‘Henge and I were grown up in the same land, we speak the same language. Both of us we create beautiful and special items. With special, I mean things that nobody have ever seen before, out of the mass’
What is the perfect creation made of? First of all, of emotional music that creates an order among the different yet complementary elements. A music that nourishes art, able to transform an artwork into something unique instead of a serial product. A brilliant masterpiece that has to be ambiguous, never objective. Then, it is made of creations without a clear and defined meaning, carrying a little of uncertainty inside instead. This way only, in the uncertainty, people will be mesmerized by the creations and they will not limit themselves just using them. Every artwork has to be allusive and never too direct, because the ones to charm are the shades, not the full colours. Shades —on the tones of grey and amethyst— like the ones lived during the childhood by Giberto Arrivabene Valenti Gonzaga, Murano master glassmaker, that depict a portrait of Venice, his hometown, with placid, dramatic, deeply romantic hues. An enchanted place —that Arrivabene lived from his rooms at Papadopoli Palace, among the frescos of Tiepolo and his domestic affections— without nowadays poetic light. Art is poetry, speaking without speaking, suggesting creative shades able to indicate something only hinted at, never explained. Because creativity and art have to be fully savored and the only way to do so is letting yourselves be charmed by them, by the concealed and mysterious knowledges. With these conceptual premises, the dialogue between Henge and Giberto Arrivabene opened last January, in the countryside outside of Venice. A shared manifesto that is transformed into a real cultural manufacture based on a solid balance between content and aesthetic, where material, knowledge and form are combined in the light of a timeless appearance, able to create contemporary stylish items far from the cold minimalism. Artifacts that tell historic values, research and love for art.
The appreciation from Henge side for the world of Murano Glass is total. A significant selection of 2016 proposals introduced at Salone Internazionale del Mobile, Milan, investigated the artisan knowledge of Murano’s lands, the island in the open sea of Venice, where hovers the spirit of a mystic place that through its labs developed timeless knowledge. Just like Henge production philosophy, that restores this precious tradition and makes it informal and nonchalant protagonist of a collection of unique pieces. Personal items that refuse the standard characteristics of design serial production, favoring the perfect imperfections of handcrafting.
The relationship between Henge and Giberto Arrivabene gave birth to an exclusive collection of pieces for the house entirely handcrafted: glasses, vases, centerpieces, pitchers that are the perfect accessories to get inside the houses and the places of Henge. An ode to the most refined art de la table, that underlies the research of a functionality able to tell the passion and the craftsmanship know-how without no compromises.
The meeting with Henge, what are the affinities that connect you?
Henge and I have grown up in the same land, we speak the same language. Both of us we create beautiful and special items. With special, I mean things that nobody has ever seen before, out of the mass. Nowadays, everything is depersonalized, whereas we want to create custom made objects, produced on demand of others, difficult to realize and able to be timeless protagonists. My world is the world of Murano Glass, a noble material that is timeless for nature. If I should buy a XVIII century glass and an identical one produced today, they would be almost unrecognizable. It is a magic material, that steps outside of the laws of time and will never grow old.
What are the most thrilling challenges in the production of a perfect Murano Glass?
Murano Glass means total customization, where the concept of design meant as a formal application of serial production aesthetics is rejected. I spent four years working on my one-meter scaled reproduction of Canova’s “Paolina Borghese”, which has been exposed at Biennale di Venezia, inside the Victoria and Albert Museum pavilion. A great satisfaction. In a wider sense, my biggest challenge is to be always contemporary. With Henge, I tried to unite its great modernity with the classic taste of my creations. I still do not know if I succeeded, but I love the final result. I hope others will love it as well.
How do Henge’s philosophy and a luxury material so shiny and light get along together? And how do their two worlds communicate in Air Light?
The fruit of art is something airy, sweet and impalpable itself. Our added value lays in the praise of materials and the quality of techniques, which form empiric installations with lofty and light structures.
Henge and I are working on a new item that combines glass and furniture, inspired by the artist Giacomo Balla. A game of perspectives, that for the moment I cannot unveil.
What is the perfect creation made of? First of all, of emotional music that creates an order among the different yet complementary elements. A music that nourishes art, able to transform an artwork into something unique instead of a serial product. A brilliant masterpiece that has to be ambiguous, never objective. Then, it is made of creations without a clear and defined meaning, carrying a little of uncertainty inside instead. This way only, in the uncertainty, people will be mesmerized by the creations and they will not limit themselves just using them. Every artwork has to be allusive and never too direct, because the ones to charm are the shades, not the full colours. Shades —on the tones of grey and amethyst— like the ones lived during the childhood by Giberto Arrivabene Valenti Gonzaga, Murano master glassmaker, that depict a portrait of Venice, his hometown, with placid, dramatic, deeply romantic hues. An enchanted place —that Arrivabene lived from his rooms at Papadopoli Palace, among the frescos of Tiepolo and his domestic affections— without nowadays poetic light. Art is poetry, speaking without speaking, suggesting creative shades able to indicate something only hinted at, never explained. Because creativity and art have to be fully savored and the only way to do so is letting yourselves be charmed by them, by the concealed and mysterious knowledges. With these conceptual premises, the dialogue between Henge and Giberto Arrivabene opened last January, in the countryside outside of Venice. A shared manifesto that is transformed into a real cultural manufacture based on a solid balance between content and aesthetic, where material, knowledge and form are combined in the light of a timeless appearance, able to create contemporary stylish items far from the cold minimalism. Artifacts that tell historic values, research and love for art.
