Inspired by international expositions, including the Venice Biennale art fairs, Murano glassmakers began around 1900 to adopt art nouveau trends, distinguished by simplified elegance. This new direction became known in Italy as the stile floreale (floral style), given its frequent flower motifs, or stile Liberty (Liberty style) in reference to London's Liberty department store, a promoter of this movement. In glassware its principal characteristics are smooth profiles and experimental use of murrhines, thin glass discs that can be combined into complex patterns or pictures. Such designs slowly replaced historically inspired gilding, enamel painting, and bravura sculptural flourishes.
Sargent, Whistler, and Venetian Glass: American Artists and the Magic of Murano, 2021.
