| Fonderia Artistica Ferdinando Marinelli FAFM (Ferdinando Marinelli Artistic Foundry) | |
| Foundation: | Florence, Tuscany, Italy, 1905 |
| Key People: | Ferdinando Marinelli, founder; Ferdinando Marinelli Jr., owner |
| Industry: | metalworking |
| Products: | Statues and Monuments in Bronze |
| Website: | http://www.fonderiamarinelli.it |
The Ferdinando Marinelli Artistic Foundry (Fonderia Artistica Ferdinando Marinelli also known as FAFM) is one of the last remaining Florentine foundries, producing works in bronze utilizing the Renaissance technique of lost-wax. A large number of bronze sculptures produced in Florence over the last century come from this artistic foundry.[1] One of the most famous and popular works in Florence, the 'La Fontana del Porcellino', was cast by the Marinelli Foundry in 1988 and replaced the antique in 1998.
The history of the Fonderia Artistica Ferdinando Marinelli began in 1905 with the opening of a small shop on Florence’s Via de’ Giudei (today’s Via Ramaglianti) by Ferdinando Marinelli. Born in Piegaro, in the Province of Perugia in 1887, he arrived as a teenager in Florence where he was apprenticed first to Cusmano Vignali’s foundry and subsequently to Gabellini’s, learning the techniques of both stirrup manufacturing as well as lost-wax casting. In 1915, he was employed by the Fonderia of Alessandro Biagiotti[2] (Biagiotti’s nickname was ‘Brucino’). After World War I, Ferdinando took over the Gabellini foundry on Via del Romito (today’s Via Filippo Corridoni). During this period, the Marinelli Foundry produced several monuments which commemorate the fallen of World War I; those on Piazza Dalmatia in Florence and Poggio a Caiano, (both by Mario Moschi) as well as those at Barberino Val d’Elsa and Cerbaia, (works by Odo Franceschi). In 1925, the Foundry executed the monument to the painter Giovanni Fattori donated to the city of Livorno by Valmore Gemignani. Two years later, the Chamber of Commerce, Florence surveyed the artisan workshops in the Province and reported that: "The reputation of the Marinelli Foundry […] rests on the perfection of its casting, employing an acid-based varnish permitting the metal to be displayed without losing any of its glare, maintaining warm tonalities, those of natural bronze thereby creating works of art."[3]
A selection of the most important works and monuments executed by the Ferdinando Marinelli Artistic Foundry.
| Year | Artist | Title | Location | Country | Photo | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1925 | Valmore Gemignani | Giovanni Fattori | Livorno | Italy | ||
| 1927 | Mario Moschi | Monument to the Fallen Monumento ai caduti | Piazza Dalmazia, Florence | Italy | ||
| 1929 | José Belloni | The Pioneer’s Cart La Carretta dei Pionieri | Parque Batlle, Montevideo | Uruguay | ||
| 1930 | Guglielmo Colasanti | Madonna degli Angeli | Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli, Assisi | Italy | ||
| 1930 | José Belloni | William Tell Gugliemo Tell | Parque Rodó, Montevideo | Uruguay | ||
| 1932 | Antonio Maraini | Bramante Staircase, Vatican Museums | Vatican City | Vatican City | ||
| 1932 | Posthumously of Michelangelo | Pietà, Museo Soumaya | Mexico City | Mexico | ||
| 1939 | Tomb of Pope Pius XI | Vatican City | Vatican City | |||
| 1944 | Vico Consorti | Door of Thanksgiving Porta della Riconoscenza | Siena Cathedral | Italy | ||
| 1949 | Leo Friedlander | Sacrifice | Arlington Memorial Bridge, Washington, DC | United States | ||
| 1950 | Vico Consorti | Porta Santa Holy Door | St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City | Vatican City | ||
| 1953 | Giovanni Cappelletti | Christopher Columbus | Newport, Rhode Island | United States | ||
