Description

This is a simple jug form vase designed and created by Marcello Fantoni's studio for the Raymor label in the United States.  This is classic Fantoni of his later years - a minimalist shape decorated with a subtle colorful series of stripes.  Vases can and should be beautiful in their own right.  You can place a few stems in there if you like, or simply leave it be as a stand-alone piece of ceramic structure.  

Details

• White bisque porcelain
  
• Signed "974 Raymor Italy" on bottom
  
• 11" tall
  
• Excellent condition

About the Artist

Born in Florence in 1915, Marcello Fantoni became one of the most celebrated ceramic artists of the twentieth century.  He began studying ceramic art at age 12 at the Art Institute of Florence with ceramicist Carlo Guerrini, artistic director of the famed Cantagalli Factory. He continued years of training in ceramics and the arts, including sculpture with Libero Andreotti and Bruno Innocenti, and figurative art with Gianni Vagnetti, graduating as a maestro of art in 1934. In 1936 he opened the Fantoni Ceramic Studio in Florence and in 1937 Fantoni’s pieces were exhibited in the Florence National Arts and Crafts Exhibit where their unique combination of rustic forms decorated with African and marine motifs and painted figures garnered considerable acclaim. After having participated in the resistance during World War II, Fantoni worked for the 500-year old Maiolica factory in Deruta, Umbria, renowned for its signature tin-glazed pottery.  By the 1950s he refocused on his Florence studio, and dedicated himself to larger sculptural pieces and collaborations. He also expanded his experimentation with materials and forms, drawing from varied influences – Primitivism, Novecento style, Cubism and Abstract Expressionism. According to The BBC’s twentieth century art expert Mark Hill, “the overriding principle in Fantoni’s varied body of work was that his ceramics should have ‘…the simplicity of a beautiful colour on a well studied form'. But, in reality Marcello Fantoni ceramics represent much more than this. Marcello Fantoni’s ceramics embody a dichotomy where the timeless appeal of ancient or traditional Italian pottery was combined with archly Modernist and progressive movements…In terms of shape, most are simple and unembellished, and act purely as a ‘canvas’ for the design. Some were clearly inspired by ancient forms, and some channel the vogue for the asymmetric forms that dominated much of mid century modern design.“

In 1970 Fantoni founded the International School of Ceramic Art, dedicated to teaching ceramic arts and experimentation. (Many of his students and employees would go on to become noteworthy artisans and artists in their own right.) Maintaining great versatility throughout his career, Fantoni completed projects for public and private buildings, churches, schools, theaters, cinemas, and ships. His studio made pieces for the sale in the United States for the high-end Raymor label.  His works, meanwhile, were collected and exhibited by important museums worldwide, including MOMA, the Met, the Brooklyn Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Royal Scottish Museum of Edinburg, Museums of Modern Art of Tokyo and Kyoto, the International Museum of Ceramics in Faenza, the National Bargello Museum and the Gabinetto Disegni e Stampe of the Uffizi in Florence. Marcello Fantoni died in Florence in 2011 at the age of 95, his obituary in the Italian newspaper hailing him as “the master of beauty.”