Art and Alfalfa: ceramic painting

Showing posts with label ceramic painting. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Italy, the beautiful, Part III

Grandeur revisited,

and life goes on in the small town of Suvereto

and in the large metropolis of Livorno by the sea.

Where the Grand Hotel Palazzo provides just the right amount of old world glamour and luxury.

Where old and new live happily side by side.

And where a stroll along the promenade at evening time, takes advantage of the gentle evening breezes.

Two days of splendor and luxury is just about right for I gladly give it up for a visit to Maestro Mario's factory.

I asked the Maestro if he would paint an Arlecchini for me.
He let me select the design. Maestro Mario begins by transferring the design on to a plate by brushing charcoal through tiny holes.

Martina, Mario's daughter, who is also a fine ceramist, tells the story of the Arlecchini in her blog post of 2013.
See below:

http://ceramichemori.blogspot.com/2013/01/arlecchini-from-montelupo.html

No trip to Italy is complete without my taking a few painting lessons.... there is so much to learn.

The designs are painted with powder pigments mixed with water.
They have a chalky appearance.

Mario in his studio when I visited with him in 20014

http://ginaceramics.blogspot.com/2014/11/it-doesnt-get-any-better_1.html

Maestro Mario paints with pigments first and then completes his design by outlining it with a very fine brush.

Once the designs have been fired in his large kilns the colors become vibrant and permanent.

Montelupo is only a 30 minute drive west of Florence. It has a very fine Museum of ceramics with a large collection of Arlecchini.

http://ceramichemori.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-pottery-museum-of-montelupo.html

The Maestro tells me that this particular design, the Arlecchini (Harlequin), is his favorite subject to paint. He has designed more than 500 different scenarios.

The Mario workshop is one of the only studious left who still produce the Arlecchini designs.

Maestro Mario loves his art. He even goes to his shop on Sundays. where he happily works by himself on whatever pleases him.

Thank you for stopping by.

Have a great remainder of the week, dear friends.

Gina

http://betweennapsontheporch.net/

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Just another morning

at my house.

Now that the ice has left we can let the spring fill our pond again.

Snow on Saturday covered the only flowers I have blooming in my garden.

They have frozen before, yet Hellebore always come out looking great.

This time of year my flowers have to come from the store.

You can just see the table to the left. That is where I sit and paint.

Montgolfiere tiles for a new side table...just out of the kiln.

A couple of weeks ago my old orchids were throwing new spikes.

They have now opened fully and even surprised me with a new color.

All reservations have been made.

Soon I will spend the day with Maestro Mario of Montelupo, Italy.

We will paint.

When not painting or sight seeing I will learn how to make proper home made pasta at the
Relais Sant'Elena, Bibbona, Tuscany, Italy.

Wishing you a great week ahead.

Gina

Saturday, January 9, 2016

We celebrated

Because it was our 52nd Wedding Anniversary

What better way to celebrate than with a First Class Ticket to Italy.

A car is waiting for us.

Tuscany is our destination.

booking.com

The Relais Sant' Elena, near Bibbona, Italy, will be our home for the first week.

booking.com

It is situated in the countryside. The perfect place to relax, take day trips to visit Etruscan sites and have lunch at a famous Restaurant,

a Fishing Shack with a secret.

Last time we visited Bibbona we stayed at the "Villa Toscana" in the city center.

The centro historico of Bibbona deserves another visit.

It is a fascinating place.

Scatti di Gusto

There is another Bibbona.
"Bibbona By the Sea". It is purported to have a delicious secret.

A humble fishing shack, Restorante La Pineta, with a Michelin Star.

booking.com

The cooking and baking at our Relais also looks very promising.

We will spend another week in the Chianti region.

I can't go to Italy without stopping and painting with
Maestro Mario of Montelupo.

Italy in April is a giant flower bouquet.

Gina

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Something Old and something New

Just because it's old and just because it's new.

An old book with forgotten but now new ideas

and a new platter with a very old design.

A very large Platter just out of the kiln this morning.

In a few weeks Heritage Day Celebrations will take over our town.

Visitors come from far and wide.

Many Artists will participate.

Some of the proceeds will go to the renovations of our historic Spring City School.

Hope you are having a great week.

Thank you for stopping by. Your visits are always so appreciated..

Gina

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Maestro Romano Ranieri

The great Maestro Romano Ranieri will be laid to rest today at the Church of Pontenuovo di Deruta, Umbria, Italy.

Romano Ranieri

"He prefers not to be exalted."

"Proudly, he is the artistic director at the Romano Ranieri School of Ceramic Art in Deruta.
Romano Ranieri is one of our most appreciated and loved artists... producing the most beautiful ceramics with superior characteristics."

ginaceramics

Vividly, I remember my first day painting at the Scuola d' Arte Ceramica in Deruta, Italy

I painted the tile you see above on my second day of instructions

This is "my" desk at the Scuola

This tile was my first assignment. After a few hours of painting, Professor Nicola Boccini decided that I could move on to a more difficult pattern. This is the way the school tests your level of expertise.

I've painted at this fantastic school several times. Students walk in and out all day. They are encouraged to paint when they can. Always, the most revered Maestro, Romano Ranieri, is painting while keeping an eye on every student. He graciously offers his help whenever needed.

The Maestro gave me this beautiful book which contains many of his important works.

Forever I will cherish the lovely message he wrote.