The Venini glassworks was founded in 1921 by Paolo Venini (1895-1959) and the Venetian antiques dealer Giacomo Cappellin. The company’s first artistic director, Vittorio Zecchin, established a new, bold, and very modern look for Venetian glass that was immediately popular. Venini was among the few Italian manufacturers of applied art invited to exhibit at the landmark 1925 Exposition des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris. It was the only glassworks on Murano to invite outside artists, designers, and architects to work on its premises. Paolo Venini infused Muranese glass making with new life, and under his guidance, the firm’s artistic directors helped to revolutionize glass design in Italy. The fazzoletto (handkerchief) vase, created by Paolo Venini and his artistic director, Fulvio Bianconi (1915-1996), was one of Venini’s most popular designs. This example is made in zanfirico glass, an Italian style of cane decoration that is generally called filigrana (filigree).