MARIO BECCHETTI
(Gualdo Tadino 1945), son of Sostene and Annunziata Teodori, ceramologist. Graduated
from the local Istituto Magistrale, he enrolled at ISEF in Urbino where, in
1967, he obtained his degree. He taught physical education in various schools
in the province of Perugia until he was appointed to the middle school in
Gualdo Tadino, where he worked until his retirement.

Passionate about ceramics, a scholar of marks and a researcher
in public and private archives, in 1985 he participated with Enzo Storelli,
Daniele Amoni, and Sergio Ponti in the publication of the volume edited by Banca
Popolare di Gualdo Tadino for its centenary, “La ceramica a Gualdo Tadino,”
for the part concerning archival documentation and trademarks.

In the mid-1980s, he established, with others, a section
of the national association “Archeoclub d’Italia,” serving as its president
and contributing, for the part concerning Gualdo Tadino, to the edition
of the work “La ceramica tra Umbria e Marche” (1992), edited by Gian Carlo
Bojani, in which he described ceramic artifacts found in the excavation of Piazza
Soprammuro and in the surroundings of Rocca Flea.

Within the “Giochi de le Porte,” he held the position
of chief field judge and subsequently that of Prior of Porta di
San Donato for eight years. At the same time, he served as a minority municipal councilor
for two terms (1990-94 and 1995-98).

In 1998, he curated the publication, together with Mario
Anderlini and with critical notes by Enzo Storelli, “Renzo Megni Esperienze di
pittura classica sulla ceramica” (Renzo Megni: Experiences of Classical Painting on Ceramics),
a re-elaboration of a manuscript by the well-known
Gualdese ceramic painter, for whom he wrote an exhaustive biography.

In 2001, he published “Appunti sulla Ceramica di
Gualdo Tadino” (Notes on the Ceramics of Gualdo Tadino) with marks and initials. This book provides a brief overview of Gualdese ceramics
from its beginnings until 1861, and from there, it discusses modern ceramics
until 1950, concluding with a review of trademarks that
greatly contributed to Gualdese ceramic collecting. In 2002, he
received the Lions “Castore Durante” Award for the historical-editorial sector.

Also in the field of ceramics, he published, together with Enzo
Storelli and Mario Franceschini, “Ceramica Pubblica a Gualdo Tadino” (Public Ceramics in Gualdo Tadino), a collection
of ceramic works scattered throughout the Gualdese territory, painted or
relief tiles, and ceramic panels displayed to the public. These artifacts span
from the early 18th century to today and are embedded in niches, edicules,
old doors, house walls, or as urban furniture.

In 2008, he participated in the writing of the book “Alfredo
Santarelli, 1874 – 1957, Maestro dell’Arte Ceramica, nel cinquantenario della
morte” (Alfredo Santarelli, 1874 – 1957, Master of Ceramic Art, on the Fiftieth Anniversary of His Death),
together with Enzo Storelli and Franco Chiucchi, a publication issued as
the catalog of the magnificent anthological exhibition on Santarelli majolica, showcasing
over three hundred works from that manufacture. The exhibition was organized
in the monumental church of San Francesco by the municipality of Gualdo Tadino and
curated by Mario Becchetti and Enzo Storelli. Simultaneously, the
second volume, “Alfredo Santarelli, I Listini, nel cinquantenario della morte” (Alfredo Santarelli, The Price Lists, on the Fiftieth Anniversary of His Death),
by Giancarlo Franchi and Franco Chiucchi, was also released. A parade of four catalogs of
Santarelli majolica.

On the occasion of the eighth centenary of the death of Dante
Alighieri in 1226 in Ravenna, he curated, together with museum conservator
Catia Monacelli, an exhibition on “Dante Alighieri nelle ceramiche a
riflesso gualdesi” (Dante Alighieri in Gualdese Lustre Ceramics), an exhibition held in the premises of Rocca Flea and lasting
over four months.

In 2023, Mario Becchetti organized, again in the
Frederickian Rocca Flea, the exhibition “Non è tutto oro ciò che luce La maiolica a
lustro di Gualdo Tadino” (All That Glitters Is Not Gold: The Lustre Majolica of Gualdo Tadino), a collection by Alberto and Mario Mossone. The exhibition
took place from May 21 to August 27, 2023, and Becchetti produced the
catalog, with photos by Cristian Severini, of all the exhibited pieces with their respective
captions.

Maurizio Tittarelli Rubboli, born in 1959, is an Italian ceramist internationally recognized as the last custodian of the third-firing luster technique, a tradition rooted in the Italian Renaissance.

His story is inextricably linked to that of the Rubboli family, who, since 1874, have dedicated generations to rediscovering and preserving ceramic lusterware. His great-grandfather, Paolo Rubboli (1838-1890), was among the first to revive this ancient technique, lost for centuries after the decline of the Renaissance workshops in Deruta and Gubbio. Maurizio has inherited not only the craft but, above all, the alchemical secrets of the formulas for metallic lusters – jealously guarded mixtures that give the ceramics their famous golden and ruby reflections.

The third-firing lustre is one of the most complex and fascinating ceramic techniques. After glazing and traditional decoration, the pieces undergo a third firing in a reducing atmosphere, during which metallic oxides transform into very thin layers of pure metal on the surface. The result is shimmering iridescence, gold and ruby, which changes with the light.

Maurizio has dedicated decades to studying and perfecting this art, producing works ranging from philological reproductions of Renaissance masterpieces to contemporary creations that reinterpret tradition.

In addition to traditional practice, Maurizio Tittarelli Rubboli has developed a particular technique that represents a significant evolution of classic lustre: the so-called in-glaze lustre.

Unlike the historical method, which requires a dedicated third firing, in-glaze lustre integrates the oxidation-reduction process directly into the cooling phase of the second firing. After reaching 920 degrees C, reduction occurs during the temperature descent, allowing the metallic oxides to develop their characteristic iridescence without the need for an additional firing.

