Wednesday 2nd
Again I make it to Carlo Dona’s shop to swap the rod holder over to a stringer holder. Tove and Susanne make it to Carlo Dona’s too. After chatting with Roberto, we head over to Bar De Ice for our morning cappuccino. The sunlight streams into this café in the mornings and it’s lovely to sit and wake up for class here.
Today is day 1 of Pati Walton’s 3-Day Masterclass. This time around I’m better with the glass. Actually my attitude to class is changing. Before I was feeling like a slave to the glass, begging it to behave, puzzling why things wouldn’t work the way I wanted to. The glass was an enigma to me. But now, the more I watch people work glass the more confident I am with the glass. I see people telling the glass what to do and the glass behaving. These classes here in Murano have been worth it, for sure.
This afternoon Dorothy, our Magic sister who is a US lady who lives in Italy, phones up Lucio Bubacco (as you do) and makes an appointment for us all to go over and see him at his studio today. She tried to get us in after Pati’s class, but he preferred we came in sooner. So we took a mid afternoon break and took a class excursion to see Lucio.
His studio is well designed and laid out (and warm!). He is working an instalment of angels which is huge and amazing. Everywhere you look there is something new to see. We walk into the next room and find the equivalent for devils and then some more pieces. We take loads of photos and we are all impressed. He does a quick demo for us – a lady’s arm wearing a beaded bracelet and holding a rose. He uses the same rods of glass from Effetre that we use, some are thicker than what I buy it as but he melts and cools the glass and forms the curves of an arm so simply.
His torch is huge and made for him by Carlisle – it’s in the shape of a dragon’s head which is impressive. This torch he’s able to bring the flame from a huge bushy flame to a small flame. He does some amazing thing with the rod of glass – making a punty with it but it’s only as thick as fine stringer. This attachment never breaks during the demo. It’s kind of hard to describe, and I hope I have a photo to show you it.
We leave Lucio’s studio to walk back to our studio but there is a huge thunderstorm brewing. The wind is whipping at us but no rain yet. We high tail it back to the studio just in time. Laura from Vetrofond comes for a visit today too, bringing her daughter and a friend. We all settle back into our masterclass with Pati again and I get my garden bead finished. I spill my after class beer over my rods and stringer. Argh.
Tonight is another night at home rather than Venice. I hit the supermarket before it shuts and run into Indie too. The storm is well over and the sunset is bringing out some beautiful pinks on the old Murano buildings. Indie and I stop at various points on the way home to take photos. Daylight savings is a little weird at first but it’s definitely has its good points.
(PS. For the reason behind the “carrot” joke you might read about on other people’s blogs/comments – see the Lucio photos…when I post them up.)
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