lilla tabasso creates hyperrealistic flowers and roots in murano glass

Lilla Tabasso captures the fleeting moments of nature in glass

At first glance, Lilla Tabasso’s installation at The inaugural exhibition of the Dries Van Noten Foundation in Venice it seems to be a living garden. Wildflowers emerge from clumps of earth, stems bend under their weight, and tangled roots spread across the ground as if newly discovered. Only after a closer look does the illusion break and visitors realize that nothing is alive. Every petal, leaf, stem and root has been painstakingly sculpted Murano glass.

The Milan-based artist’s works are currently on display as part of The Only True Protest Is Beauty exhibition, the foundation’s inaugural exhibition at Palazzo Pisani Moretta. Among more than 200 works celebrating craftsmanship and artistic expression, Tabasso’s fragile botanical landscapes stand out for their uncanny realism.

all works by Lilla Tabasso | ZOLLA, image by Roberto Marossi via @lilla.tabasso

Beyond botanical perfection

For Tabasso, beauty does not lie in perfection. Her attention is drawn to flowers at the end of their life cycle: a tulip bending to the ground, a petal bruised by time, a leaf beginning to dry and fold in on itself. These small transformations become the subject of her intricate glass sculptures, inviting viewers to linger in moments that are usually overlooked.

Working with the centuries-old Murano lamp processing technique, The Italian artist he uses glass to capture what is inherently temporary. Delicate blooms that would normally wither within days are preserved indefinitely, creating a tension between permanence and decay, strength and vulnerability.

Lilla Tabasso’s installation at Fondazione Dries Van Noten’s The Only True Protest Is Beauty | image from Matteo De Mayda

Where biology meets art

Before devoting herself to glass, Tabaso studied biology. Scientific observation remains at the heart of her work, informing the exquisite level of detail visible in every leaf and flower. Her sculptures transcend documentation, initially resembling botanical specimens and ultimately functioning as emotional portraits of natural processes.

The artist taught herself lampmaking after finding little encouragement in the traditionally male-dominated world of Murano glassmaking. Working directly on the torch, he manipulates colored glass rods into extremely vivid forms, creating subtle tonal variations layer by layer.

each petal, leaf, stem and root has been painstakingly sculpted from Murano glass | image via @lilla.tabasso

Transience of creation

Tabasso’s work belongs to a long line of vanitas images that use flowers as reminders of life’s transience. In a moment marked by environmental uncertainty and increasing disconnection from nature, her sculptures ask viewers to pay attention to moments that are often overlooked: the flower after it blooms, the leaf as it dries, the root hidden beneath the surface.

Through her perspective and practice, the artist presents an exciting vision of what craft can be, using inherited techniques to address contemporary concerns. The artist shows how centuries of knowledge can remain relevant, helping us understand transformation, vulnerability and our relationship with the living world.

Uncultivated Garden, Zolla Tulipani, 2025 by Lilla Tabasso. Courtesy of the artist and Caterina Tognon | image from the Roberto Marossi Dries Van Noten Foundation, Venice