Crab

Artist Vittorio Costantini (Italian, born 1944)

Place of OriginVenice

Date1990-2000

DimensionsH: 2 3/4 in. (69.85 mm); W: 4 1/4 in. (103.41 mm).

MediumMulti-colored non-lead glass; flameworked.

ClassificationGlass

Credit LineGift of Philip and Nancy L. Williams in memory of Page Hazlegrove

Object number

2013.25

Not on View

DescriptionTransparent grey-brown and opaque black, reddish brown, and white non-lead glasses, metal foil; flameworked with metallic inclusions. Life-size crab; trapezoidal carapace with metal foil inclusion beneath a fine network of opaque white filigree glass; reddish-brown applied eyes on transparent brown eyestalks, pair of short antennae extend out, flanked by an anterior pair of limbs modified as grasping pincers extending forward; three pairs of articulated mottled walking legs and one pair of swimming legs at the back.

Label TextVittorio Costantini was born on the island of Burano near the Venetian glass center of Murano, both situated in the Venetian lagoon. He is the son of a fisherman and a traditional lace maker. He began an apprenticeship in a local glass factory at the early age of 11. Initially, flameworking was a hobby that occupied the little time he had after a long day working in the factory. Since Costantini opened his own workshop in the Cannareggio quarter of Venice, flameworking has become his true focus and passion, allowing him to pursue his life-long fascination with nature. His highly naturalistic depictions of insects, birds, fish, and crustaceans are marvels of meticulous glassworking—even the coloration is achieved solely with glass, not painting. Published ReferencesCf. Frantz, Susanne K., Contemporary Glass: A World Survey from The Corning Museum of Glass, Henry Abrams: 1989, p. 207.