Mark Kostabi, Focaccia Alla Robiola - Da Ciro - New York, NY, 1998

Mark Kostabi

Makes a memorable and very special gift! This beautiful, extremely rare limited edition, signed and numbered bowl/plate was handmade in southern Italy by master artisans near Vietri sul Mare. It was designed by renowned American painter Mark Kostabi. From the late 199s through the Millenium Buon Ricordo America, Inc. commissioned famous artists, including Kostabi to design plates for their flagship restaurants as special one-time only charitable fundraiser. Kostabi designed the present work for the renowned NY Italian restaurant Da Ciro. Kostabi's design depicts one of the restaurant's signature dishes, Focaccia Alla Robiola. This plate is a real collector's item -- and difficult to find -- it was created in a limited edition of only 1000 and never mass marketed. The artist's signature is fired into the plate on the recto and verso (front and back) and numbered from the limited edition of 1000. Unfortunately, the project ended after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which also affected many of the company's Manhattan restaurants. The reason this work is so scarce is the edition was thought to have been created on demand, and not many were actually made; the rest were said to have been lost after 9/11.

These plates were made in conjunction with Buon Ricordo America, Inc., an offshoot of the Italian restaurant union, Buon Ricordo (Unione Ristoranti del Buon Ricordo). The plates capture the essence of each restaurant’s local specialty, and the decoration is embellished with references to the restaurant, its local territory and products. The rim of each plate bears the name of the restaurant and the town or village it is in.

This plate was made from local clay from a quarry in Ogliara, a few kilometres from Vietri. After biscuit firing they are coated and decorated by hand by skilled craftsmen using a carbon “dusting” technique similar to that once used for Renaissance fresco painting. Once the plates were decorated they are glazed and fired for a second time to fix their vivid colors. Buon Ricordo America, Inc. later collaborated with some of America's most prominent artists, like Kostabi, to make a series of plates for iconic restaurants throughout the United States.

The verso (back) of the plate reads as follows:

"Limited edition designed by the artist to benefit charitable organizations dedicated to feeding needy home-bound elderly persons and helping children at risk from abuse and disease."
"The artist does not derive any income from the sale of this plate."
"Microwave, oven and dishwasher safe."