Novissa

Details which suddenly break the mould, stop and shatter to surprise the observer's attentive eye: in the details of Novissa, a collection of table ceramics, we find a glowing irony which leads us to the Venetian carnival. The elegant ladies portrayed come from 18th-century etchings which illustrate gentlewomen with the traditional dress of the Most Serene Republic of Venice: echoes of a time in which rich clothing was in and of itself a mask, which transformed life into a stage, particularly during carnival. Produced in the artistic ceramics district of Nove, in the province of Vicenza, with the waters of the Brenta river, the components of this collection feature dark chocolate-coloured decorations on a warm white background, created by transfer printing, to which hand-painted details have been added.

The Inspiration
/Nó-vis-sa/ ‘Fiancée’ in the Venetian language. In Venice's history, young women to be married off are closely linked to one of the most important events in the calendar of the lagoon city: the Regata Storica boat race on the Grand Canal. This traditional regatta, usually led by the Bucintoro, the state galley of the Doge of Venice, today takes place during the ancient Festa delle Marie, in celebration of the Venetian brides to be, who in an episode from the city's history were captured by pirates, before being freed by an expedition organised by the Doge himself.

The Designer
Eyes open to the present, in search of a new and light aesthetic in order to dream up the forms of the future.
A work suspended between artisan uniqueness, industrial precision, ancient manual printing techniques and pantograph engraving, lines which are skilfully combined with unpredictable asymmetries. Because it is in these difference which the design idea is instilled, creative alchemy which generates the impalpable emotion radiated by the objects. Day-to-day objects, which with the addition of a touch of poetry become the protagonists of new rituals, able to transform into small moments of ordinary joy.

The craftsman
"The slow pace of our artisan work is our source of satisfaction". Here, in this workshop in Nove, we see precisely that: classical music in the background, the rustling sound of a stream, the symphonies of those who sing while they paint, and then the alchemy of the clay and its colours taking shape.
But the work of a ceramist is tough, as well. A certain strength is required, and those employed in this workshop are proud enough not to seek the uniform perfection of industrial products, but the character and beauty which only experience and a craftsman's hands can impress on those ceramics.