This apple is inspired by the Etruscan bronze statuette known as 'Shadow of the evening' an elongated human figure. Turned from local olive wood, this piece is polished with the French finish technique, using shellac and other natural resins.
©Giancarlo Rossi
©Elisa Gobbi Frattini
©Elisa Gobbi Frattini
©Giancarlo Rossi
© Giancarlo Rossi
Giancarlo Rossi
- Woodturner
- Cortona, Italy
- Rising Star
Contact
Italian, English
Address:
Via Guelfa 28, 52044 Cortona, Italy
Via Guelfa 28, 52044 Cortona, Italy
Hours:
Monday to Sunday 8:00 - 20:00
Monday to Sunday 8:00 - 20:00
Phone:
+39 3333253122
+39 3333253122
©Giancarlo Rossi
The spirit of Tuscany distilled on a lathe
- • Giancarlo took over his father’s business at the age of 19
- • His workshop is one of the favourite destinations for visitors in Cortona
- • He is well known for his woodturned fruits, chalices and candlesticks
The cobbled streets of the charming Tuscan town of Cortona are home to the workshop of Giancarlo Rossi, an inventive woodturner, who carries on a tradition initiated by his grandfather in 1929. “I learned all the secrets of the craft from my father. I still treasure the first piece of wood I cut with a saw when I was only four years old. At the age of six, I started carving the blocks of wood left over from my father's work. Later, as a teenager, I began using the lathe.” Giancarlo cultivates many interests, including painting, a talent he inherited from his American mother. But woodturning remains his greatest love: “I employ only seasoned wood, and thanks to the techniques developed in our workshop, I can achieve very fine thicknesses. For the polishing I use the French finish, a procedure that requires a considerable amount of patience and skill.”
Read the full interviewWorks
Photo: ©Giancarlo Rossi
Apple shadow
Photo: ©Giancarlo Rossi
Chalice
This chalice is made of local olive wood that is first cut out from the seasoned slab of wood and then turned cross-grain on the lathe to a thickness of 1.5 mm. The base too is hollowed out, which makes the final piece much lighter.
Photo: ©Giancarlo Rossi
Chalice
This chalice is made of local olive wood, which is turned to a thickness of 1.5 mm. It takes great attention and skill in order to not rip the wood fibres. The base too is hollowed out, which makes the final item much lighter.
Photo: ©Giancarlo Rossi
Goblet
This woodturned goblet measures 9.6 cm in height, while the weight ranges between 2 to 4 grams, depending on the variety of olive wood. The stem of the goblet is 1 mm at its finest, while the thickness of the cup is around 0.8 to 1 mm. In order to make this piece it takes various lathe calibres, some of which were expressly built in the workshop.
Photo: ©Giancarlo Rossi
Apple
This apple is entirely turned out of one piece of acacia wood, including the stem, which is not made separately and added. It has a very beautiful grain of a greenish-gold colour with strong chatoyance in the light. It is polished with the French finish technique, using shellac and other natural resins.
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