17th century Italian vase with free-forming copper, baroque pearls and shells on a petrified wood base.
This fragment is from a church in Florence. It was found and saved from the historic flooding of the Arno River in 1966. The piece has been naturally distressed from the flood.
The original orange and green paint matches perfectly with the copper and verdigris on the copper. The baroque pearls coordinate with the metallic sheen of the copper formation. The copper formation is made up of molten copper made at 2200 degrees Fahrenheit and is poured into a water soaked straw. The straw forms the shape, then burns away, and the copper forms and solidifies in the cool water. It is then mounted onto the fragment piece.
The story and history of this piece and Interi's collection of Florence fragments, in particular, are very interesting. While many fragments are distressed due to age, these Florence fragments in particular stand apart. They symbolize a history that has been carried through the streets of Italy, to an Italian palazzo where they were collected, to the Interi studio, to now the modern home or gallery.
Size: 7.75" high x 3" round
