Giovanni De Simone (Palermo 1930-1991) was active between Rome and his hometown. His production of artefacts began in the 1950s, in the premises of piazza Leoni 2, where he made hand-painted objects, furnishing accessories and majolica sculptures in traditional and modern style inspired by Primitivism, marked by the use of full-bodied enamels, in bright colours. The artist's creative imagination drew inspiration from Sicilian folklore and tradition as well as from the great masters of modern art such as Picasso, Matisse, Leger and Klee.