This innovation offers concrete advantages: simplification of the production process by eliminating the third firing; greater chromatic control, with the possibility of obtaining tones and shades difficult to achieve with traditional methods; opening up to contemporary aesthetic solutions that engage with the language of current art ceramics.

The paint lustre demonstrates Maurizio's ability to view tradition not as a heritage to be passively preserved, but as living material to be questioned and reinvented, maintaining the technical rigour of the Rubboli family while projecting it towards new expressive possibilities.

His ceramics, both traditional lusterware and experimental pieces, are exhibited in museums and private collections worldwide. He has collaborated with cultural institutions to promote the ceramic heritage of Umbria and Italy, giving lectures and demonstrations on various luster techniques. His workshop in Gualdo Tadino remains a benchmark for scholars, collectors, and enthusiasts.

Archival researcher in preparation for the exhibition on Mastro Giorgio Andreoli promoted by the Tourist Promotion Company of Gubbio in collaboration with the State Archives of Perugia and the International Museum of Ceramics in Faenza (1984-1985).

Author of the contribution “Sulle Pitture in Majolica del Ducato d’Urbino, e specialmente di Gubbio” (1756) by Gian Girolamo Carli, published in C. Fiocco – G. Gherardi, Ceramiche Umbre dal Medioevo allo Storicismo. Gubbio, altri centri, lo Storicismo, Faenza 1989, volume 5 part two of the General Catalogue of the collections of the International Museum of Ceramics in Faenza.

Curator of the Gubbio section of the exhibition Ceramiche Umbre 1900-1940 organized by the Umbria Region and set up in the Rocca Paolina Exhibition Centre in Perugia in 1992 (catalogue Perugia 1992).

Curator of the Gubbio section of the exhibition La tradizione ceramica in Umbria. Deruta, Gualdo Tadino, Gubbio, Orvieto. Dall’antichità al novecento organized by the Umbria Region and set up in the Sala Cannoniera of the Rocca Paolina in Perugia in 1995 (catalogue Perugia 2005).

Conceiver and curator, together with Gian Carlo Bojani and Fabrizio Cece, of the exhibition La ceramica ‘a lustro’ nell’Ottocento a Gubbio organized by the Municipality of Gubbio and set up in the Palazzo Ducale of Gubbio in 1998 (catalogue Florence 1998).

Member of the organizing committee for ceramic initiatives established by the Cultural Heritage Department of the Municipality of Gubbio in 1998, 1999.

Curator, together with Gian Carlo Bojani, of the sections Aldo Ajò. Lustri del Novecento and La tradizione del lustro in Umbria within the exhibition Vitalità perenne del lustro organized by the Municipality of Gubbio and set up in various city venues in 1999-2000 (catalogue Florence 1999).

Member of the technical-scientific committee for the drafting of the Regulations for Artistic and Traditional Ceramics of Gubbio (1999-2000).

Expert at the State Art Institute of Gubbio for projects on cultural heritage cataloging and ceramic workshop regulations (1999-2000).

Ceramic expert designated by the Municipality of Gubbio in the local disciplinary committee of established ceramic tradition (designation by municipal council act of the Municipality of Gubbio n. 126 of 27.07.2000).

Curator of the Gubbio section of the exhibition Il senso del classico. Ceramiche umbre del Rinascimento e dello Storicismo organized by the Province of Perugia and set up in the Museum of Applied Arts in Budapest in 2002 (catalogue Perugia 2002).

Editor, together with Patrizia Biscarini, Fabrizio Cece and Jolanda Silvestrini, of the proceedings of the study conference La maiolica italiana del Cinquecento. Il lustro eugubino e l’istoriato del ducato di Urbino, Gubbio, 21-23 September 1998, Florence 2002.

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition Brocche d’Autore, promoted by the “Maggio Eugubino” Association and set up in the Archaeological Section of the Municipal Museum of Gubbio (2002; 2003; 2005; 2006; 2007; 2008; 2010; 2012), in the exhibition hall of Palazzo Pretorio in via Lucarelli (2004; 2009) and in the church of Santa Maria dei Laici (2011).

Curator of the exhibition Alan Peascod (Gubbio, Villino di Parco Ranghiasci, 26 May – 9 June 2002).

Author of the bio-bibliographical entries for Aldo Ajò and Antonino Traverso, in A.C. Ponti, F. Boco (edited by), Terra di Maestri. Artisti Umbri del Novecento. II. 1923 – 1945, exhibition catalogue for Spello, Villa Fidelia, 19 July – 9 November 2003, Perugia 2002, pp. 215, 231.

Author of the essay La ceramica (e le altre arti) a Gubbio nel rinascimento. Per un repertorio dei decori, dei soggetti, dei temi iconografici, and of the entries for the Gubbio works of the 16th and 19th centuries, and for the Gualdo Tadino works of the 20th century, in the catalogue of the Deruta exhibition La ceramica umbra al tempo del Perugino, edited by G. Busti and F. Cocchi, Silvana Editoriale, Cinisello Balsamo (Milan) 2004, pp. 156-179, 183-188.

Curator of the exhibition Indigeni (Gubbio, Sale Inferiori del Palazzo dei Consoli, 5-15 April 2004).

Curator of the exhibition Dino Coffani (Gubbio, Sale Inferiori del Palazzo dei Consoli, 10-28 July 2004).

Author of the bio-bibliographical entry for Aldo Ajò, in A.C. Ponti, F. Boco (edited by), Terra di Maestri. Artisti Umbri del Novecento. 1946-1959, exhibition catalogue for Spello, Perugia 2004, pp. 303-304.

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition Il senso del classico a Gubbio. Ceramiche dello Storicismo (Gubbio, Galleria Della Porta, May-August 2005).

Curator of the exhibition Apuntes desde el Relato. Alexis Miguel Pantoja Pérez nello Studio d’Arte Ceramica Rampini di Gubbio (Gubbio, Exhibition Halls of the Municipal Residence, August 2005).

