to turn into a dangerous boomerang.

etching in venice

Arianna’s work by Plum Plum Creations

We should give priority to QUALITY tourism rather than the quantity one. And this could help to repopulate the city that slowly but surely is emptying out. But we don’t give up- we are here to stand and fight!

For information contact:

Plum Plum Creations

etching in venice

Plum Plum Creations

Website: www.plumplumcreations.com

Facebook: Plum Plum Creations

Twitter: Plum2creations

Instagram: Plum Plum Creations

 

Thank you so much Arianna for taking the time to join A Taste of Venice Blog tour and Blog Magazine and to talk to us about the Etching Technique in Venice!

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A Taste of Venice: meet our partners Vivo Venetia

Vivo Venetia: sustainable tourism in Venice

 sustainable tourism in Venice

Vivo Venetia – sustainable tourism in Venice

Sustainable tourism in Venice: the delicacy of the historical context, the exceptional nature of its structure, the numerical disproportion between inhabitants and visitors make Venice a unique city.

A city where it is getting harder and harder to reconcile the need of generating income for the local economy and at the same time preserving the environment.

The relationship between residents and tourists has been for many years one of the crucial subjects for the local city government and for the quality of life of all residents.

sustainable tourism in Venice

Vivo Venetia – sustainable tourism in Venice

Too little tourism and the city cannot live. Too much tourism and the city cannot live the same.

The search for balance is especially difficult.

The solution has to be a different kind of tourism: sustainable tourism.

Sustainable tourism means a tourism which is committed to generating a low impact on the surrounding environment and community by acting responsibly while generating income and employment for the local economy and aiding social cohesion.

In Venice this has become everyday more imperative and thanks to companies like Vivo Venetia, who are dedicated to connect local artisans and business with the visitors, a glimpse of light could be ahead.

sustainable tourism in venice

Gondole in San Trovaso

When I started to dream about bringing a group on international bloggers to Venice to experience My Venice with the blog tour A Taste of Venice, Vivo Venetia immediately appeared to me as the first choice for a partner to carry forward a project like the one I had in mind.

As soon as I met Cecile Rousset, the founder of this very young start-up company, we hit it off and realized that we had the same aim in mind: to show the world that Venice is not just fake Murano glass and cheap Chinese made masks. There is a large network of real authentic and talented Venetian people, proud of their city and their heritage, who are just waiting for the world to discover them!

But let’s hear it directly from Cecile of Vivo Venetia.

 

  • Introduce yourself to our readers: who is your company and what does it do?

We are a group of young people living in Venice and in the Veneto region.

We care about the future of this gorgeous city and the culture which has sprung from it for all these centuries! This is the meaning of VivoVenetia, which literally translates as Live the whole Veneto region.

Our aim is to create a multilingual portal dedicated to sustainable tourism where local businesses, artisans, artists can showcase their activites, putting them in direct contact with the visitors as well as local residents, which are then given a chance to live the real Venice and Veneto Region.
Basically we built a commercial mediation, a bridge between supply and demand, in order to assist and guide those curious travellers who are looking for high quality experiences and activities.
At a local level, tourists become “temporary residents” and at the same time, local residents can discover a new way to experience their region or city, only a few steps away from home.
Our aim is to modify the stereotyped image of Venice throughout the world and open the Veneto region to international tourism, by showcasing a sustainable tourism network of local artisans and businesses to a larger international audience.

Vivo Venetia - sustainable tourism in Venice

Book binding by Fabricharte – photo by Vivo Venetia

 

  • How long have you been operating in Venice?

VivoVenetia was born in 2015, we are a really young start up!
Our team is multicultural: we are in our thirties, all Venetian “at heart” and from different but complementary backgrounds, going from international sustainable development to tourism and euro-project management.

VivoVenetia was born to have a real impact on sustainable tourism, with a positive and energetic attitude, brought forward by a group of passionate people, keen to contribute to a human and ethic development in the Veneto Region.
It is our life project.

