florence

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Cantagalli, the Scottish dimension

by Sheila Forbes

On 31 August 1880 Margaret Tod and Ulisse Cantagalli were married in the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Mary’s, Edinburgh, with Ulisse’s brother Romeo, and Margaret’s brother Robert, as witnesses. His Grace, John Menzies Strain, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, officiated, thereby establishing a permanent bond between the two fine cities of Edinburgh and Florence (SCA).

The Tods of Edinburgh
Margaret’s father was Robert Tod, Mill owner, a partner in Alexander & Robert Tod Ltd., Leith Flour Mills (NAS D76/1056), and a Leith Harbour and Dock Commissioner (NAS SC70/4/298).

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We went to Della Robbia exhibition!


Tiziana getting in the right mood for the exhibtion...

We made it. It’s always complicated to get organized with husbands and children to go to art events. They are not in the least interested but … Manuela and I have a secret weapon: GOOD FOOD!

We discovered a couple of years ago a nice wine bar in Arezzo, with excellent food, home made local dishes with fresh ingredient from the area. You know, ribollita, white beans, finocchiona, pecorino … Suddenly no one had any objection to a Sunday off and we met in Arezzo, under a cloudy sky, excited to see so many Della Robbia works in a single place. Continue reading →

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Andrea Della Robbia and his successors

Italian Ceramics - Annunciation (detail) by Andrea della Robbia (ca. 1490), Staatliche Museum, Berlin - Photo credits: www.mostradellarobbia.itIn 1471 Luca della Robbia bequeathed his successful factory to his nephew Simone. He didn’t trust Andrea (1435-1525), whom he believed too concentrated on getting the highest revenue from the family business.

Actually, he was more or less right, if we consider that after his death Andrea massively increased the production of glazed terracotta. However the quality of the pieces did not suffer
much from it. At least in the beginning.

Andrea was a very good artist with a businessman approach to what he considered the family “company”: he increased the number of subjects so as to please both Catholic institutions and laical Customers who favored his glazed terra-cotta, that – if not cheaper than marble – was by far easier to ship and install.

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Luca Della Robbia

Italian Ceramics - Madonna and Child by Luca della Robbia (c. 1475), Widener Collection - Photo credits: National Gallery of Art - USAThe story of the Della Robbia family begins in 1441-2 when Luca della Robbia, a cultivated and bright minded man, developed a new technique that would allow him to blend the magic of painting, sculpting and pottery making into a brand new form of artistry: the Architectural Ceramic Art.

His family was very well known in Florence for their textile business, which is somehow connected with the origin of their name: Della Robbia comes from Rubia (madder), a plant used in ancient times as a vegetable red dye for textile dyeing and for painting.

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Italian Clay Art: Brunelleschi’s Madonna first time on exhibit

Dec. 15, 2008 – Feb. 28, 2009
Firenze – Italy
Italian Ceramics - Madonna di Fiesole - Photo credits: www.corriere.itAn adorable clay sculpture of the Madonna with Child recently attributed to Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1446) will be on exhibit for the first time through Feb. 28th, 2009 in the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence.

The terracotta bust portraits a young woman with downcast eyes, deep in thought. She gently holds her baby, who leans on her shoulder with profound trust and intimacy, interlocking his legs with her arms.

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