The Della Robbia's ceramics

Della Robbia in Tuscany - Terracottas mastepieces in La Verna

The Della Robbia is a family of sculptors and great potters that, from the 1440s, worked in Florence for about one century. The artistically most significant figure, Luca Della Robbia, was the initiator who made the first glazed terracottas around 1440. They are also known as "Della Robbia" terracottas or "Della Robbia" ceramics. Andrea Della Robbia, Luca's nephew, was initially a fellow in his grandfather's activity and then became his successor. He was strongly inspired by his master in the plasticity and colors of his works, usually white and blue. Andrea's sons, Giovanni Della Robbia being the most famous, were the ones who continued this noble art. At the end of the 1400s, demand for their ceramics increased greatly and the Della Robbia availed themselves of several employees. This is the reason why we often refer to some works attributing them to Andrea Della Robbia's or Giovanni's workshop. On the countrary, Benedetto and Santi Buglioni, who were authors of the "Della Robbia" school as well, created their works of art on their own in the first decades of the XVIth century. The Casentino has always strongly been under the influence of Florence due to political, commercial, cultural and logistical reasons. It is surely because of this bond that almost fifty "Della Robbia" terracottas (none of Luca Della Robbia's works, but several of Andrea's instead) can be found in Casentino. One third of these ones are in La Verna, which is farther from Florence, but still deeply bound to the Tuscan capital. "L'Annunciazione" (The Annunciation), which is one of Andrea Della Robbia's masterpieces, is kept inside the Basilica of the Franciscan shrine of Casentino. The characters portrayed in these glazed terracotta high-relics change expression depending on both the point of view and the direction of the light that enlightens them. This is the reason why, sometimes, the details of a piece of ceramic are more fascinating than the whole work of art itself.