Vivo Venetia - sustainable tourism in Venice

Glass Blowing photo by Vivo Venetia

 

  • What do you love the most about Venice?

We love its beautiful fragility, its longevity and its being in and out history, teacher of knowledge and discrepancy throughout time!

This city is the crossroad of different cultures, a bridge between Orient and Occident. It symbolizes the indissociable bond between soil and water.

Cecile, the French born founder of Vivo Venetia, has chosen to settle in Venice after travelling a lot around the world, mainly because of its unique character.

Venice is like a mother: she knows how to cuddle you and sing lullabies, but she may as well scold you when you take the wrong road. Then she forgives you. She touches your heart and lifts your spirits. Its waters act as a mirror, helping you to look deep inside and truly understand yourself.

Vivo Venetia - sustainable tourism in Venice

Cecile Rousset meets the bloggers of A Taste of Venice and introduces Vivo Venetia and sustainable tourism in Venice

 

  • What would you change in Venice?

    sustainable tourism in venice

    Vivo Venetia unique experiences in Venice

The citizens are all tired with “hit-and-run” mass tourism, which drains the city at a cultural and ecological level without boosting the economy. We want to show respect to Venice and its inhabitants, and contribute to preserve the “soul” of the city.

Many small businesses, which offer typical products, are struggling to survive mainly because of their inability to promote themselves efficiently; in fact, they are never really able to reach the end users.

When you are unable to close sales, any speech about changing things are empty words. What we would like to see, instead, is a direct contact between supply and demand, thanks precisely to the opportunities offered by e-commerce.

We would like to be able to contribute to change the actual ability to integrate tourism to sustainable socio-economic dynamics, creating a network of thousands of new Venetian people, from all around the world, made of visitors and tourists in love with Venice and messengers of its peculiarity.

 

For information contact:

Vivo Venetia

sustainable tourism in Venice

Vivo Venetia – sustainable tourism in Venice

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Website: www.vivovenetia.com

Facebook: Vivo Venetia

TwitterVivoVenetia

InstagramVivoVenetia

Thank you again Cecile and all the staff of Vivo Venetia for helping A Taste of Venice become a reality – you made this blog extra special!

A Taste of Venice: meet our partners Venetian Dreams

The Queen of Venice Beads: Venetian Dreams

venetian dreams

ART VENICE GLASS JEWELLERY UNIQUE BY MARISA CONVENTO VENETIAN DREAM SHOP

The main objective of A Taste of Venice Blog tour and blog magazine is to bring to the attention of the general public the real Venice, made up of its people, its arts and its food and wine.

The person who, in my humble opinion, represents the most authentic Venice, the best side of Venice, the Venice which I sincerely wish for everyone to discover, is Marisa Convento of Venetian Dreams. Marisa is a jeweler maker, specialized in using original Venetian Murano beads, both modern and antique ones. She is the Queen of Beads of Venice.

venetian dreams

Marisa Convento of Venetian Dreams

She is one of the most energetic, passionate and interesting people you will ever meet in your life. Her love for the city transpires from every word she speak, from every piece of jewelry she produces, from every gestures she makes.

venetian dreams

ART VENETIAN 18TH CENTURY STYLE SILK BAG WITH SEEDBEADS EMBROIDERY HAND MADE UNIQUE ARTISANAL BY MARISA CONVENTO VENETIAN DREAMS ATELIER IN VENICE ITALY

If I have to picture Venice as a person, it will be Marisa: full of life, colorful, elegant without being snobbish, classy but at the same time down to earth. Yes, Venice at its best!

And on top of that, she is an endless source of information concerning Venice, artisans, food, art, politics and much more: she is a living Wikipedia of Venice!