| 1960 | Valteroni | Door, Cathedral of Oropa Porta della Cattedrale di Oropa | Sanctuary of Oropa | Italy | ||
| 1969 | Mario Moschi | Sacred Heart Door Porta del Sacro Cuore | Basilica del Sacro Cuore, Sassari | Italy | ||
| 1972 | Bruno Burracchini | Catherine of Siena | Fortezza Medicea, Siena | Italy | ||
| 1984 | Sergio Benvenuti | Fountain of the Two Oceans Fontana dei due oceani | San Diego, California | United States | ||
| 1989 | Robert Dean | Monument to Dwight Eisenhower | Grosvenor Square, London | United Kingdom | ||
| 1998 | Posthumously of Pietro Tacca | Porcellino Fontana del Porcellino | Loggia del Mercato Nuovo, Florence | Italy | ||
| 1998 | Restoration of Kremlin Halls | Grand Kremlin Palace, Moscow | Russia | |||
| 1999 | Handrail, Vatican Museums Corrimano della Nuova Rampa dei Musei Vaticani | Vatican City | Vatican City | |||
| 2001 | Sergio Benvenuti | Broncos' Fountain | Sports Authority Field at Mile High, Denver | United States | ||
| 2006 | Posthumously of Giambologna | Bacchus Bacco | Borgo San Jacopo, Florence | Italy | ||
| 2007 | Posthumously of Ghiberti | St. Matthew San Matteo | Orsanmichele Church, Florence | Italy | ||
| 2008 | Posthumously | The Etruscan Minerva Minerva Etrusca | National Archaeological Museum (Florence) | Italy | ||
| 2008 | Valentina Stevanovska | Warrior on Horseback | Macedonia Square, Skopje | North Macedonia | ||
| 2008 | Posthumously of Donatello | David (with gold plating) | Bargello, Florence | Italy | ||
| 2010 | Posthumously | Chimera of Arezzo | National Archaeological Museum (Florence) | Italy | ||
| 2013 | Arto Tchakmaktchian | Espoir | Laval, Quebec, Montreal | Canada |
The Marinelli Foundry of Florence by John Spike http://begeeart.com/the-marinelli-foundry-of-florence/ Last visit 01/07/2014
https://web.archive.org/web/20140218210035/http://www.loveforitaly.it/simboli/siamo-andati-a-trovare-ferdinando-marinelli visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.unioneimpresestoriche.com/associati_dett.asp?lingua=_ita&idlink=3&idass=41, visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.fondazioneartigianato.it/fonderia-artistica-marinelli.html Fondazione Firenze Artigianato Artistico, visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.unioneimpresestoriche.com/news_dett.asp?lingua=_ita&idnews=174&idlink=6 "A Skopje c'è un Alessandro Magno della Fonderia Artistica Marinelli", visited on 01/07/2014http://it.peacereporter.net/articolo/29062/Macedonia,+posata+la+statua+di+Alessandro+Magno.+Polemiche+ad+Atene Visited on 12/30/2013
http://www.eastjournal.net/macedonia-cosa-resta-di-alessandro-il-grande-la-statua-che-fa-arrabbiare-atene/8370 Visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.ilgiornaledelfriuli.net/cron/skopje-svetta-la-statua-di-alessandro-magno-a-cavalloil-monumento-e-stato-realizzato-dalla-fonderia-artistica-ferdinando-marinelli-di-firenze-per-53-milioni-di-euro Visited on 01/07/2014
http://cavallomagazine.quotidiano.net/cavallomagazine/2011/06/21/528950-alessandro_bucefalo.shtml Visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.tuttosport.com/attualita/esteri/2011/06/21-131347/Macedonia%3A+mega-statua+Alessandro+Magno Visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.blitzquotidiano.it/cronaca-italia/macedonia-la-statua-di-alessandro-magno-in-piazza-skopje-896075/ Visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.ilquotidianoitaliano.it/gallerie/2011/06/news/macedonia-mega-monumento-ad-alessandro-magno-94976.html/ Visited on 01/07/2014
https://web.archive.org/web/20140221213953/http://www.ilnuovo.it/articolo-20110621-Macedonia%3A_mega-statua_Alessandro_Magno.php Visited on 01/07/2014
