Overview
Lino Tagliapietra (Italian, born 1934) combines techniques, colors, motifs, and forms he mastered as a glassblower in the factories of his native Murano, Italy, with innovative ideas gathered from his travels, teaching, and encounters with American Studio Glass artists. The works he produced since the beginning of his artistic career in 1959 are stunning explorations that transform his concepts into fluid sculptural forms.
His mastery of glass—stretching and bending it into elongated shapes and creating intricate surfaces, both smooth and etched—demonstrates his depth of understanding of the material. These elements, merged with his characteristic inventiveness, established Tagliapietra as an artist who has had a profound impact on glassmaking over the course of his long and distinguished career.
Lino Tagliapietra: Master of Beauty features more than 40 pieces created over the last 20 years with examples from several of his most important series, including Batman, Dinosaur, and his wall installations.
Above: Photograph of the 2018 installation of the exhibition at the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts.
“I think in glass. I think about the material, the fire, the technique, the movement.”
— Lino Tagliapietra
Organizer
Organized by the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Montgomery, Alabama.
Sponsor
Support for this exhibition was provided by corporate sponsor Hyundai Motor Manufacturing, Alabama with additional support from lead sponsors Charles and Winifred Stakely and sponsors Laura and Barrie Harmon and Dawn and Adam Schloss. This exhibition was supported by a grant from the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass.
Gallery
Featured Videos
Glass Masters at Work: Lino Tagliapietra
Corning Museum of Glass, published 2010
Lino Tagliapietra Museum of Glass
Museum of Glass, published 2017