As you can gather from my words above, I am in love with this woman who I can proudly call a dear Friend (yes, one of those with a capital letter!). I love the way she gives and gives to this city, not expecting anything in return, just because….she loves Venice!

venetian dreams

Collection of beadwork by Venetian Dreams

But enough compliments, let’s allow Marisa to do the talking!

  • Introduce yourself to our readers: who is your company and what does it do?

My name is Marisa Convento, Art Glass Jewellery maker and owner of “Venetian Dreams”, in Venice.

My personal passion is the Venetian glass bead in all its forms, periods, styles and sizes: from the biggest and oldest collectible ones to the tiniest and colorful seed-beads: the “conterie”.

I felt in love with the variety and the beauty of the Venetian glass beads from a very young age. I started being curious of the many different ways of using them as self adorments and fashion or home accessories. I was fascinated by the diffusion of the glass beads made in Venice all over the world, in the far continents where they were used by merchants, missionaries and explorers to establish friendly approaches with native tribes or using them like money for precious goods, such as gold, silver, precious stones, ivory, spices, silks, rare woods, furs and unfortunately even slaves.

venetian dreams

Jewelry by Venetian Dreams

I have been studying really a lot of the history, the culture and the tecniques of work related to the Venetian glass beads. When I felt ready, I started my own collection of unique pieces, artistic and collectable creations that are strictly and only hand made, using the best contemporary beads and original vintage Murano Glass seed-beads.

With these very rare, ancient, extremely small beads, I recreate intricate traditional or modern beadworks, stringing the beads on thread or on metal wire, using the old forgotten tecniques of the Venetian beadstringers: the “Impiraressa” ( in Venetian dialect the lady who strings the beads).

My production varies, going from the beaded flowers or beaded “coral branches” that I also create for high fashion shoes and bags collections, to a one of a kind glass bead necklaces and other glass jewellery pieces, to home accessories that sometimes combine the fine Venetian fabrics and the colourful beads.

 

  • How long have you been operating in Venice?Marisa at work

I opened my atelier “Venetian Dreams”, at the beginning of 2007, when I was 46 years old, after an experience of already 25 years working in the field of Venetian artistic workmanship and applied arts, including gold jewellery, Murano Glass and the world’s best hand woven silk Venetian fabrics.

The name of my boutique is significant of the dream of life that I wanted to become reality: create beautiful adorments with Venetian beads in order to preserve and promote the Art and the Culture of the Venetian Glass Beads.

 

  • What do you love the most about Venice?

I love everything about Venice!

From the differents lights and shadows depending on the season, the weather, the moment of the day or the night, to the tiny details like an ancient stone, or a white rose or a pomegranate branching out of a secret garden wall, to the sound of the bells in the still of the night.

There is a Venice for everyone, one can choose what to fall in love with : be it the food, or the Art, or just strolling around letting the city on water caress you! It’s impossible not to love Venice, and I hope to be loved in return…by Venice.

My mission is to deserve the honour of being a Venetian, I believe that each one of us Venetians, no matter what we do, in the way we do it, we can become good or bad ambassadors of our city.

 

  • What would you change in Venice?

Venice is “The Perfect City”, there is nothing to be changed, and hopefully nothing will be changed in favor of some fool projects of forced modernization or economical exploitation.

What is really needed is an improvement in the understanding of her history, beauty, fragility and best aspects, the only way of obtaining the due respect that will preserve her body and soul intact for the future generations, because Venice belongs to mankind.

For information contact:

Venetian Dreams of Marisa Convento

venetian dreams

Venetian Dreams By Marisa Convento

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Website: www.marisaconvento.it

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Thank you again Marisa for helping A Taste of Venice become a reality!

 

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A Taste of Venice: meet our partners Sogno Veneziano

Carnival costumes at all times

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Stunning Carnival hand made masks by Sogno Veneziano – photo by The Rambling Epicure Jonell Galloway

A Taste of Venice: meet our partners Sogno Veneziano Atelier

A Taste of Venice blog tour could have not taken place without the support and help of our partners. We would like to introduce them one by one.

