Author: fondazione

Saverio Pastor, one of the last witnesses of the “remèr” tradition.

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Saverio Pastor is one of the last “remèr” (oar maker) masters in Venice: an ancient trade, which was born in Venice many centuries ago, when mobility around the lagoon was entirely by rowing.
This noble craft is nowadays in danger of disappearing, because there are few craftspeople who are able to carry on this important know-how, and even fewer young talents who have the courage to invest many years in such a challenging job.
Nevertheless, this tradition is deeply rooted into the Venetian history and culture.
Saverio Pastor trained alongside masters Giuseppe Carli and Gino Fossetta. In 2002 he opened his own workshop, “Le Forcole”, specialized in the construction of oars and oarlocks for Venetian gondolas, according to traditional techniques dating back to the Renaissance.

How did you approach the craft of the remèr, and what was your path?
On 15 June 1975 I asked master remèr Bepi Carli if I could work with him during the summer. He replied that I was already too old to learn, nevertheless I could stay in the workshop and watch. So I did it for 8 hours a day, until he grew tired of having me around doing nothing, and asked me to clean the workshop.
For at least four more years, he kept telling me I was too old to learn; then other circumstances forced me to set up my own business.
Today I’m still learning… Despite being the oldest remèr in Venice by now!
Remèr is actually my craft. Even if I create oarlocks, I am not purely a “forcolaio” (oarlocks maker): the oar was the most important and difficult part to build, and its function was very important in a city like Venice.

You are one of the last remèr masters. What does it mean to carry on an time-honoured and rare craft that is in danger of disappearing?
I have always felt the value of this important aspect of my work. I was not aware that I was a witness and an heir of this immaterial culture, but I perceived its gravitas.
Having acquired experience and consistency in this job, I started to take care of these aspects of the craft, also by comparing myself with other colleagues, above all in the shipbuilding industry.

How does the design and production process of the Venetian oarlocks take place?
The fórcola is the oarlock on which the oar pivots for rowing: each of its handles and surfaces are designed to allow the oar to make different movements in the water; its shapes depend on the particular rowing position, the type of boat, the rowing style and the build of the rower. The result is a complex sculpture, useful for rowing.
They are made by hand by sculpting homogeneous and compact woods such as walnut, pear, cherry or maple wood.
I try to respect the principles and ancient techniques of the craft tradition, which include careful natural seasoning, gradual roughing and the use of now obsolete tools such as the frame saw, the ax and the iron with two handles. The dexterity and customization of the object play an important role: it’s a two-way customization, which responds both to the needs of the rower and the sensitivity of the master artisan.

This year you were awarded the MAM – Master of Arts and Crafts acknowledgement, recognized by the Cologni Foundation for the Métiers d’Art. What was it like to receive it?
It was actually more exciting than I could imagine. Finding myself among masters and colleagues of unrivaled skill, awarded by experts of great value, really moved me. I must say that I also felt a little out of place, especially thinking back to the skills that my mentors had and their socio-economic background. Therefore I felt once more gratitude and empathy towards them.

Do you offer courses in your workshop? Are you willing to welcome young people for training projects?
I don’t organize courses because I believe that my job is essentially a service to professionals and rowing enthusiasts. I was willing to teach some young people who later became colleagues, and two of them are still working (Pietro Meneghini has been my collaborator for 18 years). I would therefore be willing to teach the craft, but as a holystic project. However, there are no adequate socio-economic conditions in Venice at the moment to ensure a young person a future in this craft, and you can’t deceive youngsters, committing them to years of apprenticeship, with no clear perspective for the future.

Your oarlocks are original and contemporary, they are design pieces. Where do you find inspiration?
The needs of the rower determine the dimensions, and the points on which to force the oar; these must be mediated with the shapes and dimensions of the boat in that specific rowing place. With these constraints I have to shape the wood so that it is resistant and responds to technical requirements. Tradition already dictates some forms to be respected. Then masters put their mark, their calligraphy: here there is room for a minimum of creativity which for me lies in evaluating the proportions and the definition of volumes and curves.

Have you ever worked with other artisans, designers or professionals? If yes, what resulted from the partnerships?
I have never really collaborated with other professionals. I made some reproductions of sculptures or sculptural ornaments, that’s it.
Working with others could be interesting, so I am open to this chance.

How do you imagine the future of your craft and what initiatives should be pursued to promote it?
The future of my craft is closely linked to Venice. I think the only possible perspective for our city is to bring attention back to our history, to the water and the life and civilization on the water, that has made Venice great and which we cannot renounce to, this being our characteristic identity. In this framework, my craft finds a place. Only by making peace with water, and perhaps enhancing and returning to the use of wood, Venice will have a future. Also because sustainable mobility is one of the most important aspects of our culture, and rowing plays an essential role in this: there are ferries, there are gondolas, there are “i artieri de gondole et suoi fornimenti” (gondolas and its artisans).

