“Being able to melt all these colors and have them match chemically so a piece doesn’t break at the end was one of the biggest strengths of Murano glass,” Beltrami added.
A self-confessed pyromaniac who unwittingly torched a sofa before he could walk, Beltrami says glass blowing combines his love of fire with his passion for making things and working with people.
“Glass blowing is kind of like a team sport, because it’s very physical, very intense. You need to work in a team because you can barely do anything by yourself,” he said.
The size and weight of many of the glass objects require at least one person to hold the pipe and turn the molten glass, while another shapes it, and another person may be required to torch the glass to keep it pliable, or add embellishments. “It’s like a choreography,” Beltrami added.
Making waves
At its peak in the 16th century, more than 30,000 people were living on the 1.7-square-mile (4.6-square-kilometer) island of Murano. Now, it is home to around 4,000 people. According to Consorzio Promovetro Murano, a trade consortium that promotes and protects Murano glass, less than a third of them work at the island’s 105 glass-making workshops.
The small factories struggle to compete on large-scale industrial orders, said Beltrami. Murano instead focuses on luxury and artistic glassware, although that too has been threatened by an influx of counterfeit goods: according to Consorzio Promovetro Murano, cheap imitation products are common in Venice’s souvenir stores. Not only do they divert profits from local glassmakers, but they also risk damaging the reputation of Murano glass.
The industry has been further impacted by a series of crises, including the financial crash of 2008, the Covid-19 pandemic, and rising gas prices. But despite the challenges, Beltrami is optimistic about the future of the craft.
A major problem he saw across the factories he worked in previously was antiquated equipment and inefficient processes. So, at Wave Murano Glass, he introduced a variety of modern technologies, including streamlining administrative workflows with AI-enabled software and introducing more energy-efficient furnaces.
Designed in the US, these furnaces capture heat that is typically lost via exhaust fumes and reuse it to preheat the air going into the burner, reducing gas usage by 80% compared to furnaces of a similar size, said Beltrami.
According to Beltrami, Murano’s factories have historically worked on small-scale industrial orders, with many rejecting commissions of less than a few hundred but unable to cater for those of a few thousand. Seeing a missed opportunity, he set up his furnaces to be flexible, allowing Wave to cover anything from one-off pieces, to a few dozen, up to 1,200 pieces.
While the bulk of Wave’s output is white label products for brands, designers, and artists, up to 10% of the company’s turnover comes from classes and tours, which Beltrami hopes can share the art of glass blowing with a wider audience.
His efforts have already paid off. Beltrami has made a point of offering internships to young, enthusiastic talent from around the globe, many of whom are now employed at Wave, including several women, who are underrepresented in the industry.
For Beltrami, finding new talent is an essential step in preserving the craft he’s come to love — and continuing its legacy of artistry and innovation.
“The craftsmanship, the tradition of over a thousand years of history, all make it very special,” he added.