Federica Ramacciotti
Porcelain maker
Beregazzo con Figliaro, Italy
Nature pressed in porcelain
- Federica creates decorative details on porcelain objects pressed with leaves and bark
- Her workshop space welcomes students for hands-on ceramics learning
- She creates vessels and decorative wares in nature-inspired collections
Designer by training, Federica Ramacciotti opened her porcelain studio in Beregazzo con Figliaro, near Como, in 2018. She works the white clay using three techniques: slip casting, slab building and turning on the potter’s wheel. Her signature gesture is pressing leaves, bark and other organic matter directly into wet porcelain slabs, where they leave permanent imprints once fired at 1260°C. Each piece passes through hours of direct work and days of waiting between drying stages and two firings. Federica's nine collections include Volcano, Luce and Fondali marini. Since 2021, she has hosted around 300 people in her workshop, from one-off modelling sessions to apprenticeships of one to three months.
INTERVIEW
I press leaves, bark and seed pods directly into the wet porcelain slab. The plant burns away in the kiln, but its veins, edges and texture stay in the clay forever. I do not copy nature; I let it sign the surface itself.
I make pieces that speak through surface and form. A pressed branch can call back a specific walk, and a colour can suggest a coastline. I give the reader of the object enough detail to recognise a place, then step out of the way.
I like the hours alone in the workshop. It is never routine. I test a new clay body, mix a fresh oxide, and try a pressed seed pod I have never used before. Most of these tests fail, and the ones that hold teach me the next piece.
I have three. Volcano, my first work with natural imprints. Luce, more intimate, was designed to carry a single light source. And Fondali marini, the freest and most artistic of my series, in which I treat the slab almost like a painter’s surface.
Federica Ramacciotti
Porcelain maker
Beregazzo con Figliaro, Italy
ADDRESS
Address upon request, Beregazzo con Figliaro, Italy
AVAILABILITY
By appointment only
LANGUAGES
Italian, French, English
Homo Faber Finds is a new service aiming to inspire admirers of craft to connect and collaborate with exceptional artisans.
We invite you to submit an enquiry here.
