The creation of traditional Burano lace is one of the most laborious undertakings in the history of art.
Today, I'm taking you through this topic in detail in a comprehensive article!
Burano lace: article summary
The origins of Burano lace
The origins of Venetian lace are lost in history. According to legend, a sailor in love gave a young Venetian girl an aquatic plant called mermaid lace. The young girl, seduced, immortalized her beautiful form with fine threads. The art of lacemaking was born.
For centuries, Venetian lacemakers have produced marvels of their own breathtakingly complex. Extremely fine pieces sewn together with the finest threads. For three hundred years, their work has claimed the most prestigious lace pedigree in Italy, if not the world.
The early years of Burano lace
The first Venetian laces were produced inside convents. They were reserved for church vestments, altar cloths and other delicate church finery. Commercial guilds also began making lace in the XVᵉ and XVIᵉ centuries. However, convents continued to be prolific centers of lace production.
Because lacemaking was considered an appropriate task for a woman, especially one devoted to the contemplative life, many cloistered women spent most of their lives with needle and thread.
Burano's golden age
The apogee of the Burano extends from around 1620 to 1710. This period saw an explosion in demand among European nobility and royalty. Venetian lace became known as punto in aria for its delicate effects.
In those days, fashion demanded lace collars and cuffs for men and women.
Burano lace gained such renown that it became a status symbol for European nobility. Portraits of noblemen wearing extravagant lace collars helped make Venetian lace a status symbol among the aristocracy in Paris.
Burano lace conquers the world
Venetian lace is well documented among the most prized possessions of European nobles. In the 1600s, an inventory of the wardrobe of Elizabeth Iʳᵉ of England included "Venice sylver" and "Venys gold" lace. A testament to the practice of weaving precious metal braids into lace patterns for expensive refined garments. Punto in aria is also well documented throughout the Renaissance in women's dowry inventories.
To meet the growing demand for Venetian lace, fabric merchants moved lace production to the lagoon's outlying islands to employ low-cost lacemakers. Soon, the lace produced on the island of Burano became Europe's most coveted lace.
Women began to work almost on a production line to supply the clothmakers' guild. Although the lacemakers themselves never became rich, they could afford to occupy the most beautiful palaces in Venice.
The end of an era
Finally, the rise of French and Flemish production centers marked the end of an era for Burano lace. By the end of the XVIIᵉ century, fierce competition with these northern rivals brought the decline of the Venetian lace industry.
French needle lace, point de France, gained in popularity and Venetian lacemakers began to borrow French motifs. When collars made from Flemish bobbin lace became fashionable in the XVIIIᵉ century, Venetian lacemakers imitated it, giving rise to a new type of lace known as "lace à la aiguille". under the name of punto Burano.
As Venetian lace began to fall out of favor, attempts were made to found a lace school in Burano. However, by the end of the XVIIIᵉ century, in the wake of the revolutions, people no longer wanted to wear fashions associated with the aristocracy.
Burano lace in the modern world
In 1872, the Scuola di Merletti, or lace school, opened thanks to the patronage of Countess Adriana Marcello. In addition, several other noblewomen agreed to buy the work produced by the school. Fambri also brought together several companies to start producing and selling traditional lace.
One of these companies belonged to a Venetian entrepreneur by the name of Michelangelo Jesurum. In 1939, the company was sold to the Levi Morenos family, who continue to operate the business under the Jesurum name today.
Many of the women you see in Burano today making lace in the squares and on the sidewalks learned the craft in childhood. The craft lives on thanks to today's bustling Venetian tourist trade, which still provides buyers for this age-old art form.
On a trip to Venice, I recommend a visit to the islands of Burano and Murano. These places are true centers of artistic creation dedicated to tradition. A great way to discover the exceptional know-how of the local people!
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