Luca Nichetto Upcycles Murano Glass Into Lighting for Astep

"An exercise in reclamation, the ollection by Luca Nichetto for Astep transforms fragments of precious Murano glass into sculptural lighting, elevating what would otherwise be waste back into the realm of high design. The collection reimagines discarded material with a new identity, offering not just a sustainable solution but also an entirely fresh aesthetic. Because of its pigmentation, Murano glass fragments are traditionally considered unrecyclable."

""When I first saw this new material," Nichetto explains, "I got the idea of rolling and spreading it by hand, much like you would roll a flour dough to make pizza, and then shape it into a mold." This playful yet deliberate approach gives each lamp a distinct personality, with undulating surfaces that make no two pieces alike. Unlike conventional glasswork, which requires heating at 1,200 degrees, the molds for the Upglas collection are baked at just 400 degrees - closer to pizza-making than to traditional glassblowing."

"The innovation lies in the process, developed in partnership with Rehub Glass. First, the fragments are ground into a fine powder, then blended with a patented, biodegradable resin that acts as a binder. The mixture forms a pliable, dough-like paste, which can be rolled, shaped, and pressed into molds before being cured under heat. Because these colors inherently have different compositions from the makeup of the glass, each will be unique, beholden to the natural process of color theory."

Pigmented Murano glass fragments, typically considered unrecyclable, are reclaimed and transformed into sculptural lighting by grinding them into powder and blending with a biodegradable resin. The resulting dough-like paste can be rolled, spread, shaped, and pressed into molds, then cured at around 400 degrees—far lower than traditional 1,200-degree glasswork. The cured pieces show undulating, translucent surfaces with color veining and subtle striations that evoke natural stone while remaining featherlight. Each piece is inherently unique due to pigment composition differences, creating a sustainable material innovation developed in partnership with Rehub Glass.

Read at Design Milk