20th century
The company became Ferro Toso Vetrerie Artistiche Riunite S.A in 1936 when Vetreria Artistica Barovier merged with Ferro Toso, specializing in crystalline glass, mother-of-pearl glass, and gold-free cornelian red glass.. In 1942, the company was renamed Barovier & Toso.[9]
In 1919–1920, 30 year old designer Ercole Barovier began a 50-year career as the artistic director of Barovier & Toso. "After studying medicine and working as a radio operator during World War One he joined the family firm in 1920 when he and his brother Nicolo took over the management from their father Benvenuto. From 1927 Ercole was the main designer and from 1934, when Nicolo left the company, (he was) also the sole owner."[10] While Barovier did not have formal training as a glassblower, his artistic designs produced objets d'art that have become the most critically acclaimed in the history of Ercole - Barovier.[11] In 1930 he produced his award-winning “Primavera” series.[12]"The Primavera series ... is distinguished by a milky white 'craquelé ' glass with the addition of black or blue pasta vitrea trim ("opaque colored glass whose consistency is made to appear like ceramic")[13] and decoration. There was a very limited production of this series because it was a result of a glass mixture obtained accidentally so it could never be replicated."[14] One example of this series, a Primavera Pigeon, was sold at auction for GBP 275,000 (approximately $360,000 USD, not inclusive of the buyer’s premium) on October 16, 2019.[15]
Barovier continued to produce innovative designs of which the “Lenti” vase series is an example. “Lenti” was produced in 1940.[16] This vase was a dual ‘layer’ vase. This type of vase is sometimes referred to as 'cased'. “Cased glass combines glass layers of contrasting color, or a colored layer blown with a clear one. The interior layer is, in effect, encased in the exterior … Looking into the interior of a cased object will reveal a color different than that of the exterior. One of the first known examples of cased glass, the Portland Vase, dates from the reign of Roman emperor Caesar Augustus.”[17] The first outer layer of the Lenti vase consisted of a series of clear thick convex semi-globular forms in which small thin leaves of pure gold are suspended. The inner thin layer of the vase was made of a brightly colored glass. The clear outer portion of the vase reflects the color of the inner vase while creating an optical illusion (due to the magnification effect of the convex shaped glass) of large ‘moving’ gold leaves.[18] This series was produced in colors that vary and include cerulean blue, aqua blue, emerald green, lime green and crimson red.[19]
