Ceramic Sculpture Depicting a Wild Boar from Bottega Gatti Faenza, Italy, 20th Century

Futurist sculpture in fully hand-molded majolica terracotta, glazed with full-bodied dark bronze glazes, depicting a wild boar with crest. Signed under the base with engraved mark "Bottega Gatti Faenza." Particularly rare is the proposed sculpture; it is difficult to find animal sculptures of this manufacture with bronze enameling, very reminiscent of the works of important modern designers and sculptors. Indeed, as you can read from the historical notes, after 1986 many sculptors and artists such as Arnoldo Pomodoro, Ugo La Pietra, Aldo Mondino and many others were invited to collaborate with Bottega Gatti, so it is very likely that this sculpture is the work of one of these important sculptors. Also because the artistic quality and originality of the work are beyond question, note the beauty of the shape of the boar, molded entirely by hand, thus a unique piece, the classy touch of the scannellatura on the belly, the highly original pierced crest on the animal's back, in full futurist style.

Useful information for evaluating the object:
From a quick web search we understand that Riccardo Gatti's ceramic vases are offered for sale from as low as 300-400 euros to over 2,000 euros depending on size and workmanship, glazing, lustres, gilding, etc. Incidentally, this artist also boasts many respectable auction results, with sculptures selling from 1,000-1,200 euros to over 3,000 euros.

Information on artist and/or manufacture:
Riccardo Gatti, born in 1886, Florentine by origin but Faentine by adoption, Riccardo Gatti began his activity as a ceramist together with Ercole Drei, Giovanni Guerrini, Francesco Nonni, the sculptor Giuseppe Ugonia and the other young talents of Domenico Baccarini's circle. He attended the school of Arts and Crafts in the Romagnola city as a pupil of Virginio Minardi at whose ceramics factory, "Minardi Ceramiche," he began work producing works in the deco style. Between 1909 and 1911 he studied in Florence at the Academy of Fine Arts, and in 1913 he moved to Rome. In 1919 he returned to Faenza and worked at the "Farina" factory, in 1924 he moved to the "Faventia Ars" of Francesco Castellini and Luigi Masini, who had taken over the "Minardi," and in 1927 he opened a workshop, the "Bottega Faentina," in partnership with Luigi Montabilini, in Via Bologna Piccola 2 in Faenza. In 1928 he began, among the first and at the suggestion of writer Giuseppe Fabbri, a great promoter of Futurist thought, to produce ceramics whose decorations were taken from cartoons by Giacomo Balla, Mario Guido Dal Monte and Benedetta Cappa Marinetti. He exhibited some of his works at the Milan exhibition "Trentatre Futuristi" in September 1928 and received the appreciation of Tullio D'Albisola. In October of the same year more of his works are presented at the "Futurist Exhibition" set up in the halls of the Società Musicale "G. Sarti" in Faenza, inaugurated by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti. In 1930 Luigi Montalbini left the manufactory, which remained the property of Riccardo Gatti. During the 1930s his production consisted mainly of large vases and large figures in terracotta, with metal lustres. His works won numerous gold medals: in 1932 at the Bologna Exposition and in 1933 at the Regional Crafts Exhibition in Parma. In 1933, with Giovanni Morelli's collaboration on the design and Domenico Pini's collaboration on the construction, the factory was equipped with an electric kiln. Around 1935 he made some futurist art ceramics designed by Giacomo Balla and Benedetta Marinetti. He exhibited some works at the Seventh Crafts Exhibition in Florence in 1937 and in 1938 at the International Crafts Exhibition in Berlin. In the post-war period collaborate with the "Bottega Gatti": Marcello Morandini, Ico Parisi, Oreste Quattrini, Alberto Burri, Sebastian Matta. In 1950 he was invited to exhibit, out of competition, some ceramics at the Faenza Prize.
His ceramics, some of which are now on display at the Faenza Ceramics Museum, are generally marked with a graphic symbol depicting a stylized cat and the words R. Gatti Faenza. Riccardo Gatti, at age 86 still active in his Bottega, died suddenly in 1972, in Venice . In Faenza, in the old factory now run by his grandson Dante Servadei, the "Gatti Ceramic Workshop Museum" has been set up.