Magna Graecia Vase – / Woman – H 33 Cm – Seletti

Designed by Antonio Aricò, the ”Magna Graecia” collection of terracotta objects revisits in a cartoon style the Greek relics of southern Italy. Imbued with Mediterranean culture, Antonio Aricò worked around the world before returning to Calabria where he grew up. Greek culture is very present in this region full of statues and objects. In some villages, a derivative of Greek is still spoken, more than 2500 years after occupation… With ”Magna Graecia”, Antonio Aricò interprets this Greek heritage using terracotta, all with a fun, contemporary feel. ”Magna Graecia” reflects an image that’s more Mediterranean than Calabrian. It refers to the Great Greece of Antiquity, as well as the Roman emperors, to Sicilian traditions such as the Testa di Moro. … To create the many pieces in this collection, the designer accumulated many drawings which he transcribed in volume using 3D software. The features of these drawings were subsequently replicated identically in terracotta. … Antonio Aricò: “This is the first time in my career as a designer that the final pieces are exactly what I designed. We find in it modernity, but also the purity of traditional manufacturing. Above all, I didn’t want to make replicas, souvenirs. These pieces are contemporary and designed in a fun way, namely that of Seletti.’’… The pieces are adorned with familiar motifs of Doric and Ionic columns, wave motifs as well as erotic motifs such as those one discovers, as a child, on ancient vases. Among the key pieces in the collection, many busts and statues sculpted in reference to Antiquity inspired by the “Bronzes of Riace”, statues of warriors from the 5th century BC, still surrounded by many mysteries. The designer created feminine figures: women and men are thus mixed, as in Greek culture, in a certain gender fluidity. … Regarding the choice of terracotta, the designer explains: “I grew up in a carpentry workshop and I love wood, which is my favourite material. Terracotta is the same colour but more expressive in its plasticity. I like the “nude” aspect of this material, which gives it purity but not white, but warmer… … “Magna Graecia” tells an ancient story which, through Seletti, finds its own way of entering contemporary everyday life with irony and grace.