Extended to 11 Apr 10
da/from
2 Oct 09
fino a/until
15 Feb 10

Betty Woodman: the cheerful vitality of the porcelain

The refined and imaginative creations of Betty Woodman find an appropriate setting among the prestigious porcelain conserved in the Palazzina del Cavaliere, in showcases that have been specially designed to blend into the decor of the Museum.
With their unpredictable shapes and the intensity and brilliance of the colours, the unusual Sèvres porcelain pieces created by this artist revolutionise the traditional concept of prized tableware, while preserving the consolidated class of the prestigious services beloved of the crowned heads.
A potter who has already made her name in New York, Betty Woodman periodically lives and works in her house in Antella, in the heart of the Florentine countryside, where she has had the chance to delve into the stratifications of Italian culture. In this way her expressive freedom enables her to renew the design of traditional forms, drawing upon the most diverse historical and geographical sources to bring forth a new, playful language of matter, unburdened by the tireless labour and study that nevertheless lies behind each individual piece.
As she herself puts it “I seek to make art that nods its appreciation towards the history of ceramics without attempting to imitate it”.



Idea
Ornella Casazza

Project design
Paolo Bitossi, Antonella Villanova, Fabiola Favilli

Promoters
  • Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali
  • Direzione Regionale per i Beni Culturali e Paesaggistici della Toscana
  • Soprintendenza Speciale per il Patrimonio Storico, Artistico ed Etnoantropologico e per il Polo Museale della città di Firenze
  • Museo degli Argenti e Museo delle Porcellane di Palazzo Pitti

Curated by
Ornella Casazza

Technical co-ordination and layout supervision
Mauro Linari

Catalogue
Sillabe

Ticket prices:
Museo degli Argenti ticket

Hours
Daily:
8.15 – 18.15 (up to 24 October)
8.15 – 17.15 (from 25 to 31 October)
8.15 – 16.15 (November, December, January, February)

Closed on the 1st and the last Monday of each month, New Year's Day and Christmas Day.

Secretary:
Ilaria Bartocci

Press office:
Davis & Franceschini: davis.franceschini@dada.it