Author of the entry Gubbio Umbria in F. Bertoni, J. Silvestrini, Ceramica italiana del Novecento, Milan 2005.

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition La ceramica eugubina tra le due Guerre. Aspetti dell’antico e del nuovo a confronto (Gubbio, Galleria Della Porta, August-September 2006).

Author of Lustri eugubini. Collezione di Carlo Colaiacovo, in Ceramica Umbra. Arte e Tradizione, catalogue of the Perugia exhibition, Fondazione per l’Istruzione Agraria, Perugia 2006.

Curator of the exhibition Giuseppe Magnanelli ‘maiolicaro’ in San Giuliano. La ripresa dei lustri a Gubbio sullo scorcio del XX secolo (Gubbio, Headquarters of the San Giuliano Quarter Association, 13 October – 12 November 2006).

Curator of the exhibition Tetramorfo. Ceramiche tra aria, terra, acqua, fuoco (Gubbio, Casa di Sant’Ubaldo, 1-24 June 2007).

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition La ceramica a Gubbio dal 1946 al 1959. Tradizione artigiana e rivoluzione espressiva (Gubbio, Galleria Della Porta, August-October 2007).

Author of the essay La Bucchereide eugubina, dalle origini al post modern di Gabriele Tognoloni, in the catalogue of the exhibition Gabriele Tognoloni 3 (Montefalco, Chiesa Museo di San Francesco, Nuovi spazi espositivi, 21 March – 22 June 2008), Perugia 2008, pp. 9-11.

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition Omaggio ad Alan Caiger-Smith maestro del lustro. Con opere di nove ceramisti umbri ed un tributo ad Alan Peascod, Gubbio, Palazzo dei Consoli, Sala dell’Arengo, 6 September 2008 – 11 January 2009; catalogue edited by E.A. Sannipoli and T. Wilson, Gubbio 2008.

Author of the essay La pittura a Gubbio nell’Ottocento: momenti e aspetti attraverso le biografie di dodici artisti, in Gubbio nel Risorgimento. La storia, i cimeli e l’eroe dei due mondi, edited by M. Squadroni, proceedings of the Gubbio conference (1st December 2007), Città di Castello 2008, pp. 117-128.

Author, together with Gian Carlo Bojani, of the monograph Aldo Ajò, 1901 – 1982. Ceramiche, Fano 2008.

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition 1908-2008. L’Esposizione Agricola-Industriale, cent’anni dopo, (Gubbio, Galleria Della Porta, August-September 2008).

Author of the article Omaggio ad Alan Caiger-Smith maestro del lustro, in “La Ceramica Moderna & Antica”, a. XXIX (2008), nn. 8-9, pp. 15-16.

Author of the article Alan Caiger-Smith, in “D’A”, a. XIX (2008), n. 4, pp. 14-15.

Author of the essay Breve storia della ceramica eugubina, in La via della ceramica in Umbria. Argilla colore fuoco, edited by A.C. Ponti and F. Boco, Perugia 2008, pp. 217-257.

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition Museo della Maiolica a Lustro “Torre di Porta Romana”. Acquisizioni 1999-2009 (Gubbio, Galleria Della Porta, April-May 2009); Gubbio 2009 catalogue.

Author of the essay Segno, impressione, colore. Le ceramiche artistiche di Marilena Scavizzi, in Marilena Scavizzi. Undici_Eleven, exhibition catalogue for Senigallia (Galleria Gherardi 30, 2010) Gubbio 2010, pp. 22-31.

Conceiver and curator, together with Cesare Coppari, of the exhibition Ricadute. Esemplarità dell’opera di Aldo Ajò nella ceramica di Lucia Angeloni, Eraldo Chiucchiù, Enrico Mancini, Giancarlo Scapin, Sandro Soravia, Giampiero Stacciari, Gubbio (former refectory of the San Pietro monastic complex, 12-26 August 2010), Gubbio 2010 catalogue.

Curator, together with Marinella Caputo, of the exhibition Lumen et Splendor. Maioliche di Lucia Angeloni e Maurizio Tittarelli Rubboli, Gubbio (Galleria Della Porta, 4-26 September 2010) and author of the text Lucia Angeloni, in Lumen et Splendor. Maioliche di Lucia Angeloni e Maurizio Tittarelli Rubboli, edited by M. Caputo and E.A. Sannipoli, exhibition catalogue for Gubbio, Gubbio 2010, pp. 4-5.

Author of the essay Contraffazioni e copie nella ceramica eugubina dell’Ottocento, in Prima e dopo le Tavole Eugubine. Falsi e copie fra tradizione antiquaria e rivisitazioni dell’antico, edited by P. Castelli and S. Geruzzi, proceedings of the study conference (Gubbio, Palazzo Pretorio, Sala degli affreschi, 24-26 November 2005), Pisa – Rome 2010, pp. 253-289.

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition La via della ceramica tra Umbria e Marche. Maioliche rinascimentali da collezioni private, Gubbio, Palazzo Ducale, 26 June 2010 – 30 January 2011; Gubbio 2010 catalogue.

Author of the essay Vasellari Eugubini “Mastro Giorgio” (Gubbio, 1920-1924). Documenti, articoli e altre testimonianze, in “Bollettino dell’Istituto Storico Artistico Orvietano”, LXV-LXVI, 2009-2010, Orvieto 2011, pp. 121-158.

Author of the essay Le brocche dei Ceri, in Brocche d’autore 2002 – 2011, edited by E.A. Sannipoli, catalogue of the Gubbio exhibition, Gubbio 2011, pp. 9-13.

Author of the essay Le ceramiche del Museo Comunale di Gubbio, in Il Museo di Gubbio. Memoria e identità civica. 1909-2009, edited by P. Castelli and S. Geruzzi, proceedings of the study conference (Gubbio, 26-28 November 2009), Pisa – Rome 2012, pp. 205-227.

