La Pigna in Ceramica is a well-known piece of furniture, especially for the infinite colors it can take. Pigna Bianca, Pigna Verde, Pigna Bordeaux … there are many colors and shapes.
The Pigna is a symbol not only linked to Sicilian history but with very ancient roots and stories, even dating back to the Greek and Babylonian period. It has an iconographic tradition linked to the so-called “third eye” or, in scientific jargon, the pineal gland. This gland, located in our brain, has been the subject of studies and research for centuries: Descartes, the French philosopher, even considered it the natural seat of our soul.
In nature, the pine cone is the fruit of the pine: evergreen tree symbol of prosperity, health and well-being.
Giving an artisanal Pigna, born from the processing of raw materials such as clay, is equivalent to wishing luck, wealth, prosperity. It is no coincidence that the Pinecone is a gift suitable for different occasions: graduations, weddings, anniversaries, buying a new home.
La Corallina offers some creations of the renowned Florentine tradition of Montelupo that go well with our lampshades.
Only raw materials of the highest quality are used to give shape to the pine cones: from the clay, the glazes, the colors, everything is mixed and worked according to the rule of majolica art. Many procedures, all manual, are used to create unique objects, never reproductions but real unique pieces enriched by the touch of the author: the freehand painting that distinguishes each single Pigna from the other.
The processing phases of a pinecone are many, let’s try to summarize them in this small diagram:
- Mixing the clay, to obtain the right consistency necessary to proceed with the subsequent processing of the cast and the lathe.
- Hand turning and manual casting on gypsum clay molds.
- Hand finishing of the product with the addition of decorative applications.
- Slow drying, at natural temperature, at the end of which the product takes on a light gray color.
- Cooking, at a maximum temperature of 1050 degrees centigrade. At the end of this phase, which takes one day, the artifact takes on the red color and takes the name of “biscuit”.
- Application of several layers of enamel in succession.
- Decoration of the artefact, done exclusively by hand.
The creation of a Pigna is therefore a very complex job, full of passages and moments marked by time and by the skilful hand of the ceramic artisans.
Giving a Pinecone is equally important and full of meaning: not just a piece of furniture but much, much more.
Discover the entire Collection of Lamp Bases by clicking here.