Michela Cattai is an Italian artist working between Milan and Venice, whose practice explores the sculptural and expressive potential of glass.
She graduated in Painting from the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice and later specialized in Glass Design, earning a Master’s degree from Bocconi University in Milan.
Working at the intersection of painting and sculpture, Cattai employs glass to construct visual structures in which color, depth, and transparency generate spatial and perceptual tension. Through processes of layering and chromatic density, her works investigate the transformation of matter, giving rise to forms that appear suspended between solidity and dissolution. In this context, glass becomes a medium through which memory, abstraction, and visual rhythm take shape.
In 1991, she founded the Galleria ART+DESIGN in Milan’s Brera district, anticipating a dialogue between contemporary art and design that continues to inform her artistic vision.
Her work has been presented internationally, including solo exhibitions at the Italian Chamber of Deputies in Rome, the Italian Cultural Institute in Tokyo, and the National Archaeological Museum of Venice. Represented by leading international galleries, her practices have been presented at major platforms including Design Miami/Paris, PAD London, Salon Art+Design New York, Nomad St. Moritz/Abu Dhabi, Tokyo Gendai, and Design Miami.
Her works are held in prominent permanent collections, including the Stiftung Museum Kunst Palast in Düsseldorf, the Murano Glass Museum, and the Italian Embassy in Tokyo.
In 2019 she was appointed Art Director of Venini. Since 2023, she has devoted herself entirely to her independent artistic research, further strengthening her international presence.

Exhibitions
UPCOMING

PROJECTING MATTER
20 – 26 April 2026
Milan
In the courtyard Via Brera 4

HOMO FABER 2026
AN ISLAND OF LIGHT
1 – 30 September 2026
Venice
Fondazione Giorgio Cini
Press

AD International 2025
Glass, Reimagined
PAD London Edition

FINANCIAL TIMES 2025
Venetian craft meets modern form
Design Special

ELLE DECOR Korea 2025
Vetro soffiato di Murano e forme fluide
Design Editorial Feature

AD Italia 2025
Morbido, fluido, naturale
Contemporary Murano glass
Milano Design Week selection

IL SOLE 24 ORE 2025
Vetro in casa, un ritorno da protagonista
Focus on contemporary glass
Milano Design Week

ELLE DECOR ITALIA 2025
Luce, riflessi e nuove forme dell’abitare
Milano Design Week Selection

MF MILANO FINANZA 2025
The Secret Ball,
Celebrating Serapian’s Mestieri D’Arte Legacy
Milano Fashion Week 2025
Michela Cattai for Serapian

AD Italia 2025
Nomad St.Moritz 2025
The Best of the 2025
Edition of Nomad in St. Moritz

RIZE BOOKAZINE 2024
Glass… With Glass
Collector’s Edition Editorial Showcase

GARDENIA 2024
Piante di barena
Botanica Adriatica – Murano glass

AD Italia 2024
Ventimila leghe sopra i mari
Glass sculptures

MARIE CLAIRE MAISON 2024
HOMOFABER 2024, Fondazione Giorgio Cini
Editorial Highlight

STYLE MAGAZINE 2024
Intervista a Michela Cattai e Véronique NybergNectars Collection – The Merchant of Venice

IFDM 2024
Michela Cattai: la magia del vetro
Venice Glass Week 2024
Exclusive Conversation

VILLEGIARDINI 2024
The Merchant of Venice presents la Nectars Collection
Arte e Cultura
Limited Edition for TMOV

IL SOLE 24 ORE – HTSI 2024
Lo voglio!
Botanica Adriatica by Michela Cattai
HOMO FABER: The Journey of Life

LA REPUBBLICA DESIGN 2024
Il mio vetro germoglia in Laguna
Milan Design Week 2024
Interview Special Feature

ELLE DECOR ITALIA 2024
Progetto Totale – Material Home La mostra di Elle Decor
Italia a Palazzo Bovara
Milano Design Week 2024

EXIBART 2024
Una biodiversità in vetro:
Scoprendo il lavoro di Michela Cattai

NATURAL STYLE 2024
Un viaggio tra i distretti della creatività.
A Brera, Vetro e Biodiversità
Interview

WALLPAPER 2024
Botanica Adriatica
Contemporary glass sculptures
in Aspen mountain chalet

Class TV MODA 2024
Botanica Vitrea Collection
Television Intreview

ELLE DECOR 2024
Selected artworks
for Material Home exhibition at
Palazzo Bovara Milano

LIVING CORRIERE 2024
Corallo, unique piece
Contemporary glass sculpture

TL mag 2024
Sculpting the inner force of nature
Art, Mastery and Millennial tradition: Michela Cattai & Yoshimi Futamura
Interview

IO DONNA 2024
In chiaro scuro. Oltre la luce e ombra. Cattai e Tintoretto.
Chiaroscuro Exhibition

MARIE CLAIRE Maison 2023
La finestra sul cortile
Contrasto, blown glass sculpture.
Limited edition for Venini

ARTRIBUNE 2023
Cortecce dell’anima della natura
Exhibition ART + DESIGN,
Michela Cattai / Graeme Black

AD 2O23
A Londra un’immensa casa vittoriana con spa e piscina.
Fasce Canneto collection

VILLEGIARDINI 2O23
Galleria Kalpa:
Il futuro è un viaggio nel passato
Linfa series, glass and bronze

