Masks of Venice

In fact, some of them have even been used for films or featured in the prestigious California Shakespeare Festival. Its owners, brothers Sergio and Massimo Boldrin, put into each mask all their passion for their craft and create genuine master pieces that range in all sorts of prices. Home to the fascinating talent of sculptor Guerrino Lovato, this mask-making shop in Dorsoduro is one of the oldest in the city and is worth a visit even if you do not wish to buy anything.

It offers a good choice of masks both traditional and modern and it is possible to arrange an appointment to see the masks being made. These two shops on Frezzeria, close to the San Marco Calle Vallaresso vaporetto stop, are owned by the acclaimed atelier Antonia Sautter, the lady in charge of organising the most prestigious carnival ball in Venice: Il Ballo del Doge. All the masks and costumes in the shops are individually handmade and feature touches of fantasy and creativity that make them unique items.

Most of the masks are signed by the artists, which make them the perfect souvenir.

And at Il Sole e La Luna, you can even see them being made right in front of you! Family-run shop close to the Rialto Bridge whose masks have been featured in the California Shakespeare Festival.

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Home to the fascinating talent of sculptor Guerrino Lovato, this mask-making shop in Dorsoduro is one of the oldest in the city. If you want to look the part and mix with the crowd during the Carnival, make this shop your one and only stop. Based in Zurich, Switzerland, our company was the first luxury travel agency to combine a digital experience with individually personalised support.

History of Venetian masks

The original masks were rather simple in design, decoration, and often had a symbolic and practical function. Nowadays, most Italian masks are made with the application of gesso and gold leaf and are hand-painted using natural feathers and gems to decorate. This competition accelerates the decline of this historical craftsmanship peculiar to the city of Venice.

There is little evidence explaining the motive for the earliest mask wearing in Venice. One scholar argues that covering the face in public was a uniquely Venetian response to one of the most rigid class hierarchies in European history. The first documented sources mentioning the use of masks in Venice can be found as far back as the 13th century.

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Another law in forbade Venetians from wearing vulgar disguises and visiting convents while masked. The law also prohibited painting one's face, or wearing false beards or wigs. Near the end of the Republic, the wearing of the masks in daily life was severely restricted. By the 18th century, it was limited only to about three months from December The masks were traditionally worn with decorative beads matching in colour.

Several distinct styles of mask are worn in the Venice Carnival, some with identifying names. The mask's beak-like chin is designed to enable the wearer to talk, eat, and drink without having to remove it; thereby, preserving the wearer's anonymity. The bauta was often accompanied by a red or black cape and a tricorn. In the 18th century, together with a black cape called a "tabarro", the bauta had become a standardized society mask and disguise regulated by the Venetian government. Its role was similar to the anonymizing processes invented to guarantee general, direct, free, equal and secret ballots in modern democracies.

Also, the bearing of weapons along with the mask was specifically prohibited by law and enforceable by the Venetian police. Given this history and its grotesque design elements, the bauta was usually worn by men, but many paintings done in the 18th century also depict women wearing this mask and tricorn hat. The Colombina also known as Columbine and as a Colombino is a half-mask, only covering the wearer's eyes, nose, and upper cheeks.

Behind the mask – Traditional mask making in Venice

It is often highly decorated with gold, silver, crystals, and feathers. It is held up to the face by a baton or is tied with ribbon as with most other Venetian masks. The Colombina mask is named after a stock character in the Commedia dell'arte: Colombina was a maidservant and soubrette who was an adored part of the Italian theatre for generations. It is said it was designed for an actress because she did not wish to have her beautiful face covered completely.

In fact, the Colombina is entirely a modern creation. There are no historic paintings depicting its use on the stage or in social life. While both men and women now wear this mask, it began as a woman's analog to the bauta. The Medico della peste , with its long beak, is one of the most bizarre and recognizable of the Venetian masks, though it did not start out as carnival mask at all but as a method of preventing the spread of disease.

The striking design originates from 17th-century French physician Charles de Lorme who adopted the mask together with other sanitary precautions while treating plague victims. Its use as a carnival mask is entirely a modern convention, and today these masks are often much more decorative. Although the mask and costume is worn almost exclusively by males, the enhancement in decoration also suggests that women are now more likely to wear the mask and costume than in previous years at the Carnival.

The plague doctors who followed De Lorme's example wore the usual black hat and long black cloak as well as the mask, white gloves and a staff so as to be able to move patients without having to come into physical contact with them. They hoped these precautions would prevent them contracting the disease. The mask was originally beaked with a purpose in congruence with the miasmatic theory of disease practiced at that time: Those who wear the plague doctor mask often also wear the associated clothing of the plague doctor. But perhaps some of the most evocative images come from the masked Carnival celebrations every spring.

Some historians argue that Venetians wanted to subvert the rigid social class structures and that by wearing a mask everyone became equal.

The wearer could disguise or completely conceal their identity or status, moving about the city freely whether a duchess or dancer, maid or minister, actor or archbishop. Consequently masks became more popular and were permitted throughout a large part of the year not just during Carnevale. As the use of masks increased the mask-makers mascherari began to enjoy a special place in Venetian society, forming a workers guild with their own laws. Mascherari were held up alongside painters for their artistry and even today, the few artisan mascherari operating in the city are highly regarded, although sadly only a small number remain.

One company which continues the traditional methods of mask-making is Peter Pan Masks , run by 3 Venetian sisters in the Santa Croce sestiere or district of the city. Its not as simple as it might look! During the plague, doctors would stuff the nose with cloth soaked in aromatics to keep the smell of death away. But the long nose had another use too. The doctors also wore gloves and carried a stick to enable them to move patients without actually touching them as another precaution.

Whether these measures actually saved the lives of any doctors we may never know but certainly they trusted in the masks to keep them safe. As well as explaining the history of masks, the hour-long demonstration also offers the chance to choose a blank mask and decorate it in any style you want, copying a Venetian pattern or coming up with your own fantasy.

Elisabetta explained some of the different decorative styles. Some were masculine like the ones with hatched eyebrows, others more feminine. I chose the columbina shape, a mask which covers just the eyes, nose and upper cheeks, and adapted a red, gold and black Venetian design. It requires a steady hand, a fluid stroke and most of all a sense of symmetry. To avoid a wonky design its best to lightly draw your pattern onto the gesso in pencil first as at least it can be erased if necessary! The paint soaks in fast too and shows the brush strokes so requires careful application.

It all takes concentration and clearly Elisabetta and her sisters have had more practice than me!

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