Calabrian Craftsmanship Tour: Exploring Ancient Arts and Trades

Are you a pipe smoker? Calabria is one of the historically most important regions where this fine form of craftsmanship is practised. It is a refined craft that requires patience and care: starting with the selection of the Erica Arborea root, the raw material from which the burl is obtained, through its long curing process, to the actual production of the pipe, and finally the polishing and decoration that make it unique. Calabria’s traditional pipe-making craft boasts some historic names... 

It all began with Vincenzo Grenci and his family of master pipe makers who, in Brognaturo – a small mountain village in the province of Vibo Valentia, within the Parco Regionale delle Serre – have been producing some of the world’s finest pipes for generations. It is no coincidence that Bearzot, Lama and the President of the Republic, Sandro Pertini (to name but a few) smoked exclusively Grenci pipes, ‘made in Calabria’.

Another historic brand associated with Calabrian pipe craftsmanship is that of the Posella family, who can look back on a long history of producing briar for pipes in Calabria. Vitaliano Posella has been making pipes for several decades in San Vito sullo Ionio (CZ), using briar sourced from the family’s own trees. His pipes are aged for at least 10 years, resulting in superior quality and an unmistakable draw and aroma when smoked. Appreciated from China to the United States, Posella pipes are made freehand, with the utmost attention to detail.

Another place dedicated to pipes is Villa San Giovanni, which overlooks the Strait of Messina in the province of Reggio Calabria. Here, in the so-called ‘Little Manchester’, in addition to the numerous spinning mills, there was the pipe workshop of the Fratelli Vassas company, as well as the local pipe factory on what is now Via Fontana Vecchia. The art of Calabrian woodworking also extends to the Bovesìa area in the province of Reggio Calabria (the municipality of Bova and other Grecanico municipalities in the Aspromonte National Park). Here, a distinctive form of traditional Calabrian craftsmanship is practised, linked to the carving techniques used by Aspromonte shepherds (tos sambatàro). These are true works of art: sheep collars bearing arcane symbols (ta cuddhària), stamps and moulds for traditional pastries and cheeses (plumìa and musulupàre, named after the Musulùpu cheese), kitchen utensils, weaving tools (spindles and distaffs) and musical instruments (flutes, lyres, bagpipes and tambourines). 

These latter instruments allow us to open a chapter on another fine form of Calabrian craftsmanship: violin making. The handcrafted production of traditional stringed (as well as wind) instruments is one of the hallmarks of Calabrian woodworking craftsmanship. The most characteristic instruments produced by Calabrian luthiers are the chitarra battente (a type of guitar played with a plectrum) and the lyre. Among the stringed-instrument makers' workshops that are an absolute must-visit are: the workshop of Antonio Scaglione in Acri (Province of Cosenza), heir to the historic De Bonis family of Bisignano (‘Borgo dei Liutai’ since the 17th century); the workshop of maestro Emilio Natalizio in Rende (Province of Cosenza); the stringed-instrument maker's workshop of Vincenzo Piazzetta in Lamezia Terme (Province of Cosenza), a master of the lyre; the workshop of Sergio Pugliesi in Scilla (Province of Reggio Calabria); and that of the young Paolo Papandrea in San Giovanni di Gerace (Province of Reggio Calabria).

The world of yarns and the famous Calabrian silk represent an important aspect of Calabrian craftsmanship, closely linked to the world of women. The journey through Calabrian textiles begins long ago, specifically with a visit to the main national archaeological parks and museums across the region, from north to south, which, through displays of looms and loom weights, spools, needles, etc., bear witness to the flourishing weaving industry from Magna Graecia to the present day, as well as to the use of local textile fibres and the art of dyeing. Among the fibres still most sought after today, Calabrian silk reigns supreme. Calabria’s traditional silk craftsmanship dates back to the Byzantine era, when Eastern monks first introduced silkworms and the cultivation of the mulberry trees on which they feed to the region.

Calabrian silk craftsmanship can be found in the city of Catanzaro, the ‘City of Silk, Velvet and Damask Fabrics’, and in the historic centre of Reggio Calabria, where silk is associated with the region’s ancient Jewish communities and the Giudecche, neighbourhoods entirely dedicated to this craft. Today, Calabrian silk craftsmanship is practised and/or promoted by organisations such as the ‘Nido di Seta’ cooperative in San Floro (Province of Cosenza), the Dynamic Silk Museum in Mendicino (Province of Cosenza) and the Silk Museum in  Reggio Calabria. 