 

Le Forcole
Fondamenta Soranzo, 341 – Venice
www.forcole.com
savepastor@libero.it
Ph. +39 041 5225699

Anita Cerrato and the art of healing wounds

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Anita Cerrato is a ceramic restorer with a great passion for the Japanese culture and aesthetics.
She specializes in Kintsugi, a ceramic repair technique that does not hide the fractures of the object, but enhances them by embellishing them: an imperfect beauty capable of restoring life and meaning to any object.
In her atelier in Milan, she creates objects and furnishing accessories of the highest quality, with original raw materials from the Empire of the Rising Sun: clay, precious Urushi lacquer, and Marufun gold.
In 2022 she was awarded the title MAM – Master of Arts and Crafts by the Cologni Foundation.

You are a master of the art of “Kintsugi”. What is it about?
Kintsugi is an ancient form of ceramic restoration.
According to the most accredited legend, it originated in the 15th century AD, when Ashikaga Yoshimasa, the eighth shogun of Ashikaga, after breaking his favorite cup of tea, sent it to China to have it fixed. The repairs unfortunately took place with metal bindings that are not very aesthetic and not functional at all. The object seemed lost, but its owner tried to entrust it to some Japanese artisans who, surprised by the shogun’s tenacity in wanting to get his beloved cup back, decided to try to transform it into a jewel by filling the cracks with lacquered resin and gold powder.
To restore the fragments, the same materials that were originally used are still employed today: urushi lacquer, flour, coal, clay powder (tonoko), gold and silver powders.
In my opinion, Kintsugi can be considered the oldest form of conservative restoration because the damage is not camouflaged: it is even highlighted, revealing the history of the object.

What was your path and how did you approach this highly refined practice?
I know it sounds like a repetition, but thanks to this technique I have made Kintsugi of my life. I had already worked for many years as a restorer, in the field of wood restoration and gilding. I was lucky enough to have great masters and to work in famous Milanese workshops, such as those of Gacarù and Sabatelli.
Unfortunately, already towards the end of the Nineties ancient objects were less interesting for the public. I had already restored the pieces of the first, second and even third houses of my historical clients, but there was no generational change, and the children were no longer interested in filling the homes with antiques. Thus market prices have collapsed, with the aggravating circumstance that modern apartments are cut to the millimeter and often it is necessary to make custom-made furniture.
It was a generalized crisis: the artisans who were close to retirement organized themselves to close, the younger ones, like me, had to reinvent themselves.
I was lucky enough to have a large dowry of gold leaf booklets, which Sabatelli had left me when he closed. So, having a great passion for the East, I had thought of making wooden objects coated with gold. I searched on the internet: orient, gold, bowls … and a photo of a bowl restored with Kintsugi appeared: I immediately fell in love. At the time it was not like now, when you can find the tutorials on Youtube and you can buy the urushi online. Few images were shot and all in sites where psychoanalysis and trauma were mentioned. To understand how to do it, I had no choice but to leave for Japan.

What other techniques do you use besides Kintsugi?
Kintsugi (from “kin”, gold, and “tsugi”, rejoining) is certainly the best known technique because in the West we have attributed a symbolic meaning to it, and the metaphor it carries has become very popular.
There are also other restoration methods, such as “Ginstugi”, where “gin” means silver, “Urushi tsugi”, for which metal powders are not used for the finish, but the lacquer is left exposed. You can also make some inserts when the original fragments of the piece are missing: “Yobitsugi”, when the insert is in ceramic, “Mokuhen”, when the insert is in wood.
Currently I am also learning the technique of “Maki-e”, lacquering, even if it takes a long time because it is very difficult.
Do you also organize courses in your laboratory? Or other initiatives to promote this art?
Kintsugi is nothing more than a ceramic restoration technique, but very few people approach the lessons to learn how to restore.
Almost everyone comes to me to learn how to glue the pieces, of course, but even more so to feel a little less alone and find answers.
The West is the cradle of philosophy and psychoanalysis; so a Kintsugi course becomes a session of self-analysis, and unfortunately I have no answer to give, as Brecht said: “do not expect any answer, other than yours”.
So when people put the pieces together they wonder what the glue of their existence is, when they put the pieces back together they remember an experience so traumatic that, after all, it has become a turning point.
And the more a piece is broken, the richer it will be in the end.
This is what people seek from me: putting the pieces back together, making your life a work of art. For this reason, for years we have been engaged in non-profit activities in cancer wards, family homes, nursing homes, to carry forward the message of Kintsugi: an opportunity can arise from a difficulty.

