The small, charming building designed by Giulio Bernardini in 1903, is earmarked in an unmistakable manner by the vast Liberty eaves, from which lamps in bronze of that period hang, from delicate floral decorations, (it is sufficient to observe a vase in stucco with the motif of poppies in the left corner part), but above all from the four mighty bas-reliefs in stone by the sculptor Domenico Trentacoste from Palermo, of whom the most notable works are preserved at the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome, and in that in Florence.
These last works, modelled with masterly equilibrium of strength and kindness, portray the different roles relevant to the art of the potters: the Furnace-man, the Grinder, the Sculptor and the Designer Decorator. The latter portrays precisely the resemblance to Galileo Chini. The bas-reliefs were carried out by the firm The Art of Ceramics, founded by the same Galileo Chini, and had been presented at the Italian Exhibition of Decorative and Industrial Arts in Turin in 1902, before finally finding their place on the facade of this delightful building.
Itinerario Liberty - Planning and Realization - Stefano Pelosi - www.stefanopelosi.it