I don't think you can really appreciate what creative craftsmen can do until you watch them work. It's one thing to admire a piece of beautifully blown glass in a shop window or the delicate workmanship of lovely lace, but to be there when the artist's vision begins to take shape is a special treat.

Venice, in Northern Italy, is the place to go, where two of the many islands that make up the Venetian Lagoon provided an opportunity to watch artists at work. We stopped at the Café Quadri in St. Mark's Square for a gelato on a warm July day. It was only a short walk to the water taxi that took us to the islands of Murano and Burano.

Burano lies about six miles from Venice. Unlike other islands in the lagoon, it has no imposing palaces. Instead, the distinctive homes, all about the same height, offer a palette of color from deep reds to vivid yellows and intense blues. After spending a little too much time at the local pub, so the legend goes, the painted houses guided a tired fisherman home. He found his house by its color.

Burano always has attracted artists and painters. In the 16th century, with the invention of the 'punto in aria,' the art of lacemaking with a needle was born and it immediately became the specialty of Burano. The elegance of the Burano work became so popular with the nobility of Europe that a school for the art opened here.

Although the industry has had its ups and downs, real Burano lace is very expensive today because it takes three years for 10 women to make a single tablecloth. Wander through some lovely shops to find what you're looking for and pause to watch one of the elders practice her art.

Glassmaking became a center product of Murano, the largest of the islands that make up the lagoon, in 1291. The Venetian glassmakers were asked to move there as a security precaution. Entirely constructed of wood, the entire population lived in constant fear of fire, their one tool for making glass objects. Soon Murano became Europe's principal supplier of glass.

However, the best was yet to come. In the 1850s, a new type of glass furnace was developed. Modern-day marketing came into play when some outstanding new works that had intricate curlicue fantasies etched in glass were shown at a London exhibit. The artistic designs and artisan skills of the traditional Murano glassmakers now had worldwide attention.

While visiting there, you can watch these men perform their amazing craft in demonstrations. We looked on as one artist took a blob of red-hot molten glass and, by twisting and turning and then trimming with iron tools, fashioned a horse standing on his hind legs in a matter of two or three minutes. Of course, the Murano glassmakers also invite you to their elaborate showrooms where everything from cocktail glasses to chandeliers is on display and for sale.

There are numerous sightseeing excursions, as well as the regular vaporetti (the typical Venetian public boats), to take you to the islands.

Shaping the Venetian Lagoon is the city of Venice. Built on 117 small islands, it's a water city. After the last Ice Age, about 6,000 years ago, it took its present shape. It has taken about five centuries of human endeavor to balance the needs of nature against those of mankind. At the moment, nature is winning as the city slowly sinks into the sea. Don't wait too long to make that visit.

EDITOR'S NOTE:
I have not ever talked to anyone who has been to Venice who hasn't said, "Ah, like its art, it's a masterpiece city!"