Italian Glazed Stoneware Anthropomorphic Pitcher by Guido Gambone

A stoneware pitcher with stirrup handle by Guido Gambon, Italy, circa 1950-60s. Beautifully glazed in blue and white color and lava-like texture and highlighted with signature green geometric lines and circles and dots. What's unusual of this pot is a sculptural anthropomorphic face with his mouth forming the pouring sprout. It is apparent that the artist was inspired by the pre-Columbian pottery with iconic stirrup form prevalent in Moche culture. The anthropomorphic figure, however, calls to mind the primitive faces found in Bavarian and Americana folk pottery. Visually the piece manages to unite the different decorative elements and achieves to look quite modern with a mischievous air. The sculptural figurative form is not commonly seen in the artist's repertoire, making this piece highly collectible.
Guido Gambone (1909-1969) was an Italian ceramic artist with a workshop in Florence Italy. The artistic stoneware pieces. he designed and made had a signature style with its thick, colorful, lava-like glazes. Intrigued with ceramics as a creative medium at an early age, Guido Gambone was one of the best-known leaders of the Italian midcentury modernist ceramics movement.