Have you ever been perusing some of
Swank Lighting’s great lamp products only to come across a word or name you are not familiar with? One word that shows up often is “Seguso,” as in Archimede Seguso, one of the great masters of glassblowing from Italy. We thought we'd tell you a little bit about Archimede Seguso for today’s designer influence so next time you see it, you know how great of a moniker it is!
Seguso was born in 1909, into a family long considered experts at glass. In fact, Seguso’s family history can be traced back to the 14th Century to the libro d’oro of the citizens of Murano, Venice. Starting young, Seguso’s glass career began at the tender age of 14. Even that young he was able to work under great masters and learn the specialized skills necessary to become one of the finest Venetian glassblowers of the twentieth century.
He worked under various glass artists for years, eventually making it to the Seguso Vetri d’Arte, where he became partner and maestro. Leaving Seguso Vetri D’Arte in 1942, Seguso didn’t take long to open up his own glass factory, the Veteria Archimede Seguso, in 1946, where he led the glassblowing as artistic director and chief designer. Proving that sometimes talent is genetic, Seguso was eventually joined by his sons in glassblowing: oldest son Gino Seguso in 1959, his second son Giampaolo Seguso followed in 1964 and his grandson Antonio Seguso in 1985.
It’s not just Seguso’s skill and talent that made his work so famous—it was his brave inventions and additions to the art of glassmaking. He’s most famous for his Merletto Vases, which were glass vases created using the ancient technique of filigrana. His secret for doing it inside the glass by floating dainty threads of color inside the glass, rather than on top of the surface of vessels as was tradition, made his work so successful. He was also know for the Losanghe vase in a lattimo-cased glass with geometric designs, and the macchie ambria design, which featured gold and green amorphous designs that were contained in a thick wall surrounded with gold powder.
Seguso wasn’t just known for vases, though. Seguso considered himself a sculptor and an avid lover of animals, so it should come as no surprise that Seguso is also known for a wide array of animal figurines. Also, in the 1950s he became known for his alabaster figurines and accessories that mimicked natural white alabaster, as well as other stones, in a lot of colors. Of course, if you’ve been keeping up with Swank Lighting, then you also know that his work looks great mounted and made into lamps! Though Archimede Seguso passed away in 1999, his sons, grandsons and company still live on with his legacy, creating great glasswork that continues to stretch open the ideas of glassblowing conventions everywhere!
Seguso was born in 1909, into a family long considered experts at glass. In fact, Seguso’s family history can be traced back to the 14th Century to the libro d’oro of the citizens of Murano, Venice. Starting young, Seguso’s glass career began at the tender age of 14. Even that young he was able to work under great masters and learn the specialized skills necessary to become one of the finest Venetian glassblowers of the twentieth century.
He worked under various glass artists for years, eventually making it to the Seguso Vetri d’Arte, where he became partner and maestro. Leaving Seguso Vetri D’Arte in 1942, Seguso didn’t take long to open up his own glass factory, the Veteria Archimede Seguso, in 1946, where he led the glassblowing as artistic director and chief designer. Proving that sometimes talent is genetic, Seguso was eventually joined by his sons in glassblowing: oldest son Gino Seguso in 1959, his second son Giampaolo Seguso followed in 1964 and his grandson Antonio Seguso in 1985.
It’s not just Seguso’s skill and talent that made his work so famous—it was his brave inventions and additions to the art of glassmaking. He’s most famous for his Merletto Vases, which were glass vases created using the ancient technique of filigrana. His secret for doing it inside the glass by floating dainty threads of color inside the glass, rather than on top of the surface of vessels as was tradition, made his work so successful. He was also know for the Losanghe vase in a lattimo-cased glass with geometric designs, and the macchie ambria design, which featured gold and green amorphous designs that were contained in a thick wall surrounded with gold powder.
Seguso wasn’t just known for vases, though. Seguso considered himself a sculptor and an avid lover of animals, so it should come as no surprise that Seguso is also known for a wide array of animal figurines. Also, in the 1950s he became known for his alabaster figurines and accessories that mimicked natural white alabaster, as well as other stones, in a lot of colors. Of course, if you’ve been keeping up with Swank Lighting, then you also know that his work looks great mounted and made into lamps! Though Archimede Seguso passed away in 1999, his sons, grandsons and company still live on with his legacy, creating great glasswork that continues to stretch open the ideas of glassblowing conventions everywhere! 
