The shape of love
- Patrizia is one of the few modern day stucco artists
- She opened her workshop Gypsea in 1991
- Her signature piece is dedicated to her town, Gubbio
Patrizia Ramacci and her husband Vittorio, both restorers by training, turned to artistic Italian stucco more than thirty years ago. They were fascinated by its sculptural qualities, by its lightness compared to stone or wood and that there hadn't been fine stucco artists in Gubbio since the early 1900s. They started from zero to re-create demand for stucco products. At the beginning, they were so inexperienced that it was all trial and error. Time and passion, though, transformed their workshop Gypsea into a regular stop for art lovers. And even if Vittorio passed away in January 2021, Patrizia goes on creating handmade pieces, true to her beloved husband’s motto: No matter what you do, the result has to be flawless.
INTERVIEW
First I draw a sketch, then I make a model with plasticine or clay and create a rubber mould. Then I pour in to it a mixture of gypsum powder and water and wait for it to harden. I remove the mould, polish the object, make it dry, polish it again, decorate and finish it.
From a couple of hours to a few days. I’ve been repeating the same gestures for thirty years now, so my hands know their job well. The most challenging phase is the first one, when I have to understand how to turn an intuition into a real object.
It’s called blown stucco: it’s a blown glass sphere with stucco decorations all around it. The original and most iconic is the one dedicated to Gubbio, with its buildings and monuments literally hugging the glass, as I don’t use any glue.
I love everything about it. I love the idea that my creations will generate happiness, bringing beauty into people’s homes. I love when my customers come back. And I love the slow pace of my workshop, where there’s always time for cultivating human relationships.
2 EXPERIENCES
