Etruscan Valdichiana

For the ancients and their vivid myths Cortona was the legendary outreach center of the Trojan race, the navel of Etruria, where flourished adventure stories, legends, epic characters and, of course, the Etruscan civilization.

Cortona has been affected by the successive occupations and Roman, medieval, Medicean influences, but miraculously centuries haven’t removed the archaic charm of streets, squares, lonely corners and doors that open along the ramparts of stone.

From a height of 600 meters, the village is so tenaciously clinging to the rock as to the tradition of “handmade“. In the artisan workshops goes on the same exploration of the easiest and domestic artifacts that have known only in the nineteenth century the aesthetic refinement of decorative motifs.

The reason? Here, before the pleasure it has always been considered the utility, the functionality of the objects, in particular the kitchen crockery and containers for water and oil.

The artisans of today take the moves from these requirements: in the eye and under the fingers they have the archetype of a product that can meet domestic needs and at the same time can be an expression of their creativity. The creations are the result of a cultured reconciliation between beautiful and practical.

Even the ornamental style of the pottery of Valdichiana and Cortona is an exception in the Tuscan landscape: geometric, stylized patterns, embossed and perforated surfaces, more sober colors such as ocher, black, brown, dark green characterize vessels, bowls, vases, pitchers, bowls, wall plates.

The heritage cohabits and boosts alongside attempts at renewal, compositional and iconographic research, experimental shapes. To discover all the nuances of this art, save the map and… have a good trip.