Author of the essay Il borgo di Sant’Agostino in Gubbio. Fornaci e botteghe di ceramiche dal XV al XVIII secolo, in Studi sulla ceramica abruzzese-umbro-marchigiana, proceedings of the Tolentino conference (16 September 2011), Tolentino 2012, pp. 59-71.

Author of the essay Ceramiche di Giuliano Giganti, in Giuliano Giganti. Per ricomporre l’uomo con la passione catartica per la condivisione. Ingobbi – ceramiche – raku. 2004 – 2011, edited by P. Lugni, texts by P. Lugni, E.A. Sannipoli, A. Maggio, reflections by G. Giganti. With the sharing of 10 raku works by A. Maggio, catalogue of the Gubbio exhibition (Galleria del Palazzo Della Porta, 2-23 October 2011), Casette d’Ete (FM) 2011, pp. 9-13.

Author of the essay Conversando coi «cocci rotti». I frammenti nello studio della ceramica eugubina tra medioevo ed età moderna. Alcune note preliminari, and of the historical-artistic entry for the Gonfalone dei Calzolari di Gubbio, in “Quaderni del Museo Civico Palazzo dei Consoli”, I, 2012, pp. 44-55, 82-84.

Author, together with Francesco Mariucci and in collaboration with Fabrizio Cece, of the guide Gubbio Città d’Arte, Perugia 2013.

Curator of the exhibitions: Oman a Gubbio: collegare Culture con l’Arte Ceramica, in Oman in Gubbio. Connecting Cultures through Ceramic Art, Gubbio, 23 June – 7 July 2012, Gubbio 2012 catalogue; Oman in Gubbio II, in Oman in Gubbio. Connecting Cultures through Ceramic Art, Rome, 22 January – 1 February 2013, Gubbio 2013 catalogue.

Conceiver and curator of the photographic exhibition Fratello Lupo Sorella Arte. Il Cap. XXI dei Fioretti di san Francesco nell’iconografia eugubina, edited by E.A. Sannipoli, Gubbio, 11 August – 6 October 2013, Gubbio 2013 catalogue.

Author of the essay Note preliminari allo studio della ceramica eugubina del Seicento, in La Ceramica nel Seicento tra Lazio, Umbria e Toscana, edited by L. Pesante, Proceedings of the first study day, Civita di Bagnoregio, 19 May 2012, Florence 2014, pp. 139-168.

Author of the review Lacrime di Smalto, in “Faenza”, a. C (2014), n. 2, pp. 114-117.

Author of the essay Ancora sulle contraffazioni della ceramica di Gubbio, in Falsi e copie nella maiolica medievale e moderna. Modelli, tecniche, diffusione, gusto, riconoscibilità, edited by L. Pesante, Proceedings of the third study day on ceramics, Bagnoregio, 11 June 2016, Florence 2017, pp. 161-209.

Author of the entry Gubbio, bottega di Mastro Giorgio Andreoli o del ‘Maestro D’ (Domenico di Tommaso?), Piatto con “amorino legato” entro ornato a grottesche, in Rinascimento segreto, edited by V. Sgarbi, Sant’Arcangelo di Romagna 2017, pp. 210-211, n. 20.

Conceiver and curator of the exhibition Giuseppe Magni e la maiolica italiana dello Storicismo, Gubbio 2017-2018, Gubbio 2017 catalogue.

Curator of the exhibition Cinque paesi una visione / Five Countries One Vision. Abbas Akbari, Jonathan Chiswell Jones, John Kuczwal, Arturo Mora Benavent, Graziano Pericoli, Giampietro Rampini, Gubbio 2018, Gubbio 2018 catalogue.

Author of the review Alan Caiger-Smith e l’eredità dell’Aldermaston Pottery, in “Faenza”, a. CIV (2018), n. 2 [but Florence 2019], pp. 102-105.

Author of the essay Note sugli istoriati “a due orizzonti”, in La maiolica italiana del Rinascimento. Studi e ricerche, edited by G. Busti, M. Cesaretti, F. Cocchi, Proceedings of the international conference, Assisi 9-11 September 2016, Turnhout (Belgium) 2019, pp. 205-230.

Author of the essay Coppe abborchiate, medaglie e placchette. L’uso di modelli a stampo nella maiolica eugubina del ‘500, in La maiolica e le altre arti. Influssi, parallelismi, convergenze, edited by L. Pesante and A. Satolli, Proceedings of the Conference, Orvieto 9 June 2018, Florence 2019, pp. 113-154.

Author of the article Abbas Akbari, la simmetria nel tempo della ‘shamseh’. Preface to the book by Abbas Akbari, Kāshī and Kāshān, Kashan 2019 [published in English and Farsi].

Author of the following essays and entries for the exhibition Maiolica. Lustri oro e rubino della ceramica dal Rinascimento ad oggi, edited by G. Busti and F. Cocchi, Assisi, 4 May – 13 October 2019, Perugia 2019 catalogue, PP. 32-39, 68-74, 82-88, 140-185, 208-221: «Mastro Giorgio finì de maiolica». Il lustro a Gubbio fra Quattrocento exeunte e prima metà del Cinquecento; I nuovi antichi lustri di Gubbio. Dallo Storicismo al Novecento exeunte; Vitalità perenne del lustro. Cronologia delle iniziative; Entries nn. 36-67, 85-97.

Author of the essays Gli istoriati eugubini a lustro and Storicismo & “Raffaello ware” for the exhibition Maiolica. Dal lustro all’istoriato: Raffaello e la nuova maiolica, edited by F. Cocchi and G. Busti, Gubbio 11 September 2020 – 6 January 2021, exhibition newspaper Perugia 2020, pp. 7-9, 10-11.

Author of approximately 600 articles, mainly published in local magazines and periodicals, concerning topics in the history of Eugubian art. Numerous contributions in recent years on the history of Eugubian ceramics, especially from the 19th and 20th centuries.

