Made in Livorno

Made in Livorno - Murano Glass Jewels by Caterina ZucchiSeeking out Local Arts and Crafts in Livorno

Away from Livorno’s main shopping centre, in places that you would probably never find by accident, there are a number of small shops and workshops where some very creative Livornese ladies spend their time channelling their artistic energies into making a surprising variety of highly original handmade objects. These inspirational objects include individual hand-painted ceramics, cleverly printed photographic images, and original hand-made glass jewellery.  Read more about these resourceful ladies here, and if you like what you see, you could look them up when you come to Livorno.

Digitally printed Photographic Images

Printed Bags by Anna Laura BachiniAnna Laura Bachini is a graphic designer who has turned her artistic talents to a wide variety of uses. Her photographic images are already familiar to many of those who live in Livorno, since her designs have been used for the ‘Welcome to Livorno’ panels located at various points in the city. She has also carried out a number of projects for many local businesses, including Bar Civili, Teatro Goldoni and the Caprilli Race course.
A specially made Pet PanelThe core of Anna Laura’s work comes from digitally printed photographic images combined with lines of poetry or appropriate citations. One of her images of the Terrazza Mascagni, for example, bears a quotation about Livorno and its people by  Pier Paolo Pasolini. She uses these designs to make decorative panels, as well as applying them to soft furnishings, bags and clothing.

Anna Laura has had her own graphic design studio in Livorno since 1990. Her works can be seen on display at Studio Blu furniture shop and in Bar Civili.

Hand-crafted Murano Glass Jewellery

Caterina at work at Studio Zero VetroCaterina Zucchi can be found in her workshop and showroom in Via Demi - Studio Zero Vetro, not far from the centre of Livorno. She works alone, skillfully crafting colourful glass into beautiful jewellery to her own designs. You can see her at work as you browse around her small shop.

Caterina started out in 1999 when she attended a course in stained-glass windows and Tiffany technique at the Atelier delle Arti in Livorno. From there she went on to follow a course in glass-making at the Vetroricerca Glas&Modern school in Bolzano, where she obtained her certificate in Glass Making Techniques.
One of the lovely designs by Caterina ZucchiCaterina has also studied other craft skills such as raku, pitfire and bucchero, and she worked in Murano, Venice for a year, perfecting the art of making glass beads by torch, a technique she uses most often in her own work now.

Caterina has had her own shop and workshop in Livorno since 2005, and she has taken part in craft fairs all over Italy. She recently won an award at the Macef - Bijoux fair in Milan (September 2008) in the Best of Ornaments competition.
You can contact Caterina at info@studiozerovetro.it

Gorgeous handpainted patterns for Cristina’s ceramics.

Some of Cristina's Eye-catching DesignsCristina Piombanti developed her passion for all things creative at an early age, but because her mum was reluctant to let her go to a specialist art school in faraway Florence, Cristina was not able to follow  any formal artistic training until after leaving school. This was when she went to Montelupo Fiorentino, a town that has centred around ceramics for centuries, to do a course in ceramics.

Since then she has developed her talents into a small business which she runs from her shop-come-workshop in Livorno, her home town. She is also often present at local arts and crafts fairs, such as the ones held in the Fortezza Vecchia at various times of the year.

A Hand-painted Lamp in Cristina's WorkshopEach piece of work is personally crafted, fired and decorated by Cristina, and her original designs reflect her mood of the moment. She says that her best designs are created when she is angry!

Cristina's style is fresh and highly original and she makes a wide variety of objects, from lamps to mirror frames, dinner services and tableware, children’s money boxes and good luck charms, as well as adding her own hand-painted decorations to furniture and clothing.

To contact Cristina Piombanti please write to me at Livorno Now, or visit her shop in Via San Gaetano 33, Livorno. She is currently developing her own website.