Majolica of Orvieto, Italy

The Saint Catherine of Alexandria ceramics plaque
in the Church of Saint Francis in Deruta.
See detail of the pitcher, lower left, in the archaic style
(Deruta, 1919).

We continue our virtual visits to the ceramics towns in Italy by following the map of the AICC (Official Association of the Ceramics Towns in Italy). AICC confirms that the ceramics towns in our region, Umbria, are as follows: Deruta, Gualdo Tadino, Gubbio and Orvieto.

Although Gubbio and Gualdo Tadino carry on the tradition of luster ceramics, which was also traditional in the Renaissance in Deruta, Orvieto is currently the town that has the most history in common with Deruta in terms of popular patterns. 

The Orvieto green rooster pattern,
 inspired by the city of
Orvieto and produced in Deruta
(Pitcher by Cama).  

Indeed Deruta carries a pattern with the name of this beautiful town, the Orvieto green rooster, which is a best seller in American stores during Christmas time. 

Christmas berries: colors in common with
the classical Orvieto Green Rooster pattern
from Deruta, Italy 

The Orvieto green rooster pattern is the most Medieval looking of all the patterns that you may find in the palette of Deruta classical patterns. The rooster is a cheerful addition of the painters of Deruta in the early 1900s. 

Classical shape and pattern from Orvieto, Italy
- Alexandre Imbert collection -

There are some original ceramics workshops in Orvieto, not as many as in Deruta and many shops where they sell ceramics from Orvieto, Deruta and Montelupo Fiorentino. If you are looking for authentic traditional pieces, one of the local studios in Orvieto is the "Laboratorio Ceramica L'Arpia" on Corso Cavour 186, operated by a single artist who makes interesting accessories for the home and reproductions from original Orvieto products. It gives you the actual feeling of the traditional Orvieto style of the archaic period. That is what we think of when we think of Orvieto classical ceramics. 

Regarding Orvieto traditional patterns, with leaves and portraits, local ceramics artists in Orvieto are proud of the fact that they do not use the tracing paper like we do in Deruta. 

The tracing paper was the invention of Renaissance artists to reproduce their frescoes on the walls of Churches and homes based on the original work on paper. Close-ups from the Sistine Chapel in the occasion of the last restoration show nail dots on the outlining. The tracing paper is necessary in case of intricate works and when the goal is to obtain the best consistency to the original work. The tracing paper is not an easy tool to use, it is usually the best artist who does the outlining on the charcoal dots with very fine brushes. It is important not to confuse the tracing paper with the stencil. 

The bottom part of the ceramics plaque of Saint Catherine of Alexandria
with the writing in Latin:
"PICTORES  DIRUTAE  A.D. MCMXIX" (the painters of Deruta, 1919 AD).  

When the tradition of ceramics started in Deruta in the late 1200s, pieces were very similar to the ceramics of Orvieto, with few colors namely two base colors:  green (originating from copper), brown (originating from manganese) and their shades. 

Most of the pieces in Deruta were glazed and painted on the upper part only and this technique was called "A Risparmio" (economical), because this allowed the artists to save money on the glazes, colors and on the painting time. 

The artist of the reproductions of similar archaic pieces of Deruta is Carla Cornia, who in 1979 moved from Northern Italy to Deruta because of her passion for the art of ceramics. She owns a studio downtown Deruta. 

Reproduction of an archaic Deruta piece by Carla Cornia"aeconomical style" 
In this piece just a little saving...

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- Original Posts by Roberta Niccacci -

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