Bucci Melandri School The Gleaners Bas-Relief Plaque in Ceramic Faenza by Aldo Bacchilega, Italy, Early 1900s

Details

Description

MEASUREMENTS:
Including frame: Height: 59 cm; Width: 41.5 cm; Weight: 4.190 kg
Excluding frame: Height: 43 cm; Width: 24.5 cm

… Read more MEASUREMENTS:
Including frame: Height: 59 cm; Width: 41.5 cm; Weight: 4.190 kg
Excluding frame: Height: 43 cm; Width: 24.5 cm

CONDITION: Excellent overall condition.

Large ceramic plaque, entirely hand-sculpted in bas-relief, depicting three gleaners harvesting wheat. It is framed in a wooden frame and dates back to the first half of the 20th century. Gleaning consisted of gathering the ears of wheat left in the fields after the harvest, a task considered menial and laborious, often performed by women. The sculpture is by Aldo Bacchilega, a prominent artist from Faenza. It is signed "Bacchilega" in the lower left corner with an incised signature. It also features a small bronze plaque with the name of the work "Le Spigolatrici" (The Spigolatrici). On the back is the inscription "è di Luisa" (It's by Luisa), perhaps the artist intended it as a tribute to a friend or relative. The plaque weighs over 4 kg, which suggests it is a thick clay rectangle, entirely handcrafted without a mold, making it a unique piece. This also aligns with the idea that it could have been a tribute to a friend or relative. If it had been cast using a mold, and therefore a multiple, the clay layer would have been much thinner, and the work would have weighed no more than 1.5 kg.
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