Alfredo Ravasco

Alfredo Ravasco was born in Geneva in 1873. He undertook an apprenticeship with his father, Giacomo Ravasco, and attended courses at the Brera Academy School in Milan, also spending time at the Milanese goldsmith Eugenio Bellosio's workshop. He reached the height of his success in the 1920s, becoming one of the leading representatives of the Modernist movement while still respecting traditional concepts of jewellery design. A connoisseur of 1920s Paris fashions, Ravasco created pieces that were unique and stylish, often featuring geometric patterns and using bright, sometimes contrasting colours as a backdrop for diamonds and coloured stones.

Ravasco was meticulous in his craft, paying the utmost attention to even the smallest detail in his favourite subjects: fish, flowers, fruit, and leaves. His exceptional inventive ability with precious objects extended beyond jewellery to liturgical art, including the Monstrance for the Catholic University’s Chapel and the small crown and buckle of the cope belonging to Pope Pius XI.

His clientele extended across Popes, Monarchs, members of the aristocracy, and the wealthy elite, who could admire his works at major decorative arts and jewellery exhibitions in Milan (1919), Paris and Monza (1925), New York (1939), and several Venice Biennales. Alfredo Ravasco died in 1958 with no next of kin, leaving his wealth and works to the Stelline Girls’ Orphanage in Milan, which later sold the entire collection at a large public auction held at the Orphanage in 1961.

This bowl perfectly illustrates the iconic aesthetic of Ravasco’s objet's de table. It balances the Modernist geometry prevalent in many such works of the period, perhaps most notably by Ostertag and Verger Frères, whilst also demonstrating surprising flourishes, with some Rococo undertones - often inspired by nature - despite an apparent contradiction between the two aesthetics. This juxtaposition is enhanced with his use of smooth hard stones such as malachite, lapis lazuli and agate - embracing their own inherent designs and patterns - alongside voluminous arrangements of precious and semi-precious stones such as sapphires, pearls, or carved coral. A difficult balance, artfully achieved, between bold and beautiful.