Sicilian artistic ceramics conquer Milan and Rome. Proposal for the creation of a widespread museum

Palermo, 10/12/2023 – Mayors and administrators of the Municipalities of Burgio (AG), Caltagirone (CT), Collesano (PA), Monreale (PA), Santo Stefano di Camastra (ME), and Sciacca (AG), gathered under the aegis of the Italian Association of Cities of Ceramics (A.I.C.C.), presented “The regional route of Sicilian ceramics” to journalists from foreign and Italian newspapers and TV stations. This route ideally unites the Sicilian municipalities known for the production of artistic ceramics, where historic workshops and laboratories pass down this ancient tradition. The presentation event, titled “The Sicily You Like: A journey to discover the cities of ceramics and baked goods,” took place on October 9 and 10 in Rome and Milan, respectively. It also involved the “Bonaventura Secusio” Art High School, reflecting the intention to highlight the need to preserve and disseminate the ancient art of artistic ceramics production. The goal is to work in synergy to best enhance and promote these true icons of Sicilian identity, recognized and appreciated worldwide.

The conferences in Rome and Milan were attended by Francesco Re, Mayor of Santo Stefano di Camastra and Vice President of the Italian Association of Cities of Ceramics; Toni Armanno, Councilor of the Municipality of Collesano; Vincenzo Galifi, Mayor of Burgio; Fabio Termine, Mayor of Sciacca; Claudio Lo Monaco, Councilor for Ceramic and Cultural Activities, Cultural Heritage, UNESCO Heritage, and Intangible Heritage of the Municipality of Caltagirone; and Sabrina Mancuso, Principal of the Art High School of Caltagirone.

Mayors and administrators shared their experiences and discussed the growth opportunities for this sector, as well as the need for adequate recognition and support from institutions.

Mayors and administrators shared their experiences and discussed the growth opportunities for this sector and the need for adequate recognition and support from institutions. This experience served to establish objectives for the protection and enhancement of this artistic heritage and to pave the way for a common path. This includes a proposal for the creation of a widespread museum of Sicilian ceramics with a single ticket, which will encompass conservation, safeguarding, production activities, and training by networking all institutions, including art institutes and art high schools, whose role is fundamental in education.

Professor Sabrina Mancuso, Principal of the Art High School of Caltagirone—founded by Don Luigi Sturzo to provide the city with a high-level professional training school to restore economic development opportunities to workshops in the early decades of the 20th century—highlighted during the conference the economic value of the sector as a driver for the economy and tourism. She also emphasized the need to support the sector by contributing to the training of specialized figures involved in the design and production process—figures that the world of artistic ceramics relies on and which are becoming increasingly rare, such as potters, decorators, and modelers.

During the conferences, the close link between the production of ceramics and the Sicilian tradition of baked goods was also illustrated. The six Sicilian cities of ceramics are also distinguished by the production of baked goods which, as much as the artistic ceramics, are an integral part of the local identity. Examples include the pasticciotti of Burgio, the ova murina of Sciacca, the panareddi of Caltagirone, the bread and biscuits of Monreale, or the cassatine of Collesano. Both are “baked products,” both require dough, handling, baking, and decoration. As the award-winning baker Gianmichele Messina pointed out during his speech, ceramics and baked goods have a fundamental “ingredient” in common: heat! Without careful management of the latter, it is impossible to obtain either. Furthermore, most of the decorations on ancient ceramics traditionally referred to motifs recalling the cultivation of wheat and, as is well known, ceramics were used for the preservation and transport of food and are still used for preparations requiring long cooking times. After the press conferences held in Rome, at the Foreign Press headquarters, and in Milan at the YoRoom coworking space, the next appointment for the project “The Sicily You Like: A journey to discover the cities of ceramics and baked goods” is the press tour organized by the Migi Press agency, which will take 9 journalists from the national and foreign press to discover the six cities of ceramics. The final event will take place on October 15 in Monreale, at the Guglielmo II Monumental Complex, where the final conference dedicated to the Sicilian cities of ceramics and baked goods will be held.