This year you have obtained the MAM – Master of Arts and Crafts award from the Cologni Foundation. What did this mean for you?
Obviously it was a great honor, which made me think that the twenty-eight years spent in the workshop have not been thrown away. There have been many moments of frustration and the feeling of failure, especially in a country that does not do much to help the artisans.
What is never considered by the institutions is that our activities are slow, indeed very slow, so the taxation on a gain is disproportionate because, if you want to finish an object perfectly, the hours are never paid. A craftsperson cannot optimize production at the expense of quality, as is done in a factory.
To be honest, during the awards-giving ceremony I felt flattered, but also embarrassed, because next to me there were some artisans who have spent up to fifty years in the workshop, so I told myself that there is still a long way to go.

How does tradition and innovation combine in your work?
Tradition is inherent in the manufacturing process and in the materials, innovation is carried forward by ideas and creativity.
A definitely innovative project is to apply the original Kintsugi technique to unusual materials. Three years ago the idea was born, with the photographer Carola Guaineri, to restore torn photos using gold. It took a lot of research because the papers on which you print in the dark room, or baryta and polythene paper, fear humidity, while Urushi needs a warm and very humid environment to dry.
The idea was very successful, especially during the “Homo Faber” event, precisely because we innovated the Kintsugi and declined it in a modern key.
The hope is, always and in any case, to be able to communicate beauty combined with dedication.

What are your plans for the future of your business?
I’m currently working on an ambitious project, focused on the theme of the mask… but I can’t reveal too much!

Kintsu Handmade
Via Vignola, 5 – Milan
www.kintsuhandmade.com
info@kintsuhandmade.com
Ph: +39 333 6540917

Barbini Specchi Venenziani: the spectacular art of glass engraving

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The history of the Barbini family goes along with the tradition of Venetian mirrors, which dates back to the 16th century. The brothers Giovanni and Vincenzo Barbini, with the support of their children, still nowadays personally carry out all the stages of processing using the traditional techniques of the craft.
In 2018 they received the accolade MAM – Master of Arts and Crafts, promoted by the Cologni Foundation in collaboration with Alma. They took part in Homo Faber Event 2022 in Venice, exhibiting an extraordinary monumental mirror in homage to the Empire of the Rising Sun.

What is your story and how was “Barbini Mirrors Veneziani” born?
AAV Barbini Srl is the oldest Murano company still in business, with regards to the art of Venetian mirrors.
The Barbinis have been present in Murano since the second half of the 16th century. In 1658, by order of the Council of Ten, our name was inscribed in the “Golden Book of the Magnificent Community of Murano”, known as the book of the glass nobility of the island.
Over the centuries the members of the family worked in the various sectors of artistic glass production, such as in the chandeliers, beads, conterie and various objects, specializing in particular in the manufacture of Venetian mirrors, contributing to the prestige and quality to the Serenissima and the island’s artisanal production.
The earliest news about our family dates back to the seventeenth century. In 1665 some glass masters were secretly taken to France, to the court of Louis XIV, to start a local production of Venetian mirrors. Among them is Gerolamo Barbini, who collaborated at the “Manufacture Royale des glaces de miroirs”, in the Parisian area of Saint-Antoine.
During the nineteenth century almost all the members of our family worked as “conzadori” masters, providing consultancy to the major factories in Murano.
In the twentieth century, Nicolò and his brother Guglielmo Barbini resumed the processing of Venetian mirrors in Murano, by then almost completely forgotten, thus reinterpreting a priceless heritage of techniques and secrets. Nicolò passed on this legacy to his sons Vincenzo and Giovanni, who would continue the long family tradition up to the present day.
In 1927 Nicolò Barbini founded his first company for artistically engraved glass, with which his brother Guglielmo, also an engraver, collaborated, immediately distinguishing himself for the elegance and refinement of the mirrors produced. After only two years of activity, in 1929, he was awarded the First Grade Gold Medal at the Exhibition in Florence. In 1985 Vincenzo and Giovanni became the owners of the company, which currently employs the work of three generations of expert craftsmen. All stages of processing – the design, cutting, grinding, engraving, silvering and assembly – are carried out exclusively in Murano, and personally followed by us brothers and our respective children, Nicola, Marco and Giovanna, Pietro, Andrea and Filippo, capable of continuously reinterpreting an inestimable family heritage of techniques and secrets.

How does the process of conception, design and realization of your work take place?
We can summarize the process of making one of our pieces with the word “dialogue”: a continuous dialogue between us, between the artisans we work with and the designer or artist. And it is precisely from the comparison with the skills and experiences of the other person that our works are born.

How important is the link with the city of Venice and the island of Murano for your work?
Our activity as mirror makers is necessarily linked to our territory, and the name of our product already says it with absolute and unequivocal clarity: Venetian Mirrors.
We know well that mirrors and glass were not invented in Murano or Venice, but right here the art of glass has developed like nowhere else. Here were invented processing techniques, tools, machinery, types of glass, applications and styles, and the same “Venetian mirror”: a spectacular object requested by the crowned heads of all Europe, which initially differed from all the others for the quality, the clarity and perfection of the mirror surface; later for the frames decorated with straws, leaves and flowers in colored glass, or with elements in engraved glass, while still throughout Europe the frames were made of sealing wax, wood and various metals.