Presented papers and reports at the following conferences, seminars, symposia: “Ceramiche quattrocentesche da scavo nelle Marche settentrionali. Rapporti con i territori limitrofi: Pesaro, Urbino, Casteldurante, Mondaino, Gubbio, Lugo” (Study Seminar, Urbania, Palazzo Ducale, 22 May 2005); “Mastro Giorgio da Gubbio: Arte, Scienza e Tecnologia delle Maioliche a Lustro (International Symposium, Gubbio, Centro Servizi Santo Spirito, 9-11 November 2005); “‘Este Persklum’. Prima e dopo le Tavole Eugubine. Falsi e copie fra tradizione antiquaria e rivisitazioni dell’antico” (Study Conference, Gubbio, Palazzo Pretorio, Sala degli affreschi, 24-26 November 2005); “Gubbio nel Risorgimento. La storia, i cimeli e l’eroe dei due mondi” (Study Conference, Gubbio, Palazzo Pretorio, Sala del Consiglio, 1st December 2007); “Il Museo di Gubbio. Memoria e identità civica. 1909-2009” (Study Conference, Gubbio, Palazzo Pretorio, Sala del Consiglio, 26-28 November 2009); “‘L’arte ceramica a Gualdo Tadino’. Un Patrimonio da valorizzare” (Conference, Gualdo Tadino, Rocca Flea, 5 June 2010); “Il trasporto della ceramica in età moderna e contemporanea” (Study Day, Civita di Bagnoregio, Palazzo Alemanni, 7 June 2014); “Studi sulla ceramica abruzzese-umbro-marchigiana” (Study Conference, Tolentino, Convento di San Nicola, 16 September 2011); “Le carte geniali di un uomo da scoprire: Polidoro Benveduti” (Conference, Biblioteca Sperelliana, Sala Refettorio, 18 April 2012); “La ceramica nel Seicento tra Lazio, Umbria e Toscana” (Study Conference, Civita di Bagnoregio, 19 May 2012); “Dieci conversazioni (+1) sulla ceramica” (Marsciano, Sala Capitini, 11 January 2013); “Studi sulla Ceramica Abruzzese, Umbro-Marchigiana e Laziale. 02” (Study Conference, Tolentino, Convento di San Nicola, 19 September 2014); “Rossella Rossi Scotti e la ceramica umbra del ‘900” (Ceramicology Meeting, Torgiano, Sala Sant’Antonio, 17 January 2015); “Festival del Medioevo” (Conference, Gubbio, Refettorio del Convento di San Francesco, 30 September 2015); “La Biennale di Gubbio. Esperienze e prospettive” (Conference, Gubbio, Residenza Municipale, 16 October 2015); “Falsi e copie nella maiolica medievale e moderna” (Third Study Day on Ceramics, Bagnoregio, Palazzo Vescovile, 11 June 2016); “La maiolica italiana del Rinascimento. Ricerche e studi” (International Conference, Assisi, Palazzo Bonacquisti, 9-11 September 2016); “Sacred and Profane Beauty. Deruta Renaissance Maiolica” (Conference, Deruta, Museo Regionale della Ceramica, 1st June 2018); “La maiolica a lustro nel Rinascimento: Deruta e Gubbio” (Conversations at the Museum, Deruta, Museo Regionale della Ceramica, 3 November 2018). “La maiolica e le altre arti. Influssi, parallelismi, convergenze” (Conference, Orvieto, 9 June 2018).

DANIELE AMONI was born in Gualdo Tadino in 1949. A surgeon, photographer, and historian, he has been involved in publishing for 40 years, collaborating with important national companies, Regions, Provinces, and Municipalities.

As a photographer, he has produced the following volumes:

La ceramica a Gualdo Tadino (1985) (Banca Popolare Cooperativa di Gualdo Tadino);

Chiese di Toscana (1987) (Società Autostrade);

Villa Adriana (1988) (Società Autostrade);

Il Parco del Ticino (1989) (Società Autostrade);

Umbria minore (1990) (Società Autostrade);

Per l’Umbria, itinerari di ricerca (1992) (Silvana Editoriale);

Gualdo Tadino, guida turistica (1994);

Fons Vitae, l’acqua Rocchetta nella storia e nella terapia (1997) (Società Uliveto e Rocchetta).

For the Municipality of Fossato di Vico, he provided images for the volumes:

Incrocio/Incontro (1991);

Laboratorio (1992);

La Soglia (1993);

La Natura (1994).

For the Tourism Department of the Provincial Administration of Perugia, he edited the volume I segni del tempo: castelli e borghi fortificati, antiche chiese in campagne e romitori, ville nel verde (1995).

For the Agriculture and Forestry Department of the Umbria Region, he edited the volumes:

Terre dell’Umbria (1997);

Umbria, gente, lavoro e tradizioni delle sue campagne. Immagini di vita contadina tra ottocento e Novecento (1998).

He contributed to the iconography of the volume Imperial Rome published by Time-Life Books of Alexandria (USA) and, with texts and images, to the encyclopedia Costumi e tradizioni popolari di Lazio, Toscana ed Umbria (1995). He wrote several critical essays for the magazines Il Fotoamatore (from 1988 to 1993) and Ceramica Antica (from 1995 to 2000).

As a historian, photographer, and archivist of old local images, he has produced:

Gualdo Tadino, ieri... (1988) (together with Sergio Ponti);

Il folklore dell’Umbria (1993);

Gualdesi e gualdesità (1996);

Castelli, fortezze e rocche dell’Umbria (1999) (text by Daniele Amoni, photos by Daniele Amoni and Alberto Gori);

L’arte ceramica a Gualdo Tadino dal XIV al XXI secolo (2001);

Gualdo Tadino 1902-2001. Cento anni di storia attraverso la fotografia (2002, together with Valerio Anderlini);

Cartai e cartiere a Gualdo Tadino (2002);

Il tempo che fu. Immagini di vita gualdese tra Ottocento e Novecento (2003);

Gualdo Tadino e i suoi figli naturali e acquisiti. Dizionario biografico dei Gualdesi (2005);

Antiche famiglie di Gualdo Tadino. I Coppari in Bollettino storico della Città di Foligno
XXIX-XXX (2008);

Liceo Scientifico “Raffaele Casimiri” di Gualdo Tadino. Cinquanta anni di storia (1960-2010)
(2010);

Autori gualdesi dal XII al XX secolo (2010);

Castelli, fortezze e rocche dell’Umbria (II edition, 2010) (text by Daniele Amoni, photos by Daniele Amoni and Alberto Gori);

Gualdo Tadino 1921-1946. Dal Fascismo alla Repubblica (2011);

Gualdo Tadino e dintorni. Guida Turistica (2012) (Editorial coordination, images with Franco Chiucchi, texts with Valerio Anderlini, Mario Becchetti, Mario Donnini, Francesco Farabi, Pierluigi Gioia, Gianni Paoletti, Sergio Ponti, Enzo Storelli and Marco Storelli).

