Modern Majolica Ceramic Vase with Engraved Tribal and Geometric Decorations by Ugo Zaccagnini, 1950s

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Description of the item
a marvelous ceramic vase, glazed on the exterior and majolica-finished on the interior, entirely hand-shaped on … Read more Description of the item
a marvelous ceramic vase, glazed on the exterior and majolica-finished on the interior, entirely hand-shaped on a potter’s wheel, decorated with tribal geometric motifs hand-engraved by the artist using gouges, created by the renowned ceramist ugo zaccagnini around the mid-20th century and signed on the base with his initial “z” and catalog number. The incised decorations are particularly beautiful, forming geometric figures with an archaic-tribal feel—a decorative style rarely used by ugo zaccagnini. The patina is good and consistent with our dating. Finally, it is quite common for the bisque, even for a medium-sized vase, to weigh nearly 2 kg. Ugo zaccagnini is one of the most important italian ceramic artists active in the late 1800s and early decades of the 1900s; his works have achieved numerous auction results, with his most significant pieces fetching decidedly high prices. It should also be noted that ugo zaccagnini created the most significant collection of 127 ceramic pieces inspired by walt disney characters—ranging from snow white and the seven dwarfs to donald duck, mickey mouse, pluto, and many others—all of which are offered for sale at extremely high prices, especially the rarest pieces.

information about the artist and/or manufacturer
the “ugo zaccagnini & figli” ceramics manufacturer was founded by ugo zaccagnini, a former employee of “richard-ginori,” in sesto fiorentino in 1905. The company’s early production focused on historicist majolica and earthenware, often inspired by the ancient models of the della robbia family. The company—with which zaccagnini’s five children, urbano, pietro, prisco, adele, and enrichetta, collaborated—moved to florence in 1912, where it began producing on a larger scale, showcasing its work at numerous editions of the triennale and the milan trade fair, as well as at the florence craft exhibitions. In the 1930s, the sculptor l. Contini collaborated with the factory. Among the notable ceramists who worked for the factory were the sculptor fosco martini—who, around the mid-1930s, created numerous interesting ceramics depicting animals—and the majolica painter u. Ciardella. In 1936, following the founder’s death, the company changed its name to “società anonima ceramiche zaccagnini,” with headquarters at 10 piazza pier vettori in florence; the role of ceo and artistic director was entrusted to the eldest of the heirs, urbano. That same year, thanks to capital injected into the company by the industrialist aristide loria, the firm became a joint-stock company and invested in modernization and production capacity. By 1937, the factory employed over 120 people, including ceramicists and administrative staff, and began exporting its products to the united states. The second half of the 1930s saw the factory collaborate with numerous artists, including mario bandini, ottorino palloni, maurizio tempestini, gino pozzi, and leopold anzengruber. In the late 1930s, walt disney commissioned “zaccagnini s.p.a.”—which at that time was headquartered at 10 piazza pier vettori in florence—to produce ceramic versions of the characters from its cartoons. In 1950, some of the company’s ceramics, including a series of plates, were exhibited at the italian crafts exhibition at the brooklyn museum in new york. In the 1950s, an artistic line inspired by abstract art, called “svedese,” was introduced into production. In 1958, urbano zaccagnini left the family business and founded “urbano zaccagnini ceramiche artistiche,” which remained active until the mid-1960s. “s.p.a. Zaccagnini” remained in operation until the year 2000. This piece has an attribution mark,
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