Biography

"To give every modern ambience a typical physiognomy" was one of Flavio Poli's catchy theoretically formulated goals.

His concrete contribution to the aesthetic renewal of Italian households in the post-war years are glasses made of thick crystal glass in bright colors, which today are among the best-known classics of Muranese glass art. Formal parallels to works by Scandinavian glass artists have often been drawn, but there are no concrete models for Flavio Poli's works. The Italians admired Swedes like Vicke Lindstrand for their brilliant handling of colorless crystal glass, while the Scandinavians were enchanted by the lightness, the leggerezza and the understanding of color of the southerners. The exhibitions of the Venice Biennale and the Milan Triennale at the beginning of the 1950s enabled a lively exchange of information, which led to a mutual influence between the two glass art centers. In Sweden in particular, the possibilities explored by Flavio Poli were subsequently developed further and made available to a wider public in less sophisticated models. Flavio Poli's aim was, on the other hand, to create glasses in the quality of free artistic sculptures for an upscale clientele. The basis for his creative work were found objects from nature, such as shells. The surfaces of his strictly stylized vessels were to appear perfect in order to achieve maximum effect and were therefore often ground and molded again afterwards.

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Objects by Flavio Poli