Resoconto statistico per la sezione chirurgica dell’Ospedale civile di San Lazzaro a Gualdo Tadino diretta dal dott. Giovita Tacchi (2013);

Storie e microstorie di Gualdo Tadino dal 1860 al 1920 (2015);

Almanacco storico del calcio a Gualdo Tadino dalle origini al 2015 (2016);

Quel giorno speciale. I matrimoni dei gualdesi dal 1898 al 1980 (2019);

Scatti d’Autore. I Giochi de le Porte 2019 (with Sofia Raggi and Christian Severini) (2020).

Rocca Flea a Gualdo Tadino in Arnaldo Picuti, Relazione da Gualdo di Nicolò Macchiavelli sulla scia di Cesare Borgia, Foligno 2020.

Gualdo Tadino 1870-1970. Un secolo di cambiamenti (with Carlo Catanossi and Christian Severini), Gualdo Tadino 2021.

Maschere a Venezia (with members of Gruppo Fotografico Gualdese), Gualdo Tadino 2021.

L’economia a Gualdo Tadino dalla metà del Settecento ai giorni nostri Rome 2022.

Gualdo Tadino: la montagna che vive. Due secoli di storia attraverso le immagini (with Sofia Raggi and Christian Severini), Gualdo Tadino 2023.

He also provided images for the following volumes:

La storia di Gubbio dalle origini all’Unità d’Italia by Pier Luigi Menichetti (1986).

Pianeta Motocross. Cross italiano anni ’70-‘800, edited by Ermilio Pezzopane (2018).

Al tempo di Canova. Un itinerario umbro, edited by Stefania Petrillo, Perugia, 2022.

35 castelli imperdibili dell’Umbria e delle Marche, edited by Elena Percivaldi and Mario Galloni, Torino, 2022.

Il Maestro di San Francesco e lo stil novo del Duecento umbro, Silvana Editoriale, Trevi, 2024.

Raffaello Lucarelli il Lumiére di Sicilia. La vera Storia del cineasta umbro, edited by Antonio La Torre Giordano, Caltanissetta 2024.

L’antichità di Tivoli e della Villa d’Adriano Imperatore, edited by Roberto Borgia, Tivoli 2025.

L’Umbria a quattro zampe e non solo... (2015) (album of animal photographs using the images as page backgrounds).

Le arti figurative a Gualdo Tadino nel XIX secolo, edited by Linda Panfili in Il segreto dell’iride. I 150 anni della Manifattura Rubboli, various authors, Perugia 2026.

In 2008, he produced (text and images) for the general management of ASL 01 the volume L’assistenza sanitaria a Gualdo Tadino dal XIII al XXI secolo.

Also that year, he wrote and documented with images, including historical ones, L’Istituto Salesiano “San Roberto” di Gualdo Tadino (1898-2008), also reconstructing the list of most of the students who attended it.

A member of the Accademia dei Romiti, curator and organizer of several photographic exhibitions, he has collaborated from the beginning with the quarterly Made in Gualdo, the monthly Il Nuovo Serrasanta, and the quarterly ValleyLife.

He has given several lectures on local topics, the latest of which in March 2024 concerned the home of the painter Matteo da Gualdo and the history of cycling in Gualdo Tadino.

A collector of old images of Gualdo Tadino, he has enriched his digital archive with over 30,000 photographs, almost all of which have undergone conservative restoration.

His current archive consists of hundreds of thousands of digital images covering the entire Umbria region.

Several national magazines have published his images: Atlante, Infinito, Reflex, Fotografare, Tutti Fotografi, Sport Umbria, Viaggiando.

Appointed Artist of Italian Photography in 1987, Artist AFIAP by the Federation International de l’Art Photographique in 1989, and Excellence EFIAP by the same federation in 1999.

He has exhibited in several solo and group exhibitions in Italy and abroad. In 2026 (February 13-March 22), he had the privilege of having his first solo exhibition in Gualdo Tadino (Church of San Francesco) titled “Gualdo Tadino: luci sulla città” organized by the Municipal Administration and the Museum Pole as part of the project concerning the 800th anniversary of the death of Saint Francis.

He has won awards in over 300 national photographic competitions and 15 international competitions. He is also an honorary member of the Fotoclub of Brazov (Romania) and the Fotoclub of Ruzomberok (Slovakia).

For his merits in the photographic and cultural fields, in 1995 he was awarded the Premio Beato Angelo established by the Municipality of Gualdo Tadino for deserving citizens.

ENZO STORELLI (Gualdo Tadino 1929-2021) son of Siro and Evelina Confidati, art historian. He graduated in literature in Rome in 1953 under Mario Salmi, at the time president of the Consiglio Superiore delle Antichità e Belle Arti, and taught in Gualdo schools for over thirty years, while simultaneously dedicating himself to the protection, study, restoration, and enhancement of artistic heritage.

Between the 1970s and 1980s, he served as regional president of Italia Nostra, engaging in a long series of battles in defense of historical, artistic, and natural heritage, and actively participating in interregional initiatives.

