
Dino Martens
1894–1970
In the world of 20th century Murano glass design, Dino Martens's legacy is that of inventiveness, experimentation, and excess. We have offered nearly 150 Martens designs at auction, and hold many of the top results for works by the honored glassmaker.
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Dino Martens at a Glance
He was born Corrado ‘Dino’ Martens in Venice.
Martens served in the First World War.
He trained as a painter, but collaborated with several glass factories including the firms S.A.L.I.R (Studio Ars et Labor Industrie Riunite) and Salviati & Co. providing visionary glass designs.
He regularly participated in the Venice Biennale between the years of 1924 through 1934.
In 1947, Martens was appointed the artistic director of Aureliano Toso where he remained until retiring in 1959.


(Dino Martens) was artistic (not to say Bohemian), meticulous, unwilling to compromise and gifted with a rich imagination…
Marc Heiremans

Dino Martens 1894–1970
Born in Venice in 1894, Dino Martens studied painting and design at the Accademia di Belle Art in Rome. A talented artist, his paintings were exhibited at the Venice Biennale between 1924 and 1930. In the mid-1920s, Martens was a partner and decorator for S.A.L.I.R. and later took a position as designer for Salviati & Co. In 1939, upon returning from the African War, Martens became artistic director for the famed glass firm, Aureliano Toso.
Martens' work for Aureliano Toso has become legendary for its inventiveness, experimentation and excess. His innovative use of oversized murrines, brightly colored metallic powders and fragments of glass rods, all expressed in wildly biomorphic forms, have become synonymous with Murano glass style of the 1950s.
His innovative use of oversized murrines, brightly colored metallic powders and fragments of glass rods, all expressed in wildly biomorphic forms, have become synonymous with Murano glass style of the 1950s. The Oriente series in particular can be seen as the ultimate expression of Martens’ vision—biomorphic shapes and patchwork compositions full of multi-colored Zanfirico canes, sprays of brightly colored pigment, and black and white murrine pin-wheels. While the Oriente series does possess an undeniable shock-value, even Martens’ wildest designs were carefully rendered from preparatory drawings. To many of these he also attached poetic names such as Nabucco, Ati and Dialettica.
Martens’ life as a soldier, adventurer and painter ultimately found concrete expression in his glass designs. He flourished in the post-war climate of openness which encouraged experimentation. Of the numerous series he created in the 1950s, each seems to suggest an endless array of variants and possibilities.
During his final years at Aureliano Toso, Martens designed pieces which express a greater sensitivity to subtle chromatic effects. For these he often chose elongated forms. These pieces are quite rare, and demonstrate a refined aesthetic at the end of a vibrant and dynamic creative life.
Auction Results Dino Martens


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