Italian Brutalist Bronze Tazza in the Manner of Marcello Fantoni

Picked this one up because it felt more like a small piece of sculpture than a bowl. The form is a classic tazza, but the Brutalist construction takes it somewhere else entirely — heavy bronze, rough-cast and molten at the edges, perched on a base that looks almost architectural in its weight and texture.
 
There’s a strong echo here of mid-century Italian design, very much in the manner of Marcello Fantoni, who was known for taking traditional vessels and pushing them toward the sculptural. Whether or not this came from his studio, it belongs to that same world of postwar experimentation where functional objects became statements.
 
A centrepiece in every sense — it could sit empty and still command a room, or be put to work holding fruit, candles, whatever you like. Either way, it’s the kind of piece that blurs the line between design and art.
 
Condition: Excellent
Size: W 28.75cm x D 27cm x H 23.5cm