He is credited with numerous discoveries and attributions of artworks, and with contributions and articles on history and criticism for specialized magazines, newspapers, and periodicals, including: L'Eco del Serrasanta, L'Eugubino, Gubbio Arte, Quaderni dell'Istituto d'Arte di Gubbio, Bollettino della Deputazione di Storia Patria per l'Umbria, Esercizi (University of Perugia), Prospettiva (University of Siena).

Constantly committed to promoting and disseminating knowledge across the various sectors of Italian art history, he authored a long series of essays, many of which are of significant historical-cultural depth: Un seguace di Luca Signorelli: Bernardo da Gualdo (Perugia 1958); Una tavola di Sano di Pietro senese nella Pinacoteca di Gualdo Tadino (Santa Maria degli Angeli 1968); Siro Storelli: tre opere a Spoleto (Spoleto 1975); Giuseppe Discepoli (1853-1919) (Foligno 1981); La Quadreria di San Benedetto: un nuovo museo per Gualdo Tadino (Perugia 1982); La ceramica a Gualdo Tadino (Città di Castello 1985); Un'opera di Giovan Francesco Guerrieri a Gualdo Tadino (Rome 1985); Rutilio Manetti: inediti a Gubbio (Florence 1985); Ippolito Borghesi pittore (Gubbio 1990); Appunti su Ulisse Ribustini in Artisti a Fossato di Vico (Città di Castello 1992); Benedetto e Virgilio Nucci (Todi 1992); La scultura in Artisti a Fossato di Vico (Città di Castello 1993); La pittura di Matteo da Gualdo in Artisti a Fossato di Vico (Todi 1994); Gualdo Tadino, guida turistica (Città di Castello 1994); Un artista con animo francescano in Santuario di S. Ubaldo (Gubbio 1995); S. Francesco nell'arte in Esodo/Pellegrinaggio, Artisti a Fossato di Vico (Venice 1995); Dalla formazione della Pinacoteca alla costituzione del Museo civico in Museo Civico di Gualdo Tadino 1 (Città di Castello 2000); Ceramiche dal XVI al XX secolo in Museo Civico 2 (Città di Castello 2002); Gualdo Tadino e territorio: antologia delle arti in Gualdo Tadino. Storia. Istituzioni. Arte (Montepulciano 2004). He also boasts a long series of contributions published on the occasion of the restoration of artworks in Gualdo Tadino and Gubbio.

An Honorary Academician of the Academy of Fine Arts in Perugia, Honorary Inspector for cultural heritage of the Gualdo Tadino district, in 1993 he was appointed Commendatore of the Italian Republic.

In 1994, he was awarded the "Beato Angelo" Prize by the municipal administration of Gualdo Tadino and, in the same year, was made an honorary member of the Lions Club of Gualdo Tadino-Nocera Umbra, from which, in 1998, he received the "Lions Castore Durante" Prize, reserved for eminent exponents in the historical-editorial sector, mass media, and print. In 2000, the Rotary Club of Gualdo Tadino awarded him the "Paul Harris," one of the association's highest honors.

Endowed with considerable artistic talent, alongside his studies in art history, he dedicated himself to drawing, painting, and sculpture, with a brief interlude also in poetry, which resulted in the publication of Voci segrete (1965). In September 1948, he participated in the "Ia Mostra della Ceramica e delle attività Gualdesi" organized on the occasion of the commemorative celebrations for Monsignor Raffaele Casimiri, exhibiting a ceramic chiaroscuro ("Mons. Casimiri"), two pencil drawings (Michelangelo's "David" and the head of "Mazzini"), and four landscapes on ceramic tiles.

Thanks to his contribution and his constant work of raising awareness among institutions, the Rocca Flea has returned to its former splendor, housing the municipal Art Gallery, the Ceramics Museum, and the Antiquarium. In 2004, he was part of the scientific committee for the exhibition "Matteo da Gualdo. Rinascimento eccentrico tra Umbria e Marche."

The theme of ceramics was revisited by him in contributions to two important publications promoted by the Municipal Administration: Ceramica pubblica a Gualdo Tadino (Città di Castello 2006), with Mario Becchetti and Mario Franceschini, an exhaustive overview of the ceramic works that adorn the city's public spaces and form a significant, peculiar component of urban furniture, and Alfredo Santarelli (Città di Castello 2008), with Mario Becchetti, Giancarlo Franchi, and Franco Chiucchi, a work dedicated to the activity of the famous master of Gualdo ceramic art on the fiftieth anniversary of his passing.

In the last years of his life, he paid particular attention to the city and territory of Nocera Umbra, through an assiduous collaboration with the magazine L'Arengo, in which he published numerous in-depth studies on artistic testimonies, some little known, present in the main town and its hamlets. In this context is the publication Gli affreschi della Maestà di Acciano (Perugia 2014), in which he thoroughly studied the pictorial cycle created there by a 15th-century Camerino master.

Biography of Giancarlo Franchi (1937-2008)

Born in Bastia Umbra on February 15, 1937, Giancarlo Franchi grew
up in Gualdo Tadino, a city to which he inextricably linked his intellectual
journey and his passion for historical research.

A well-known figure, a regular guest on local radio and TV, as
well as the official public speaker, he was among the organizers of many of
Gualdo Tadino's promotional and cultural initiatives, starting from the 1950s.

A journalist, rigorous scholar, essayist, and profound expert on
local history, he dedicated most of his life to rediscovering and enhancing
the artistic and anthropological heritage of the Umbrian territory. His most
significant contribution lies in the field of art ceramics, particularly in the
study of metallic luster maiolica (gold and ruby), an excellence that has made
Gualdo Tadino internationally renowned.

Thanks to meticulous archival research, he authored important
publications that are now a reference point for collectors, historians, and
artisans. Among these, the volume Alfredo
Santarelli. I Listini (published in 2008 together with Franco Chiucchi) stands
out as a fundamental work that made it possible to reconstruct the historical
catalogs and models of one of the most important ceramic manufacturers of the
twentieth century.