CORRIERE DELLA SERA 2023
Su in terrazza per gustare il calore del vetro
The Venice Glass Week 2023

DDN 2023
Natura, Vetro, Anima…
Nature, Glass, Soul…
Cortecce / Bark Exhibitions

ORLANDO TALES 2023
From furnace to canvas
Interview for Cortecce/Bark
Exhibitions

Falstaff LIVING 2023
Laguna, unique piece
Contemporary glass sculpture

JAMES MAGAZINE 2023
Michela Cattai, “Vetro d’ombra e di silenzio”
Canneto collection

WALLPAPER* 2023
Venice Glass Week 2023 explores the future of glassmaking
Glass Week Hub

Ottiche Parallele Magazine 2023
In chiaro scuro. Oltre la luce e ombra. Cattai e Tintoretto.
Chiaroscuro Exhibition

MARIE CLAIRE 2023
CORTECCE / BARK
Cortecce/Bark Exhibitions

EXIBART 2023
Non solo Frieze: tutte le fiere da visitare a Londra questa settimana
PAD London ART + DESIGN
Exhibitions

SALONE DEL MOBILE
Botanica Vitrea, solo exhibition.
Michela Cattai Studio, Milan, Italy
April 15 – 21, 2024 – MDW

ELLE DECOR
Material Home, collective exhibition.
Palazzo Bovara, Milan, Italy
April 15 – 21, 2024 – MDW

DESIGN MIAMI / MIAMI
Maison Gerard
Miami Beach, USA
December 6 – 10, 2023

SALON ART + DESIGN
Maison Gerard
Park Avenue Armory, New York, USA.
November 10 – 13, 2023

PAD LONDON DESIGN + ART
88 Gallery
Berkeley Square, London, UK.
October 10-15, 2023

IN CHIAROSCURO, BEYOND LIGHT AND SHADOW. CATTAI E TINTORETTO
Solo exhibition
Scala del Bovolo, Venice, Italy.
September 13 – November 19, 2023

A DESTINY IN GLASS
SPARC*
Collective exhibition
Venice, Italy.
September 3 – October 13, 2023

THE VENICE GLASS WEEK HUB
Collective exhibition
Palazzo Loredan, Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti, Venice, Italy.
September 9 – 17, 2023

CORTECCE / BARK
ART + DESIGN Gallery
Graeme Black and Michela Cattai
Milan, Italy.
May 10 – 26, 2023

SALONE DEL MOBILE
ART + DESIGN Gallery
Preview Cortecce / Bark
Milan, Italy.
April 17 – 23, 2023 – MDW

PAD LONDON DESIGN + ART
88 Gallery London
London, UK.
October 11-16, 2022

MASTERPIECE LONDON
88 Gallery London
London, UK.
June 30 – July 6, 2022

SALONE DEL MOBILE
Doppiafirma, Collective exhibition.
Michelangelo Foundation, Fondazione Cologni Maestri d’Arte, Corriere della Sera Living.
Palazzo Litta, Milan, Italy. April 17 – 23, 2022

VITREA. IL VETRO ITALIANO
Triennale Milano
Collective exhibition
Milan, Italy.
May 5 – August 22, 2021

THE VENICE GLASS WEEK HUB
Venini, Riflessi Veneziani.
Palazzo Loredan, Istituto Veneto di Lettere Scienze ed Arti, Venice, Italy.
September 5 – 6, 2020

PAD LONDON DESIGN + ART
Galerie Alexandre Biaggi, Paris.
88 Gallery London, London, UK.
September 30 – October 6, 2019

THE VENICE GLASS WEEK HUB
Collective Venini
Collective exhibition
Palazzo Loredan, Venice, Italy.
September 7 – 15, 2019

THE VENICE GLASS WEEK HUB
Venini, Reshaping the Tradition
Solo exhibition
Palazzo Loredan, Venice, Italy.
September 7 – 15, 2019

RESHAPING THE TRADITION
Solo exhibition
Italian Cultural Institute Tokyo, Japan
May 10 – 25, 2019

NOMAD
Galleria Luisa Delle Piane
St. Moritz, Switzerland.
February 7 – 11, 2019

FOG DESIGN + ART
Casati Gallery
San Francisco, USA.
January 19 – 20, 2019

SOFA CHICAGO
Casati Gallery
Chicago, USA.
November 1 – 4, 2018

THE VENICE GLASS WEEK HUB
Collective exhibition
Palazzo Querini, Venice, Italy.
September 9 – 16, 2018

MILANO DESIGN WEEK
Solo exhibition
Michela Cattai Studio, Brera Design District, Milan, Italy.
April 17 – 22, 2018

NOMAD
Casati Gallery
St. Moritz, Switzerland.
February 8-11, 2018

EUSART
Galleria Civica di Bolzano
Collective exhibition, Bolzano, Italy.
January 23 – February 18, 2018

FOG DESIGN + ART
Casati Gallery
San Francisco, USA.
January 11 – 14, 2017

EXPO CHICAGO
Casati Gallery
Chicago, USA.
September 13 – 17, 2017

THE VENICE GLASS WEEK
Solo exhibition
Scuola Grande di San Giovanni Evangelista, Venice, Italy.
September 10 – 17, 2017

MIAMI / DESIGN BASEL
Casati Gallery
Basel, Switzerland.
June 13 – 18, 2017

SALA DEL CENACOLO
Solo exhibition
Chamber of Deputies, Rome, Italy.
Aprile 12 – 21, 2017

