Gio Ponti,
domus 328, March 1957
There is a deep connection between Domus and the Sardinian Crafts Biennale - a connection that is undoubtedly the result of Gio Ponti's profound admiration of Eugenio Tavolara, the force behind the revival of Sardinian craft traditions in a contemporary style. This connection, however, is also the product of Ponti's passionate interest in the quality of "handmade" work, a type of work that is unique, ancient, universal, and cannot be reproduced by industry, to which it is, in fact, diametrically opposed. It is stored in the "industrious hands" of craftsmen and women, who repeat and modernise an ancient tradition through the creation of perpetually different forms and archetypes, of which the originals are lost.
Writing about the first Biennale in the 1950s, Ponti referred to "the moving discovery, or rediscovery, of the beauty of this fine craftsmanship, its timeless qualities and the keen skill that has reappeared in the form of a renewed tradition… This craftsmanship gives value to humble materials, from cork to asphodel, from ceramics to wool, in exquisitely beautiful, monumental baskets and vases, and in spectacular tapestries."
Approaching this history was not easy in today's world, where craftsmanship risks remaining mired in a form survival linked to folklore. It is thanks to the work of a group coordinated by the Ilisso publishing house and made up of Giuliana Altea, Annalisa Cocco, Roberta Morittu, Anna Pau and Antonello Cuccu that some of these contradictions have been resolved: they have worked out in the field a form of artisan practice that is unique in Italy.
This group, which I had the pleasure of working with as a result of the Domus connection, had no easy task in managing a Biennale that set itself up as a "turning point" after the ISOLA's long period of obsolescence. This organisation was founded after the Second World War as the Istituto Sardo Organizzazione Lavoro Artigiano (Sardinian institute for the organisation of artisan work) but went into decline after Tavolara's death. This was primarily the result of a drop in interest in the phenomenon of craftsmanship, which, as an expression of the material qualities of a people, requires a public institution to sustain it like any other cultural good.
There is impressive work then on display at the Biennale in Sassari. There are more than 250 objects, the products of the island's artisans adapting to the proposals of designers. It is work that is complex in terms of mediation, comparison, know-how, hybridisation and cross-contamination, one which may have even more striking results if this initiative is considered only the first step in a collaboration that it destined to last. It represents a good omen and a hope for a valuable form of work that goes some way towards renewing a tradition of craftsmanship which deserves to be recognised as a heritage to conserve as well as an economic resource to be used. Without ignoring the fact that the event put on by the Region of Sardinia could establish a model and spark off a more general debate on the protection and renewal of Italy's craft traditions, it is not inferior in terms of quality and tradition to well known examples of outstanding beauty, such as are found in Scandinavia and Japan. Francesca Picchi