Through his work of dissemination, Giancarlo Franchi played a
crucial role in preserving the historical memory of Gualdo Tadino's master
ceramicists, building a bridge between the glorious artisan tradition of the
past and future generations.

Among the first organizers of the International Ceramic Art
Competition (1959), he became one of its historical figures, founder and editor
of the monthly magazine Il Serrasanta,
and a member of the Board of Directors of Pro Tadino for half a century, also
serving as president for a long period. He was also among the creators of the
Giochi de le Porte (1970) and in 2006, he was among the founding members of the
Accademia dei Romiti.

In addition to the Vocabolario gualdese-italiano, his writings include Pensieri in versi dialettali and Colloqui de 'Ntogno e Maria.

Federico Malaventura is a ceramologist and art and antiques expert, active in Pesaro in the study, protection, and enhancement of historical and artistic ceramic heritage. He is registered with the Register of Court Appointed Technical Consultants of the Court of Pesaro (no. 1070) and with the Register of Experts of the Pesaro Chamber of Commerce, operating in the Pesaro, Urbino, and Marche areas.

He collaborates with the Municipality of Pesaro and with the city's Civic Museums on cataloging and valorization projects, and is an expert in the field of fakes and forgeries of ancient or supposedly ancient majolica, an activity he carries out in support of private individuals, institutions, and judicial bodies in ascertaining the authenticity and dating of ceramic artifacts. He has also intervened publicly on cases of controversial attributions, helping to clarify the real age and authorship of works erroneously or fraudulently attributed to ancient masters. He has long collaborated with the Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage – Ancona Unit, providing his specialized skills in support of their institutional activities.

He was among the experts commissioned to create CAME – Ceramiche Artistiche Mengaroni, a museum dedicated to Pesaro's post-World War II ceramic production, dealing with the identification, selection, and classification of the exhibited works.

He is the author and editor of studies and publications, which have appeared in specialized journals and local and national newspapers. He edited the volume Ceramiche e ceramisti particolari a Pesaro tra il XIX e il XX secolo (Quaderni Pesaresi no. 7, Melchiorri Editore), and is the author of the volume Maioliche d'uso e da esportazione nella Pesaro e Urbania del XVIII secolo (Melchiorri Editore, 2024). Together with art historian Claudio Paolinelli, he curated the exhibition Ferruccio Mengaroni (1875–1925) Genio della ceramica, set up at the Civic Museums of Palazzo Mosca and CAME (December 2025 – June 2026) on the occasion of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the birth and the centenary of the death of the ceramist Ferruccio Mengaroni, as well as the related catalog (Maggioli Turismo e Cultura, 2026). He also contributed to the catalog Ceramiche Molaroni: il gesto fedele, published by Casa Bucci, and has spoken at study conferences, including Ceramica: un'eredità contemporanea.

scholar and collector of Pisan ceramics and particularly of earthenware
- author for ETS Publishing of:
"From Master Isidoro to Ceramica Pera in the San Michele degli Scalzi district of Pisa"
(2015) winner of the "Premio S.Ubaldo 2016"
"Ceramics in Pisa between the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries" (2018)
"Ceramics in Pisa between the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries" second enlarged and updated edition (2025)
- co-author of the volume, "Pisa City of Ceramics, a thousand years of economy and art" (Ed.Pacini 2018) for the section "The
main Pisan manufactures in contemporary age" published on the occasion of the exhibition of the same name.
- member of the scientific committee and the organizing committee of the exhibition: "Pisa City of Ceramics" (May -
November 2018)
- curator of the website as a virtual museum of Ceramica Pera https://www.ceramicapera.it/
- curator of the Facebook page "Ceramica Pera - Pisa"
https://www.facebook.com/CeramicaPera - speaker at various conferences in Pisa and its province on Pisan ceramics of the 19th and 20th centuries
- scholar and enthusiast of genealogy

Sergio Ponti (Gualdo Tadino 1946 - Trentino 2024), son of Angelo and Irma Sannipoli, historian.

A manager at Poste Italiane, prior of Porta San Donato (1978-81), Honorary Archival Inspector for Umbria (1987), recipient of the Lions “Castore Durante” award (1998) for the historical-editorial sector, former president of Pro Tadino, president of the committee for the Historical Good Friday Procession, and Councillor for Budget, Environment, and Tourism Development for the Municipality of Gualdo Tadino (1999-2001), he is considered one of the most attentive and meticulous researchers of local history.

In 1982, he curated the documentary exhibition on Editti, notificazioni, bandi, avvisi, nell’ottocento gualdese (Edicts, Notifications, Proclamations, Announcements in 19th-century Gualdo Tadino); in 1985, he compiled the archival section of the work La Ceramica a Gualdo Tadino (Ceramics in Gualdo Tadino) and wrote several essays for the volumes Gualdo Tadino, ieri… (Gualdo Tadino, yesterday…) (1988) and Gualdo Tadino, guida turistica (Gualdo Tadino, tourist guide) (1994). As a sole author, he published: Gualdo Tadino e suo territorio: aspetti storici, artistici, economici, religiosi e sociali (Gualdo Tadino and its territory: historical, artistic, economic, religious, and social aspects) (1977); Folklore e tradizioni in Gualdo Tadino (Folklore and traditions in Gualdo Tadino) (1979); Aspetti della Società Gualdese nell’ottocento (Aspects of Gualdo Tadino Society in the 19th Century) (1982); Esposizione di quesiti ed analoghe osservazioni sulle condizioni statistiche, economiche e morali del comune di Gualdo Tadino. Anno 1861 (Exposition of Questions and Similar Observations on the Statistical, Economic, and Moral Conditions of the Municipality of Gualdo Tadino. Year 1861) (1982); Processione. Il Venerdì Santo a Gualdo Tadino (Procession. Good Friday in Gualdo Tadino) (1996); Grello. “Castello più forte che grande” (Grello. "A castle stronger than it is big") (2003). In 2004, he collaborated on the volume Il Palio di San Michele Arcangelo (The Palio of Saint Michael Archangel).