Edited by Marino Barovier and Carla Sonego

Skira Editore, Milan, 2021

Born at San Vito al Tagliamento (Pordenone) but an adoptive Venetian, Toni Zuccheri (1936-2008) trained with his father Luigi, an animal painter, and then graduated in architecture in Venice (1968). While still a student, in late 1961, he came to Venini to take over from his father in designing a glass bestiary that Ludovico de Santillana wanted to create following an idea by Paolo Venini.

This saw the almost fortuitous beginning of a collaboration that was destined to continue over time, albeit irregularly. At Venini, Zuccheri enthusiastically devoted himself to research and experimentation on glass materials, gradually acquiring considerable expertise in both hot and cold working techniques.

The outcome of in-depth research based on partly unpublished material from the historical Venini Archive and the artist’s own personal archive, this book illustrates the results of Zuccheri’s collaboration through the sequence of works, accompanied by drawings and period photographs.