Exhibition shows siblings’ passion for glass

But while the family connection is there, the work of Laura de Santillana and Alessandro Diaz de Santillana,could not be more different.

The Venice-based siblings are descendants of the Venini glassware dynasty, established by Paolo Venini on the island of Murano in 1921.

They honed their skills at Venini during their early careers, but went on to develop distinctive practices that break with exacting technical traditions.

Colour is fundamental to Laura’s work, from subtle, misty opaque white and blue forms to strikingly intense yellow pieces. Her technique often involves collapsing the typical blown cylinder, folding it in on itself, to produce slab-like forms which she refers to as ‘glass books’.

In contrast, Alessandro’s pieces are only millimetres thick, have an evasive, ephemeral and fluid quality, inspired by water.

His work include a series of wall and floor panels, which recall the sense of looking into deep, reflecting pools.

YSP’s executive director, Peter Murray, said of the artists: “Separately, they have fine-tuned shared experiences into different and distinctive visual languages.

“What they have in common is a shared passion for glass: the tradition, the craft and the endless possibilities of creating works of art from the magical and unpredictable qualities of this medium.”

The exhibition opens on Saturday and runs until September. For more information visit www.ysp.co.uk