Franco Cipolletti

My relationship with ceramics comes from a fascination with matter and with the possibilities it offers when knowledge, technique and artistic sensibility come together.

Throughout my career I have paid special attention to studying the old Italian ceramic traditions. The work of the Della Robbia, the ceramics of Deruta and the craft traditions of places like Gradara are part of a heritage I have always wanted to research and understand.

It is not just about recovering forms or styles from the past, but about approaching the knowledge that made them possible: the procedures, the materials, the colours and the secrets of a craft handed down for centuries.

For me, tradition is not something static. It is a source of knowledge that lets me experiment, interpret and find new ways of expression.

I have always wanted to understand what happens inside materials. Ceramics is an extraordinary territory where art meets chemistry, physics and a certain idea of alchemy.

Over the years I have devoted a large part of my work to researching ceramic materials. Preparing my own glazes, studying formulas, combining oxides and pigments, experimenting with temperatures and watching the changes that happen during firing are all part of how I create.

Every test is a chance to understand the material better. Sometimes the results confirm what I expected; other times unexpected effects appear and open new paths.

Attention to detail is essential in my work. Every surface, every relief and every shade of colour reflects technical and artistic choices built up through experience.

I have always found something fascinating in the relationship between the precision of chemistry and the mystery of transformation. A kind of alchemy in which knowledge and experience turn seemingly simple materials into surfaces full of depth, colour and expression.

In that meeting between the precision of the craft and the freedom of creation I find my way of understanding ceramics.

A selection of my works, where ceramic tradition, material research and artistic expression meet.

Some are part of the Opiforia collection and others are available in the Shop.

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