News
Caribbean young artisans learn ceramics and glassmaking in a residency in Italy supported by UNESCO and EU
The UNESCO programme Transcultura: Integrating Cuba, the Caribbean and the European Union through Culture and Creativity, funded by the European Union, has supported nine Caribbean jewellery designers and ceramists in an artist residency and exhibition in Caltagirone, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Sicily renowned for its traditional ceramics.
We are delighted to welcome these artists to Caltagirone, a city that makes ceramics the identifying element of a community that has been molding and decorating clay for millennia.
The Transcultura programme has partnered with the European artisans’ association and the city of Caltagirone to offer the young creatives the opportunity of learning new skills, creating and exhibiting their art, fostering cultural exchange and professional growth.
It is an honour for Mad’in Europe to partner with Transcultura. Together with the city authorities and its artists, this alliance has made it possible to build a bridge between two cultures and share Sicilian artists’ valuable knowledge with young Caribbean talents.
The young designers from Belize, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines participated in three different workshops according to their area of creation: glass making, ceramic painting and molding. These workshops were led by Francesca Bortolaso, Desirée Delfino and Salvatore Gurreri. Throughout the week, these experienced artisans opened their workshops to the Caribbean creators, sharing their traditional knowledge of ceramics and glassmaking. The newly acquired skills will enable the Caribbean artisans to expand their creative practices and enhance the competitiveness of their business ventures.
This residency has given me the opportunity to learn directly from the source of the great European masters, where ceramics wrote its milestones.
A public exhibition was held on 26 and 27 September at the Caltagirone City Hall (Palazzo dell’Aquila) to showcase the results of what the artisans had learnt along with a diverse display of the collections that make up their work.
This opportunity represents significant growth for a Caribbean creative like me. It has expanded my profession from goldsmith and jewellery designer to now adding glass artist. I can now work with this material, creating beautiful designs from Sicilian glass for my customers, offering them new products and services.
