The Florentine Handcraft Companies: Itinerary D

Overview

Discover the rich world of traditional Florentine handcraft companies and their products. Meet the artisans, experience their history and the know-how they have inherited through many generations. This tour is a journey through small-sized ateliers and stores where you'll witness the love and dedication of the artisans reflected in the work of their hands. You can attend the creation of the handmade objects from jewelry to ceramics, from mosaics to textiles. And you can purchase directly from the source!

We've created eight one-of-a-kind itineraries for you to choose from, each one of them an unforgettable tour. Simply click on the links in the “details” section for a preview of the master artisans’ work.

Itinerary D includes:

• Akronos (sculptures & painting)
• Pietra di Luna SAS di Bianchi (Scagliola works & restorations)
• Il Tamarino Stampe d'Arte di Pier Francesco Mearini (etchings)
• Sbigoli Terrecotte (Ceramics)

Practical Details:

• Four hour tours (half day trips), morning or afternoon, from Monday to Friday, except holidays
• Tours will start at opening of the first shop of the itinerary
• Tours must be reserved with at least 7 days advance notice, and will be confirmed within 2 working days from the request
• Tours are not available on Saturdays, Sundays, and on religious and national holidays during which the shops are closed
• For small groups from 2 to 8 people
• Languages available: Italian and English

Cancellation Policy

• There will be no penalty for cancellations of excursion bookings communicated in writing until 2 weeks prior to the booked excursion date.
• For cancellations less than two weeks prior to the excursion date, the payment of the entire amount will be due and no reimbursement will be granted.
• Transportation included only where specified.
• Time and meeting point will be defined with the individual participant before the service date.

Save time ordering: Add all the service tickets you want into your basket, then fill in the form and send your request.

PLEASE NOTE: Immediately after submitting an order, you will receive an email with your order summary plus a second email confirming your successful payment. A confirmation email with links to the vouchers will be sent one business day after you place your order (Monday afternoon for orders submitted on Friday and during the weekend). Please make sure that your anti-spam filter does not block automatic emails from help@wa

Details

View itinerary D

Akronos : Sculpture & painting

Akronos is the name artists Anita Mollo and Angela Longares chose for their business. They have been working together in Florence since 1982, signing their works with one name, Akronos. They produce a variety of art forms, ranging from polychrome ceramics, scriptural paintings, art books, and visual poetry. Their geometrical shapes seem to inhabit space. Even when outlined, they continue to be pure, infinite, evocative of metaphysics and spatialism as another dimension of our being. The colors -- poised, refined, and elegant -- seem to travel along in the artists' search for expression. Akronos' artistic production is altogether part of contemporary art, ranging across spatialism, minimalism and conceptualism, through a markedly intellectual breadth, experimental in their technique, poetic-philosophical in their ideas.

Opening hours: 9:00am-7:00pm

Closed: July, August, and holidays

Languages spoken: English, French and Spanish

Credit cards accepted: Visa, MasterCard

Pietra di Luna SAS di Bianchi : Scagliola works & restorations

Home to masters of the scagliola technique, the artisanal studio Bianco Bianchi began its activity in the 1960s. Alessandro and Elisabetta, children of the founder, driven by the same passion as their father and by a restless spirit of research, create scagliola artifacts of modern and traditional inspiration using entirely manual techniques.

All the phases of workmanship are performed with great care, from the creation of the preparatory designs to the final polishing. The production consists of table-tops, panels, pictures, frames, and various decor elements and accessories. The workshop collaborates with famous architects, and also creates customized items specially designed to meet the requirements of the space and atmosphere for which they are destined.

The technique, experience, and creative capacities, the design skill, the sophisticated elegance of the decorations, and the harmonious choice of colors make the Bianchi’s scagliola work truly unique, worthy illustrations of an art that has been passed down through generations of artisans. The workshop also deals with restoration and collaborates with museums, collectors, antiquarians, and the fine art commissions.

Opening hours: 10:00am - 12:30pm

Closed: August

Languages spoken: English

Credit cards accepted: Visa and American Express

Il Tamarino Stampe d'Arte di Pier Francesco Mearini : Etchings

Il Tamarino Stampe d’Arte is an etching workshop in the center of Florence, near Santa Maria Novella train station. Here, Pier Francesco Mearini and his assistants produce hand-made limited edition water-colored etchings. The exquisite works created cover a wide range of subjects – such as landscapes and views of Florence, botanical and animal images, childhood themes and abstract motifs.

Il Tamarino Stampe d'Arte produces works on commission such as portraits, either as etchings, pencil drawings, or watercolors. Etchings are produced in limited editions making them the ideal, elegant gift for wedding guests or any other special event. Visit the workshop and experience the work in progress - from the artist etching the copper plate, printing by hand, and water-coloring the finished print.

Opening hours: 9:00am-7:00pm

Closed: August and from December 15 to 25

Languages spoken: English

Credit cards accepted: Visa, MasterCard

Sbigoli Terrecotte : Ceramics

The origin of this shop, which at first specialized in the sale of plaster and terracotta items for the garden, dates to 1857. Valentino Adami and his wife Antonella Chini Adami bought this business after the 1966 flood. The production of ceramics gradually became the focal point of the business, managed completely by the Adami family.

Valentino Adami, besides preparing the kiln, takes care of the commercial aspect of the shop with the assistance of his daughter Chiara, who handles the contacts with the Italian and foreign customers. Antonella, descendant of a famous family of ceramists, attended ceramics courses in Faenza, well-known for its majolica. Antonella started production directly in the workshop within the shop in 1970. Her designs draw inspiration above all from ancient Tuscan models. Together with her daughter Lorenza, she started a production of dinnerware and furnishing objects, creating new patterns from the antique ones in continuous artistic research. Lorenza has been working in the family shop since 1996. In the same year she opened another Sbigoli Terrecotte workshop in via Camaldoli in Florence. In addition, she organizes ceramics courses and participates in various editions of the project “Artisans at School” to introduce Middle School students to the ancient Florentine trades. She has participated in various national and international exhibitions.

In the Sbigoli Terrecotte studio behind the shop, you can see the pottery cleaned, glazed, decorated, and fired in the large electric kiln. At Sbigoli, high quality is attained according to the famous Florentine tradition. The patterns are often late Medieval or Renaissance in origin, with more modern inputs. The Sbigoli creations are always warm, colorful, and skilfully realized. Each of the pieces shines with its own personality: they are not just simple copies but unique pieces.

Opening hours: 9:00am - 12:30pm and 2:00pm - 7:00pm

No annual closing.
Languages spoken: English

Credit cards accepted: none

Prices

Price per group for walking tour with English language guide:
From 2 to 4 people: € 187.00
From 5 to 8 people: € 220.00

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