A Sky Full of Chandeliers in Venice

The world’s most beautiful open-air drawing room, Piazza San Marco in Venice, shines again with the 2nd edition of “Murano Illumina il Mondo”. The project, organized and promoted by The Venice Glass Week and Comune di Venezia, showcases right in the heart of the city some of the finest artistic chandeliers religiously hand crafted with Murano glass. From 22 November 2024 to 4 March 2025, residents and visitors are invited to admire the 11 chandeliers that will be lit every evening at dusk.

For the entire winter period, the lagoon city of Venice will act as an international stage of these brand-new creations that encapsulate the deepest essence of craftsmanship made exclusive by the winning alliance between visionary minds and rooted savoir-faire. This year’s edition involves the participation of 11 globally renowned artists and architects, among whom Joseph Kosuth, Philippe Stark and Kengo Kuma. Participants were demanded to reinterpret an everyday object, the chandelier, using traditional and modern Murano glassmaking techniques.

A shared perspective brings together each project: the desire to spotlight the island of Murano, not only as a centre of an artisanal industry but also as a hotbed of creativity and a hub for international artistic experimentation. Murano glass has always played a crucial role in Italian craftsmanship, but its horizons go far beyond territorial boundaries. “Murano Illumina il Mondo” reminds us of the powerful impact that this refined material had and keeps having all over the world.

The furnaces that produced the chandeliers are: Gianni Seguso, Marina and Susanna Sent, NasonMoretti, Berengo Studio, Barbini Specchi Veneziani, Najean, Massimiliano Schiavon, Giorgio Giuman, Nicola Moretti, Salviati, Vetrate Artistiche Murano and Scuola Abate Zanetti.