VENEZIA.- On the occasion of The Venice Glass Week 2018 , the Gallerie dell'Accademia, in collaboration with Caterina Tognon Vetro Contemporaneo, intend to present a refined selection of glass sculptures by Cristiano Bianchin (Venice, 1963). Gold and black will be the dominant colors of the works chosen to dialogue with the heritage of the museum.

In room I, which presents extraordinary gold backgrounds of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries Venetian, the visitor will be welcomed by a collector of thoughts, a singular type of vase designed by Bianchin, covered, like the paintings, with precious metal. In the apse of the church (Room XXIII), next to polyptych compartments executed by Jacopo Bellini in collaboration with his sons Gentile and Giovanni, anthropomorphic glasses will be presented, ideally reflecting the figures of the Bellinian saints. Finally, in the Palladian corridor on the ground floor (room 7) where Antonio Canova's plaster bas-reliefs are exhibited, the artist establishes a comparison with the great neoclassical sculptor played on the dichotomy between the white of the Canoviani gypsum and the brilliantly colored Murano glass colors used by Bianchin.

Paola Marini , director of the Gallerie dell'Accademia di Venezia, said: "I am happy that the museum is on the calendar of The Venice Glass Week for the second year in a row. After the presentation, in 2017, of the precious work of Giorgio Vigna, it is now the turn of another great glass talent, who has worked with great continuity and intensity in the furnaces of Murano. I am convinced that the work of Cristiano Bianchin will dialogue with the works of our collection, bringing considerable added value: it will be an exhibition to be discovered ".

Cristiano Bianchin, who lives and works in Venice, trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in his hometown attending the Emilio Vedova course and graduating in painting in 1987. In 1992 he made his first works with vitreous matter, and since then he has worked diligently in the furnaces of Murano. In 1993 he was invited to exhibit two great works in woven hemp at the Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa, in the Deterritorial Section of the 45th International Venice Visual Arts Biennial, and in 2009 he was guest of the VENICE Pavilion at the 53rd edition of the Biennale with his precious " "glazing. In 2011 he was given a personal room in Paris at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, on the occasion of the Verre à Venise exhibition - 3 artistes, 3 visions - Cristiano Bianchin, Yoichi Ohira, Laura de Santillana. In 2017 he won the Glass in Venice Award. For the Venetian artist, designing with glass is a necessary analysis of his artistic language, based on the classic Murano glass techniques compared to new and more current formal experiments.

Cristiano Bianchin (Venezia, 1963) lives and works in Venice.

Cristiano Bianchin, Raccoglitore di pensieri, Urna, unique piece, Venezia, 2001. Courtesy Caterina Tognon, Venezia. Photo F. Allegreto.

Cristiano Bianchin, Riposapesi, unique piece, Venezia, 2003-2004. Courtesy Caterina Tognon, Venezia. Photo F. Allegreto.

Cristiano Bianchin, Crisalide con cesto e pigna, unique piece, Venezia, 2005. Courtesy Caterina Tognon, Venezia. Photo F. Allegreto.

Cristiano Bianchin, Crisalide con cesto e pigna (detail), unique piece, Venezia, 2005. Courtesy Caterina Tognon, Venezia. Photo F. Allegreto.

Cristiano Bianchin, Crisaliform (L'Attesa), unique piece, Venezia, 2005. Courtesy of the artist.

Cristiano Bianchin, Crisalislike,contenitore di cocci di vetro, unique piece, Murano, 2005-2006. Courtesy of the artist.

Cristiano Bianchin, Crisaliform (Uomo), unique piece, Venezia, 2007. Courtesy Caterina Tognon, Venezia. Photo F. Allegreto.

Cristiano Bianchin, Crisaliform (Laying), unique piece, Venezia, 2007. Courtesy Caterina Tognon, Venezia. Photo F. Allegreto.

Cristiano Bianchin, Crisalide con cesto, unique piece, Venezia, 2009. Courtesy Private collection, Venezia.

Cristiano Bianchin, Raccoglitore di pensieri, Lingam, unique piece, Venezia, 2013. Courtesy Caterina Tognon, Venezia. Photo F. Allegreto.