In Spilimbergo, thanks to the ancient Roman mosaic tradition, there is the most important and also the most beautiful mosaic school in the world, which since 1922, the year of its foundation, has become an imposing artistic installation in itself that collects over 800 works that literally cover every corner of it.
It is no coincidence that the mosaic school was born in Spilimbergo. The city is located near Aquileia, an important center of classical Rome, and on the trade routes of Venice, guardian of the tradition of Byzantine mosaic, between two rivers, the Tagliamento and the Meduna, which offer an abundance of the raw material of the mosaic: the pebbles from their beds.
It is precisely these pebbles, in their thousand natural colors, from aquamarine to pink, that gave life to some of the most beautiful mosaics of the Roman era, such as those kept in the National Archaeological Museum of Aquileia. A tradition that grew with the advent of the dominion of the Serenissima in the region and the spread of the technique of mosaic in enamel and gold leaf.
Mosaic is light, movement, colour and matter, with infinite combinations and emotions.
The artisans of Friuli thus became famous throughout the world through the door of Venice. Among them, Gian Domenico Facchina, a native of Sequals (Pordenone), played a fundamental role. He invented the reverse mosaic technique on paper in which the tiles are pre-assembled and glued onto a flexible cardboard, allowing them to be made in the laboratory instead of on site.
A true revolution in the field of mosaics, because it significantly reduced the costs of production, thanks to which Facchina created works of great prestige, including in 1875 the magnificent foyer of the Opéra Garnier in Paris.
Also from Friuli, the technique of Venetian terrazzo or seminato developed, which became famous, hence the name, thanks to the beauty and resistance to water vibrations of the floors of the palaces of the Venetian nobility and their villas on the mainland, also praised by Andrea Palladio.
It was Lodovico Zanini, delegate for Friuli of the Umanitaria of Milan, who suggested the establishment of a school for mosaicists to Ezio Cantarutti, Mayor of Spilimbergo who seized the intuition, inaugurating it in 1922 with the name of Scuola Mosaicisti del Friuli.
Today the School is a global point of reference for the training of professionals and the dissemination of mosaic art and has students of all nationalities. Directly from here or through the masters and artists who trained here, some of the most important mosaic works in the world were born, such as the decorations of the Library of Congress in Washington, the dome of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, the subway at Ground Zero in New York, and the mosaic cycle of the Foro Italico in Rome which, with over 10,000 square meters of surface, is the largest in the world.
Today, the School exhibits more than 800 works that literally adorn every corner of it, from the floors to the walls, even the bathrooms and the tables of the bar, making it one of the most beautiful institutions in the world.
The visit route of the school museum is chronological and involves the entire history of mosaic: from the Mediterranean origins of Greco-Roman mosaic, with works on the most beautiful findings of Aquileia and Rome, to the precious surfaces of Byzantine mosaic, up to the expressions of Modern mosaic and, fruit of research and experimentation, of Contemporary mosaic.
It is impossible not to be fascinated by the interpretation of ancient oriental carpets, by the portraits of rock stars and celebrities, by the incredible homage to the embroidery of the Ursuline nuns of Gorizia with a completely white mosaic that recreates the effect of embroidery through the inclination of the tiles, or by the Venetian terrazzo floor in all the colors of the rainbow.
During the visit to the School you can see students and master mosaicists while they create and work with different techniques, starting from small stones that, broken by hand with a special hammer, based on the idea of the sketch, are arranged next to each other giving life to incredible colors and designs.
And if you have fallen in love with some mosaics, the School, in addition to being able to commission custom works, also sells most of the works that are created by its teachers and students.
The Secret
The school is named after Irene di Spilimbergo, a countess who became a painter and pupil of Titian, who died in Venice in 1559. Irene became a muse in the nineteenth century thanks to a painting commissioned by the Friulian artist Jacopo D’Andrea, who between 1853 and 1854 created a canvas depicting “Titian teaches painting to Irene da Spilimbergo” which was very successful at the time.
Useful Info
Scuola Mosaicisti del Friuli
Via Corridoni 6
33097 Spilimbergo, Udine
Tel. +39 0427 2077
Individual entrance to the School: 3 euro per person
Monday to Friday, 8:30 – 12 and 13 – 16
On Saturday and Sunday only guided tours by reservation, for info:
Spilimbergo Tourist Office
iat@comune.spilimbergo.pn.it
Tel. +39 0427 2274
