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OUR MISSION
TO PRESERVE, EXPERIENCE AND CELEBRATE THE ITALIAN CULTURE
BIORDI ART IMPORTS IS OPEN!
412 Columbus Ave. San Francisco, CA
Clean Environment | Wearing Masks | Social Distancing | Hand Cleanliness | Private Appointments | Curbside Pick-up
Contact us at (415) 392-8096 or customerservice@biordi.com
FEATURED COLLECTION
GERIBI
One of the most popular Deruta pottery designs sold at Biordi, is Geribi, the peacock feather ceramic design. The Ribigini family has been producing majolica for many generations. Gerardo owns the workshop. His Father organized a group of artists after the war and built a factory for 200 workers. When Gerardo was 15 he began his apprenticeship, and started the business at age of 20. Now Gerardo, and his daughter, Claudia, handpaint this stunning collection.
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Hand-painted Ornaments
From Italy’s famous ceramic regions including Deruta, Siena and Sicily, our collection of handmade Italian ornaments are the perfect gift for any Italiophile.
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Susanna De Simone
Giovanni De Simone, a renowned and innovative artisan from Palermo, Sicily, was a visionary artisan known for the use of intense colors and cubist drawing style similar to Picasso. Early in his life Giovanni worked with Picasso and shared his innovation using bright red in ceramics with Picasso. "Picasso loved that innovation. I express what comes through my imagination, filtering old and new memories, comparing my experiences and my understanding" wrote Giovanni De Simone in 1991.
Today, this art style is continued by his daughter Susanna. Her limited production bears her signature, together with the company's new name "Fabbrica della Ceramica”.
DOMIZIANI
Introducing DOMIZIANI. Roberto Domiziani established the business in 1987. Starting in traditional Deruta pottery designs, the company has evolved into offering one of the truly most modern and innovative Italian majolica designs coming out of Perugia. By merging nature and art they produce products into unique works of art.
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Teste d'Arte
These d'arte ceramic sculptures are hand crafted by Ivana Dolfi in Montelupo, Italy. These modern art pieces are hand made scuptures and can be used as a planter, vase or simply stunning piece of art.
Each Testa d'Arte (Head of Art) is a unique, one of a kind piece. The modern art piece is a statue and also a planter. The Italian ceramiche detail is all hand made and painted, a unique, one of a
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Teste di Moro
Legend of the Moorish Head The legend of the Moorish head goes back in the XI century, during the Moors domination in Sicily and as in most legends, is once again Cupid’s fault (or credit). One day, a beautiful and honorable young girl living in the Kalsa, the arabic district of Palermo, was taking care of plants and flowers in the balcony of her house as she was used to. Suddenly, a Moor merchant who was passing by, fell in love with the beautiful girl who immediately returned his love. They started having a love story until when she discovered he already had a wife and children waiting for him in his native land. She went suddenly crazy of jealousy and one night, while he was sleeping she thought of a way to make him stay with her forever! She therefore cut off his head and used it as a vase to grow her beautiful basil plant. People walking by her balcony started looking at her flourishing plant of basil and became jealous of how bloomed her plants were, so they commissioned the potters in Palermo to forge colourful clay heads pots wishing to have the same magic green thumb.
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DELLA ROBBIA
Biordi Art Imports offers the largest selection of religious hand-crafted artwork in America.
The Della Robbia is the most famous, created by Luca Della Robbia, a 15th century Italian sculptor from Florence, who was noted for his terra cotta roundels. He developed a pottery glaze that made his creations more durable in the outdoors and thus suitable for exterior of buildings.
Deruta
Hand-crafted artisan Deruta is the "Mecca of Majolica". For hundreds of years, artisans in Deruta have been producing Italian serving bowls, platters, trays and dinnerware.
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Vignoli
Ivana and Saura Vignoli, sisters, in Faenza, Italy a short drive from the Adriatic Sea, developed a special technique named “Full-fire Reduction”. The technique involves unique glazes and firing styles, to create a spectacular copper sheen. These techniques offer a modern Italian aesthetic. The sea, an important influence to their family’s history is honored through schools of sardines or anchovies gracing their creations.
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EUGENIO
Eugenio Riccirelli is one of the most beloved artisans in Deruta.
Eugenio began working at 13 in a painting factory. He then became an apprentice for the esteemed Franco Mari, eventually running Franco Mari’s studio for many years. Eugenio, known for his Deruta pottery in geometric designs and hues of blue, produces his works in 12 simplified patterns and 65 full designs.
FEATURED ARTISANS
ND DOLFI
Love of the material, respect for tradition and the desire to experiment, are the ingredients to ND Dolfi designs. The Dolfi family has decades of experience in the production of Italian majolica. Giovanni Dolfi, in 1941 began producing majolica in the castle that dominates Montelupo. In 1994, his son Silvano began an independent company, ND Dolfi Ceramics. Following in the footsteps of Silvano Dolfi, who managed the company until 2009, and awarded by the Tuscan region with Maestro Artigiano's gold medal, the daughters Daria and Natalia with her husband Carlo manage the business today.
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OUR ARTISANS
These are the faces of our artisans in Italy. The impact of the Coronavirus has been devastating for most of them, first because of the threat of the Coronavirus, and now the economic impact. Tourism, a major form of income for the artisans, is non-existent.
Collectively, we can make a difference, and support the incredible Italian Artisan Families that create our Biordi
majolica.
Thank you for the support you have given us as we are working to ensure our artisans continue to produce this beautiful hand-crafted majolica.
Biordi Art Imports
Dear Biordi Friends and Family,
After four full months, we are safely REOPENING our historic landmark store in the North Beach District of San Francisco.
This dark time in our history has allowed us the opportunity to create some light. One of our favorite customers shared a heartfelt message upon seeing the Biordi renovation in progress: "The refurbishing and new coat of paint applied during the necessary pandemic close was itself an act of hope that pointed us all forward as we looked in and knew work for a happier future was going on; time was not being wasted, even in the face of such sadness."
We look forward to a happier tomorrow and are so thankful to you all for the love and support you have given Biordi and our Artisans through this difficult time.
Hours of Operation