The contemporary Italian ceramic sculpture

Among the leading voices in contemporary Faentine ceramics, Antonietta Mazzotti Emaldi speaks about the exhibition project she will present in Florence on the occasion of Artigianato e Palazzo (11–13 September 2026), the thirty-second edition of the now historic showcase of high craftsmanship held in the Corsini Garden and its evocative spaces. Realised as part of the contemporary patronage project La Grande Bellezza. The Dream Factory, promoted by Starhotels in collaboration with Fondazione Cologni and Gruppo Editoriale, the exhibition brings together works from her most recent collections in a journey that weaves together classical elegance, formal research, and technical experimentation, pushing the ceramic medium to the limits of its expressive possibilities.

Ceramiche Rometti was founded in 1927 in Umbertide, from the vision of master ceramicist Settimio Rometti together with his nephews Aspromonte Rometti and Dante Baldelli. One year from the significant milestone of its hundredth anniversary, the Umbrian manufactory continues to celebrate and interweave artisanal knowledge with artistic research: an identity built over time through a coherent language, capable of crossing different eras and interpreting the ideas of many creative minds, all while remaining true to itself.

In 2012 Rometti was acquired by entrepreneur Massimo Monini, who relaunched its vision by bringing it back to its artisanal roots and opening it to an ever closer dialogue with contemporary design, alongside artistic director Jean-Christophe Clair, a key figure in translating collaborations with designers and artists into projects that can be concretely realized in ceramic. In this interview, Monini himself recounts the evolution of Rometti's savoir-faire toward an increasingly contemporary language, projected into the future.