Let’s do a little exercise: guess which Italian region we are talking about if we use these words?
Fantastic beaches
Delicious food
Wild nature
Unique ceramics in the world!
Exactly: Puglia!
You have surely heard about beaches, taralli, olive trees but did you know that Grottaglie, the city of ceramics, is located in Pugia, in the province of Taranto?
Ceramic is the strength of Grottaglie, a town that has an entire neighborhood with more than fifty potters’ workshops with all different styles! The ceramics district develops in the historic center, behind the castle: the atmosphere is magical, especially in the shops built inside real caves. That’s right, just caves!
But why do you work with ceramics?
The ceramic art of Grottaglie has a very ancient history (it begins in the Middle Ages), as evidenced by the findings of the Ceramics Museum and developed right here thanks to the richness of clay of this land.
The exhibition dedicated to ceramics is partly located in the Episcopio Castle, where you can see the first objects and tools close to ceramics, but also great contemporary works. A part of the collection, the contemporary one of the ceramic museum is located in the Ex Convento dei Cappuccini, on the second floor. In this exhibition you will be able to see a new face of ceramic culture, more international and unconventional.
Those who arrive in Grottaglie can visit the shops, try to make a ceramic object, buy a unique piece as a souvenir … for example? The” pumo”, symbol par excellence of the town. We will talk about the pumo later, in the meantime, I leave you a video to start discovering Grottaglie!