A contemporary example of Calabrian craftsmanship par excellence in the field of textiles can be found in the Reventino area, in Soveria Mannelli, in the province of Catanzaro. Here, the raw material is wool, which is processed and tailored to the highest standards at the historic Lanificio Leo, a family business whose Company Museum is open to visitors. This offers a truly immersive journey of discovery into the processing of wool and the fine garments produced from it.

Finally, we should mention the highly prized art of embroidery and the production of vancàli (traditional stoles) in the village of Tiriolo (CZ), as well as the Bottega Storica dei Tessuti d’Arte Celestino, a family business from Longobucco (CS) that promotes the traditional textiles of Longobucco (tapestries, rugs, trousseaux, etc.) in contemporary, on-trend forms.  

The fascinating world of Calabrian craftsmanship is embodied in the colours of its artistic ceramics. This is one of the region’s oldest traditions, handed down through generations. There are two main towns associated with Calabrian ceramic craftsmanship: Squillace (CZ) and Seminara (RC). The former, located along the Orange Tree Coast, is a small capital of Calabrian ceramics. Even today, in the medieval village perched on a hill at the foot of the Norman Castle, potters' workshops offer traditional shapes associated with ancient meanings (the pine cone, the pomegranate, etc.) and the colours typical of this area.   

A short distance away, in the nearby Blue Flag resort of Soverato, the workshop of artisan Francesca Ciliberti reinterprets the ancient themes of Calabrian master potters in contemporary forms of great value and design. Moving along the Costa Viola, in the province of Reggio, our tour of Calabrian ceramic craftsmanship continues in Seminara, one of the most renowned ‘Ceramic Cities’, where a simple stroll is all it takes to meet the master craftspeople and admire their colourful creations up close. From apotropaic masks to agro-pastoral symbols, from the marine world to the plant world, the ceramic artworks of Seminara even inspired Pablo Picasso.

Among the most traditional forms of Calabrian craftsmanship are wicker and straw. These are humble raw materials, closely linked to the agro-pastoral world, used to create containers and small items of furniture. Baskets and small baskets, hurdles and ‘fiscèlle’, straw hats (‘pagliette’), shopping bags, bread baskets, household items, chairs and wicker furniture are the result of the work of skilled hands. Old and new master straw and basket weavers craft true works of art from plant fibres (willow, chestnut, palm, reed and bamboo canes).

Craftsmanship in Calabria boasts a flourishing production of straw and wicker goods, with centres of excellence spanning the region from north to south. Campana, the ancient Kalasarna, is renowned for its Calabrian basketry, with baskets sold at the Fiera della Ronza (6 and 7 June) made by women from wheat ears. The basket makers of Reggio and the surrounding area are also famous, particularly those from San Giorgio Morgeto, as are the wicker and rattan weavers of Soriano Calabro (Province of Vibo Valentia), true artists who have been passing on their craft for centuries.

We conclude this extensive journey through Calabria’s craftsmanship with a look at metalworking, specifically goldsmithing and wrought iron. Calabrian goldsmithing is represented by the big names who have ‘dressed in gold’ film and fashion stars, as well as producing works of sacred art and unique pieces presented at major events. We are talking about the Crotone-based master goldsmiths Gerardo Sacco and Michele Affidato, two leading figures in Calabrian and global goldsmithing. The success of goldsmithing in Crotone harks back to the splendour of the ancient civilisations of Magna Graecia and Rome, which still inspire the shapes, motifs and references of a jewellery-making tradition that has evolved on a global scale.  

Wrought iron, no less precious as it is worked into artistic forms that draw on the Calabrian tradition, is the pride of master blacksmiths working throughout the region. Once again, this is a very old form of Calabrian craftsmanship (dating back to the 13th–14th centuries), with the main centre of expertise located in Serra San Bruno (Province of Vibo Valentia), where a school of ‘màstri furgiàri’ (master blacksmiths) renowned throughout southern Italy is still practised by some local families. Equally excellent are the workshops in Stilo (Province of Reggio Calabria), the birthplace of the philosopher Tommaso Campanella and one of the Most Beautiful Historic Towns in Italy. One of the most prominent figures here is master craftsman Giuseppe Blefari, the heir to an ancient family of blacksmiths who still proudly represents the name of his village and his ancestors at the most important national exhibitions and trade fairs.