The Alphabet of Art & Antiques – Italian style! C is for…

The 2023 San Francisco Fall Show will celebrate La Dolce Vita – the quintessentially Italian approach to the “good life”. We will indulge in the pure pleasure of appreciating and collecting art, antiques and design. From Botticelli to Bertoia, from Fellini to Fornasetti, from Schiaparelli to Sottsass, La Dolce Vita is all about poetic beauty, breathtaking art, groundbreaking design, exuberant colors and refined materials. We’re breaking it down alphabetically… C is for:

Calcedonio
Calcedonio glass imitates the agate rock (called “calcedonio” in Italian and a type of quartz), with veins of contrasting color running through the deep-colored glass. It is produced by mixing coloring agents into a fusion of different types of glass.

A lidded glass vase with a rounded base and swirled colors of brown, blue, white, and green. Reminiscent of Italian style art, the lid features a small green knob on top, while the surface displays a marbled, fluid pattern. The background is plain white.

Covered beaker in calcedonio glass. Europe, 18th century. The Corning Museum of Glass.

Caravaggio (1571 – 1610)

Caravaggio was a master Italian painter, father of the Baroque style, who led a tumultuous life that was cut short his by his fighting and brawling. As a child and art student, he trained in Milan under a teacher who had been taught by the great Italian painter Titian himself, and who exposed him to the great works of Leonardo de Vinci and the Lombard artists. He moved to Rome in 1592, at the time the city was in a period if great expansion, and the many churches and palaces being built were all in need of paintings to decorate the walls. He immediately began working for Giuseppe Cesari, the favorite painter of the Pope, and throughout the end of the 16th century his reputation as a great painter grew. His big break came in 1599, when he was commissioned to paint the Contarelli Chapel in Rome, which was finished in 1600. after which he began receiving many commissions, both public and private. Some of his works, being controversial in subject matter (his unacceptably vulgar realistic style) and models (one of his favorite models for the Virgin Mary was a prostitute), and some of his works were returned to be painted over or fixed. Others were returned entirely, but Caravaggio always had a public willing to snatch up any painting he produced.

A young person with curly dark hair and bare shoulders holds a large basket filled with assorted fruits, including grapes, apples, and peaches, with green leaves. Reminiscent of classic Italian style art, the dark background beautifully highlights the figure and the vivid colors of the fruit.

Caravaggio’s “Boy with a Basket of Fruit,” one of his first paintings.

Cassapanca

A cassapanca is is an Italian-style furniture piece that combines the comfort of a bench with the storage capabilities of a chest. It features a low-profile seat on top of a hinged wooden box with plenty of space for storing items like blankets, books, toys, and more.

A large, ornate wooden bench with decorative carvings, including floral motifs and oval medallions, evokes the elegance of Italian style antiques. The bench has a high back and rests on a wide platform. The wood appears dark and polished, and the background is plain and white.

Cassapanca, Florence, mid 16^th century. Image via The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Cassone

Cassone is the term given to large decorated chests made in Italy from the fourteenth to the sixteenth centuries. Next to the marriage bed, cassoni were cherished in wealthy Renaissance households, for they held clothing, precious fabrics, and other valuables. Often commissioned by the groom in marriage, a cassone was prominently carried in the nuptial procession, laden with the dowry of his new bride. In the fifteenth century, whole workshops were given over to the manufacture and decoration of cassoni.

A rectangular wooden chest with a hinged lid, ornate gold-colored carvings, and decorative floral patterns in an Italian style. The chest has metal handles on each side and a weathered appearance, evoking the charm of fine antiques as it rests on four small feet against a plain gray background.

Italian cassone, circa 1425–50. Image via The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Castellani

The Castellani family were goldsmiths, collectors, antique dealers and potters who created a business “empire” active in Rome during the 18th and 19th centuries. Fortunato Pio Castellani (1794–1865), the forefather of the family, opened his own workshop in Rome and specialized in the creation of jewels imitating the ones that then came to light from the necropolis of Etruria, that were found in the excavations of Pompeii and Herculaneum or that could be observed in the Campana collection. Initiating a partnership with Duke Michelangelo Caetani, a lover of fine arts and a designer of jewels himself, allowed Fortunato Castellani to quickly work for the most illustrious aristocratic families, initially Roman and at a later date even European. Fortunato also imported luxurious goldsmith works from the rest of Europe to be resold in Rome. The Castellani of the second generation devoted themselves only to the trade of jewels of their own production or to the sale of archaeological finds.

Ornate gold bracelet with intricate designs, featuring three large purple gemstones set in detailed circular settings. The bracelet’s textured bands are decorated with patterns and studs, reflecting antique or classical jewelry styles inspired by Italian art. The image is mirrored below.

Castellani 15k gold bracelet, with four carved scarab carnelian elements. Italy, early 20th century.