What is your source of inspiration?
Our sources of inspiration are always linked to tradition, with a necessary adaptation to the taste of customers, and the support of young designers.
There is always a renewal in production, linked to the market and changing tastes. But often it is a matter of updating only the combination of colors or a few other elements, leaving the fundamental traits of tradition intact. For this reason, we now have over 1000 models.

How do you combine the strong bond with tradition with the ability to always innovate decorations and styles?
Today we can say that in our work the combination of tradition and innovation is expressed by leaving room for new ideas and proposals, trying to see the “new” as an enrichment of our knowledge and technical skills.
We, as an older generation of artisans, usually look at new technologies with a suspicious mind, without thinking that these could instead enrich our knowledge, enhance the techniques we already use and, consequently, make the product even more unique.
Our children have helped us a lot: joining the company, they have brought new vitality and energy to the production, the desire to experiment with new silvering and engraving techniques, the introduction of new machinery, such as the very modern water jet, which we are the only ones to own in Murano, an oven for melting glass is installed.
Do you carry out teaching activities within your company? Are you available to welcome young people for training apprenticeships?
We have always trained young people to make them learn the trade, also hiring many of them in the company: now more than ever since the company is in the hands of our children and grandchildren. Furthermore, in recent years, we have welcomed some young people for school-work alternation, trying to make them aware of all the stages of the Venetian mirror manufacturing process.

What are the plans for the future of your company?
Our will is to continue to enhance Murano glass and make the world of Venetian mirror processing and its innumerable potentials known to the world; as well as enhancing collaboration as a founding value, a sine qua non for experimenting with new worlds and experiences, which is one of the secrets of the success of Murano glass.

 

Barbini Specchi Veneziani
Calle Dietro gli Orti, 7 – Murano (Venice)
www.aavbarbini.it
info@aavbarbini.it
Ph: +39 041.739 518

Sandro Barbera & Sons

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Sandro Barbera & Sons is the winner of the Artigiano del cuore contest, for the section entitled Vestirsi e Ornarsi (Chothing and Ornaments).
We have met Sandro’s son, Andrea, who is now continuing the family business with his brother Stefano: a sound, cutting-edge company, resting on a great family tradition. Everybody in Biella knows and loves their shoes, which are successfully sold worldwide.

Congratulations on your victory! What were your feelings throughout this experience?
Heartfelt thanks, we must say, from my family. We went through the contest with a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of excitement and, undeniably, some anxiety: it was a dream coming true! It was a team win, thanks to our parents and all the people who showed their affection, trust and a keen appreciation for our products.

When was your business established ? What did growing up in a bottega mean for you?
Ours is a family business, it was established 50 years ago thanks to my parents’ expertise in the shoe industry and their passion for Italian handmade objects. They were deeply rooted in the savoir-faire characterising Biella’s territory to this day, which is deeply rooted in me and my brother Stefano as well. We followed in their steps as the natural consequence of having been reared in the bottega. That was always a magic place for us, where we could create things with our hands, play together, meet new people and see a glint of wonderment in our clients’ eyes. I owe a lot to my parents — especially my father — who were able to pass on their passion and their trade secrets to us through a full-blown family apprenticeship. Also, master shoemakers often visited our workshop exchanging their expertise with us, playing a relevant role in our training and offering us an excellent opportunity for growth.

Fabrizio Travisanutto

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Fabrizio Travisanutto is the winner of the Artigiano del Cuore (Artisan of the Heart) contest for the Arredare e Decorare (Furnishing and Decorating) section. A Master Mosaic artist since 2003, he is now running his father’s business as well as creating wonderful artworks for prestigious customers worldwide.

Congratulations on your winning! How did you experience the “Artisan of the Heart” contest?
With great curiosity and enthusiasm. That was the first time I was so overtly involved; I generally avoid showing my work to a large audience. I would like to thank all the people who have spent a few moments to express their sympathy with us.

When was your business established? What encouraged you to carry forward its tradition?
My father, Giovanni Travisanutto, studied and worked as a mosaic artist in Spilimbergo until, in 1971, he was offered an opportunity to work in New York City, US. After working very successfully for ten years, he decided to come back to Friuli and open a workshop, and for years we never stopped, even one day, creating thousands of artistic mosaics in every corner of the world.
My father wanted me to become a lawyer, but, after attending the Liceo Classico, I chose to carry forward his trade. In fact, I have never seen him bored, or tired; he always looked satisfied, always happy to go to work. No doubt, he was, and is, my role model to this day.