Mark Kostabi Plate for Rigatoni Alla Catanese - Da Ciro - New York, NY, 2001

Mark Kostabi

Plate for Rigatoni Alla Catanese - Da Ciro - New York, NY, 2001

Artist signature fired into the plate on the underside and numbered from an edition of 510.

Makes a wonderful gift! This beautiful, whimsical limited edition, signed and numbered bowl/plate was handmade in southern Italy by master artisans near Vietri sul Mare, was designed by American artist Mark Kostabi. In 2000, Buon Ricordo America, Inc. commissioned famous American artists to design plates for their flagship US restaurants. In 2000-1, Kostabi designed the present work for the NY Italian restaurant, Da Ciro for a once-only charitable fundraiser. (Da Ciro was a popular restaurant on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan that is now closed; though today there is another restaurant called Da Ciro in Brooklyn.) Kostabi's design depicts one of the restaurant's signature dishes, Rigatoni Alla Catanese This plate is a real collector's item -- and difficult to find as it was created in a limited edition and never mass marketed. The artist's signature is fired into the plate on the verso (back) and numbered 36 from the limited edition of 500. After the 9/11 attacks in New York, production stopped on the plates and the edition was not completed.

These plates were made in conjunction with Buon Ricordo America, Inc., an offshoot of the Italian restaurant union, Boun 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 the dish and the town or village it is in.

Going 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. In the early 2000s, Buon Ricordo America, Inc. collaborated with some of America's most prominent artists 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 bring hope and help children in need around the world."
"The artist does not derive any income from the sale of this plate."
"Microwave, oven and dishwasher safe."
"Printed by Decoritalia"
"Made in Italy"
No 36/510