http://press.comune.fi.it/hcm/hcm5353-11_89-Porcellino,+torna+a+splendere+il+bronzo+alla+Loggi.html?cm_id_details=59283&id_padre=47009 Porcellino, torna a splendere il bronzo alla Loggia del Mercato nuovo, consulted on 01/07/2014
http://www.sassarinotizie.com/24ore-articolo-55845-firenze__porcellino__della_loggia_del_mercato_nuovo_e__tornato_a_splendere.aspx Consulted on 01/07/2014
http://corrierefiorentino.corriere.it/firenze/notizie/arte_e_cultura/2011/18-ottobre-2011/porcellino-come-nuovo-tutti-sfregare-1901864171499.shtml Consulted on 01/07/2014
https://web.archive.org/web/20140107210226/http://michelangelosmadonna.com/bruges/Rassegna_stampa_HR_web.pdf Consulted on 01/07/2014
http://www.chiesacattolica.it/cci_new_v3/allegati/7636/b292810ago1.pdf Rivive il bronzo 'perduto' di Michelangelo, visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/michelangelos-bruges-madonna-graces-dc-basilica-70271322.html Visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.zoomedia.it/Firenze/eventi/casa_buonarroti/madonna_di_bruges/index.html Visited on 01/07/2014
http://www.catholicherald.com/stories/Michelangelos-Mother-of-God,12081 Visited on 01/07/2014
Knights Columbus Museum http://www.kofcmuseum.org/km/en/exhibits/2010/michelangelo/ Visited on 01/07/2014
Bronzi di Toscana di Piero Bertelli http://www.consiglio.regione.toscana.it/upload/crt/eventi/M/titolo_993.pdf Consulted on 01/07/2014
Bronzi di Toscana di Piero Bertelli https://web.archive.org/web/20140107210517/http://www.firenzeonline.com/news/ultim-ora/mostre-lamore-di-piero-bertelli-per-la-forma.html Visited on 01/07/2014
Bronzi di Toscana di Piero Bertelli http://archivio.gonews.it/articolo_219987_Per-Piero-Bertelli-da-Montelupo-una-mostra-in-consiglio-regionale.html Visited on 01/07/2014
Di Bronzo e di Fuoco https://web.archive.org/web/20140107205124/http://www.agenziaaise.it/cultura/istitaliani-di-cultura/156209-qdi-bronzo-e-di-fuocoq-le-sculture-della-fonderia-marinelli-in-trasferta-a-los-angeles.html Consulted on 01/07/2014
Bronzi per Michelangelo https://web.archive.org/web/20140107204023/http://www.fashiondesignlab.com/02/bronzi_michelangelo_a_casa_buonarroti.asp Consulted on 01/07/2014
Bronzi per Michelangelo http://www.repubblica.it/speciali/arte/recensioni/2010/12/10/news/michelangelo_replicato_in_bronzo_una_favolosa_tourne_negli_usa-10046363/ Visited on 01/07/2014
Bronzi per Michelangelo http://www.casabuonarroti.it/it/2010/11/10/bronzi-per-michelangelo/ Consulted on 01/07/2014
Bronzi per Michelangelo http://www.exibart.com/profilo/eventiV2.asp?idelemento=97962 Consulted on 01/07/2014
Monumental Sculpture from Renaissance Florence: Ghiberti, Nanni di Banco and Verrocchio at Orsanmichele http://www.opificiodellepietredure.it/index.php?it/522/mostre Consulted on 01/07/2014
Pietà di Michelangelo a Casa Buonarroti http://www.lanazione.it/firenze/2007/04/10/4255-casa_buonarroti.shtml Visited on 01/07/2014
Pietà di Michelangelo a Casa Buonarroti http://www.artearti.net/magazine/articolo/La_replica_della_Pieta Visited on 01/07/2014
Giuseppe negli arazzi di Pontormo e Bronzino http://www.quirinale.it/qrnw/statico/artecultura/mostre/2010_Giuseppe/immagini-htm/battistero.htm Visited on 01/07/2014
Pietà di Michelangelo a Wally Findlay Galleries http://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/news/entertainment/arts-theater/pieta-replica-centerpiece-of-wally-findlays-madonn/nMFDb/ Visited on 01/07/2014
Pietà di Michelangelo a St. Patrick's Old Cathedral NYC https://web.archive.org/web/20140107204304/http://www.reuters.com/article/2009/08/25/idUS105584+25-Aug-2009+PRN20090825 Visited on 01/07/2014