The end of 2020 inevitably brings with it the idea of the budget, as every other year, except that 2020 proved to be a year decidedly different from all the others and will go down in history. The pandemic has brought among us new habits, the mask for example, a different way of being close, often through the camera or at a safe distance, has seen the whole of Italy united in an unprecedented work out and in the bakery, even this one unprecedented. We were forced to stay all together in the house, for those who live with their families, or, on the contrary, we were more alone. In both cases we have encountered unprecedented scenarios, often with happily surprising outcomes.
The passion for cooking for some has rekindled as well as the pleasure for small things and attention to what we have taken for granted. We centered ourselves, we lost the centering and so on every lock down, every decree, always adapting and finding ourselves each time changed with an incredible dose of resilience. When the bill allows it, we can take the cappuccino sitting at the bar, and, to me, this just seems like a wonderful thing.
The perfectly imperfect tables have seen a Christmas and, soon they will see a New Year, collected, and, perhaps for this very reason, more precious.
In the forced silences, in the limitation of freedom of movement, I believe that everyone has been able to focus more on their priorities, review their choices, confirm them, change them, or, as in my case go deeper, with greater clarity and time to create. When everything changes, when everything is transformed and it is not possible to make projects, as at this moment, it is essential to find your own firm point within yourself. In my case it is the clay, the colour, the shape, materials and languages that allow me to center myself, in the same way as the clay is centered on the wheel.
And when I make a bowl or a cup, when I make something with my hands, I find my center.
The table represents the heart of the house, the place where you meet, the place where you carve out a moment for yourself. Seated. For this reason it is important. The food then created carefully becomes food for the soul too.
My proposal for the table in this moment certainly sees the use of neutral and comforting shades, those that allow you to face any occasion you present, but also allow you to expose yourself at the time you need, through the use of a more decided colour of fabrics, and the use of white silk paper, an enveloping white, to give light points. There’s snow outside, it’s all white.
There is a loaded kiln waiting to be fired and there are my wabi sabi ceramics waiting to tell stories of perfectly imperfect tables.