We start with Sogno Veneziano Atelier, an amazing Carnival costume and mask making artisan shop in the centre of Venice, run by Giulia and her husband Igor, with the support of Giulia’s mum and their gorgeous inseparable little cute dog Romeo – you can often spot Romeo on Giulia’s lap quietly snoring while she sews away on her beautiful creations.

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Giulia of Sogno Veneziano Atelier showing her creations – photo by Cook In Venice

Giulia is the stylist and creator of all the stunning Carnival costumes which you can find in the atelier, Igor is the designer mask maker, creator of amazing wonderful and fascinating Carnival masks.

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Igor of Sogno Veneziano loves to show off their amazing work – photo by The Ramblig Epicure Jonell Galloway

We ask them to talk about themselves and Sogno Veneziano Atelier.

 

  • Introduce yourself to our readers: who is your company and what does it do?

To be born in Venice is a privilege, but it is a big fortune to have a father in love with arts and a seamstress mother.
I have breathed all of this since I was a child, among the “calli” and the Venetian Palaces, and it has been the most natural thing to transform it into my work.
The mesmerizing charm of Venetian Masks and Historical Costumes is the same in times. The pleasure of the disguising game attracts every year countless people and to hide behind a mask is an irresistible attraction.
A Masked Ball can be the dream of an entire life. But what is the work behind all of this?
Finished my languages studies I began to work for a master costume seamstress who taught me a lot, leaving me free to experiment with my first masks and costumes.
Over the years I developed my techniques and my own style. Masks have to be worn like sparkling jewels to enhance the glamorous spirit of Carnival, and the costumes, even if following the original style of their centuries, have to shine on their own light with gold, silver and crystals to make the game even more magical.
I have named my Atelier “Sogno Veneziano” because to come to our city is everyone’s dream, and to live the mysterious atmosphere of Venice is a unique experience.

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Giulia loves to explain and entertain clients and visitors of the shop – here she is giving an interview to a Tv Crewe in January 2016 – photo by Sogno Veneziano Atelier

 

  • How long have you been operating in Venice?

I was born and raised in Venice, and I have always worked in this city.

 

  • What do you love the most about Venice?

Venice is the reason why I do my job. History, atmosphere, monuments, lights and colours inspire me every day. Because everything is part of me.

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All of the dresses and Carnival Costumes packed in the little atelier of Sogno Veneziano

 

  • What would you change in Venice?

Probably there is only one thing that I would change: young Venetians…especially those that have been raised by parents working in commerce. The reason is that many of them think that what tourism gives to the City is due, but nowdays even if we have lots of bad tourists we have even people who come to Venice to really enjoy this place and we can’t treat them as a cash machine. If we want for Venice to rise again from the ashes, we have to go back to an old-fashioned behavior, of good manners and education. We have to learn to respect visitors, no matter the size of their wallets and take a commitment to reveal the real soul of this city.

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Hand made Carnival masks by Igo of Sogno Veneziano Atelier – photo by The RAmbling Epicure Jonell Galloway

You can rent or buy your Carnival costumes from Sogno Veneziano, not only during the Venice Carnival time, but all through the year. The costume rental include the costume, all accessories and much more. Giulia and Igor organize also photobooks and wedding proposals, as well as photowalks in costume.

For information contact:
Sogno Veneziano Atelier

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Sogno Veneziano Atelier

S.Marco (Calle delle Acque) – 5009 cap 30124

Website: www.sognovenezianoatelier.com

E-mail: sognoveneziano@live.com

Tel. +39 041 2413250

Cell. 3406896502

 

Thank you Giulia and Igor, and cutie Romeo and Giulia’s mum, for making people’s dreams come true! And good luck with your next big Carnival Costume Ball on 30th January 2016:

Carnival in Love – Bellini Cocktail – Book Now!

 

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