‘Although coming from different backgrounds, both Roberto Alabiso and Calogero Zuppardo were animated by the same desire for a human and creative work when they set up a workshop that draws from the rich Sicilian tradition of glasswork. Twelve years and the restoration of several precious glass windows have been enough to re-establish the links with a glorious past (from Phoenician Sicily, which saw the discovery of the mysterious material, through the Middle Ages, when the island was one of the very few places in the world renowned for glass production, to the recent splendour of the Liberty style windows in Palermo) and to put together a company of men who, by cutting countless pieces of glass of different colours, shapes and transparency, and patiently fusing, painting and assembling them, are amazed by the work of their own hands. Studio Iride presently employs eight people and has numerous external artists, architects and craftsmen collaborating with it and forming an association called ‘Il Baglio’, within the Compagnia delle Opere, which carries forward a lively cultural activity as well as shared work. Studio Iride has produced many works in Italy and elsewhere: from the Liberty-style windows for private and public buildings, to the brave technical and stylistic experiments in which glass is pushed to its extreme possibilities. Finally it is worth mentioning the great stained-glass windows in churches and cathedrals where, as Chagall said, ‘the mystical reality passes through the window’, and the concreteness of the images helps us to keep alive our faith in the Incarnation of Our Lord.’