Ceramiche San Bernardino - Centrepiece - Height: 41 cm - Ceramic

Type: Pair of decorative wall panels (Diptych)
Material and Technique: Hand-formed terracotta/maiolica, decorated with glossy polychrome enamel on a matte dark ground with a tactile texture, gilded details
Manufacture: C.S.B. (Ceramiche San Bernardino) – L'Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy
Author / Painter: Signed "F.M." (circle of workshop masters, within the Mastrantonio family circle)
Era: Circa 1950 - 1960 (Mid-20th century)

1. Description of Subjects
Panel A (The Jester): Related to themes of the circus world and commedia dell'arte. Depicts a stylized harlequin or jester captured in a cap upside-down acrobatic pose (vertical). The costume is embellished with the classic geometric motif of diamonds and triangles in vivid red, white, and black tones. The outlines are profiled with golden metallic enamels.
Panel B (Primitive Scene): Clear expression of the modernist and "neo-primitivist" taste of the postwar era. Presents an anthropomorphic figure (probable warrior or ceremonial figure) accompanied by a giraffe (or fantastical long-necked animal). Both figures are geometrically decomposed according to a marked Cubist influence, with red, yellow and white triangular decorative modules.

2. Stylistic Characteristics and Criticism
The diptych represents a rare and refined testimony of modernist and avant-garde production within the Aquila-based C.S.B. workshop, typically oriented toward more classical and traditional Abruzzese maiolica styles.
The works stand out for the strong visual impact generated by the clear contrast between the vibrant glossy enamels (red, yellow, white) and the dense dark ground, tactile and matte. The intentionally asymmetrical and irregular shapes of the plaques attest to the workshop being entirely handmade.