Elio Schiavon - Casserole dish - Ceramic - Volto

This ceramic piece by Elio Schiavon is a vibrant and representative example of his distinctive style, which blends the Venetian pottery tradition with a modernist and playful sensibility.
Rare ceramic by Elio Schiavon Erhart Italia from the 60s/70s. A very rare and original ceramic piece by Elio Schiavon, a famous Veneto ceramicist. It is a bowl, pan, in excellent vintage condition as shown in the photo, with light signs of use. The colors are vibrant and representative of the 60s/70s era.

Dimensions: length 25 cm, diameter 15 cm, height 5.5 cm.

He was born in Arzergrande (Padova) in 1925 and died in 2004.
He studied at the School of Ceramic Art in Nove (student of Andrea Parini) and at the Academy of the Carmini in Venice.
At the end of the 1950s, he opened the 'Schiavon Ceramiche' furnace in Padua (1954), and in 1964, he moved to Abano Terme.
He/She created a range of productions from artisanal/monotype to more commercial productions, while maintaining a personal aesthetic research.

The work depicts a stylized face, a recurring theme in Schiavon's production. The face is rendered with essential, almost primitive, strokes.
The eyes are elongated and emphasized by engraved marks.
The nose is a vertically decorated band inside.
The smile is a broad turquoise arch that gives the piece an aura of irony.
It is a small pan or a tiny decorative pan with a long handle. The presence of a hole at the end of the handle suggests that the piece was designed to be hung, becoming a wall decoration. The edge also features a small side spout, maintaining the reference to everyday shapes used in popular cuisine.
The palette is warm and bold, typical of the mid-20th century.
Dominant color: a bright orange, applied with a technique that leaves visible darker, vertical brushstrokes, creating a sense of depth.
Contrast: The use of turquoise/blue for facial details and geometric motifs (Greek patterns and stylized leaves) creates a lively and captivating color contrast.
The finish is glossy (glazed), but the decorations are achieved through 'sgraffito' engravings, which add a tactile and material element to the smooth surface.
On the back (seen in the last photo), there is the autograph signature 'Schiavon'. The base shows the raw clay along the edge, typical of handcrafted wheel-throwing techniques and firing in a kiln for these pieces.
In summary
It is a piece of great communicative strength, transforming a humble object into a small pop-folk art work. It perfectly represents that period of Italian ceramics (the 1950s-60s) when artists like Schiavon managed to combine creative flair with artisanal mastery.