Richard Ginori: the story so far
Part 1
Today is grey and stormy, one of those days that we would all prefer to stay at home in our pajamas with a nice cup of tea. But, unfortunately, we are forced to dress up and, equipped with an umbrella, take the MTR and go to the office. In Southeast Asia, September is like this, a bit fickle. It makes you savor a slight evening breeze, the hope that summer is ending, leaving room for more tolerable temperatures and then, suddenly there it is, the storm that does not let you breathe and forces us to rethink of Europe and its weather.
Patience is our ally and we just have to wait for the sun. In the meantime, however, the much desired cup of tea becomes real and, while waiting for our drink to be ready, we observe the decorations of the cup in front of us. Maybe it's too elegant for a mid-morning tea in the office, or maybe not. What we cannot help but notice, however, is the story behind every Ginori porcelain. Therefore, it's time to get comfortable: we are going to tell you the story of how, from a small village near Florence, the Marquis Carlo Ginori laid the foundations to create the brand we all know and appreciate today.
Patience is our ally and we just have to wait for the sun. In the meantime, however, the much desired cup of tea becomes real and, while waiting for our drink to be ready, we observe the decorations of the cup in front of us. Maybe it's too elegant for a mid-morning tea in the office, or maybe not. What we cannot help but notice, however, is the story behind every Ginori porcelain. Therefore, it's time to get comfortable: we are going to tell you the story of how, from a small village near Florence, the Marquis Carlo Ginori laid the foundations to create the brand we all know and appreciate today.
It is 1735 and we are in Doccia, an ancient village now incorporated into the municipality of Sesto Fiorentino, inside the Marquis villa. Carlo Ginori, driven by a passion for white gold and with a specialization in chemistry, begins to create, observe and improve the composition of porcelain. At the beginning, the production mainly concerns majolica. We have to wait until 1740 to find the first porcelain objects: hand-painted cups donated to the Grand Duke of Tuscany.
Thanks to this event, in 1741, Carlo Ginori enters the graces of the Grand Duchy and obtains the "privatization for the production of porcelain for the Grand Duchy of Tuscany". From this event, the factory he founded begins to compete with many other manufactories of that time. In this period the Marquis starts to conceive the idea of a school of decoration inside the factory. Here they create some of the most famous "printed" decoration (now called "a stampino"), strictly in white / blue, and "the rooster", one of the first made by the Fabbrica di Doccia (in black / red / gold, blue / gold and green), very asian style.
Thanks to this event, in 1741, Carlo Ginori enters the graces of the Grand Duchy and obtains the "privatization for the production of porcelain for the Grand Duchy of Tuscany". From this event, the factory he founded begins to compete with many other manufactories of that time. In this period the Marquis starts to conceive the idea of a school of decoration inside the factory. Here they create some of the most famous "printed" decoration (now called "a stampino"), strictly in white / blue, and "the rooster", one of the first made by the Fabbrica di Doccia (in black / red / gold, blue / gold and green), very asian style.
With the death of Carlo, the company passes to his son Lorenzo who lays the foundations for future success. At his death in 1791, his son Carlo Leopoldo was only one year old; therefore he is temporarily replaced by his tutor, his uncle Giuseppe Ginori, and by his mother.
Carlo Leopoldo maintains many relations with France thanks to his nomination as chamberlain of Napoleon I. This allows him to travel extensively and improve his knowledge in the field of materials, their chemical composition and porcelain cooking method. The first half of the 19th century is characterized by the "views".
After the death of Carlo Leopoldo, his son Lorenzo II begins to develop the idea of entering international markets. It is the season of the great international exhibitions, of naturalistic taste and romanticism. The collections are enriched with floral elements and new decorations for the table. With the death of Lorenzo II, however, at the end of the 19th century, the family starts to mature the difficult decision to sell the historic company to the Milanese entrepreneur Giulio Richard, entering, in fact, into a larger organization with the name of Richard-Ginori Ceramic Company.
Our history reaches the beginning of the last century and our day, at lunchtime. This is where the first part of this story ends, which will continue next week. After all, 300 years of history cannot be resumed in a short, grey and rainy morning! See you next week!