Paolo Santangelo and Arianna De Luca Redefine Italian Ceramics Through Color and Form
Italian designers Paolo Santangelo and Arianna De Luca are moving contemporary ceramics away from traditional painted decoration, using form and color as structural elements. Santangelo, born in Bari and trained in Milan, creates geometric pieces with circles and saturated colors, drawing on southern Italian identity. His collections Euclidea and Cartesiana emphasize balance and proportion. De Luca, from Abruzzo with a master's from Central Saint Martins, references Mediterranean domestic life through totemic, sculptural forms in her Folcloristica collection. Both avoid figurative motifs, instead letting volume and palette carry narrative. Their work is amplified through digital storytelling and photography, bridging local craftsmanship with global visibility.
Key facts
- Paolo Santangelo was born in Bari and trained in Milan in product design, communication, and styling.
- Santangelo's collections Euclidea and Cartesiana focus on geometry, using circles as handles, ornaments, and structural components.
- Arianna De Luca was born in Abruzzo and earned a master's degree at Central Saint Martins in London.
- De Luca's Folcloristica collection reinterprets traditional Abruzzese basins, oil cruets, and other domestic vessels.
- Both designers reject illustrated decoration, using color and form as primary narrative tools.
- Santangelo's work features saturated yellows, oranges, blues, greens, and pinks.
- De Luca uses luminous blues, yellows, pinks, greens, and speckled surfaces.
- The article appears on Hue & Eye, which highlights the role of digital storytelling in contemporary ceramics.
Entities
Artists
- Paolo Santangelo
- Arianna De Luca
Institutions
- Central Saint Martins
- Hue & Eye
Locations
- Bari
- Italy
- Milan
- Abruzzo
- London
- United Kingdom
- Castelli
- Rome