DESCRIPTION This Grape Stomper Espresso Cup & Saucer is hand-painted by Susanna DeSimone at her family's historic studio — Fabbrica della Ceramica — in Palermo, Sicily. It is part of Susanna DeSimone's tabletop collection, with the joyful cubist line and vivid Sicilian color palette her family has been known for since her father Giovanni DeSimone worked alongside Pablo Picasso in the mid-20th century. Each Susanna DeSimone piece is hand-crafted, hand-glazed, and hand-painted in Palermo. Because the work is fully handmade, no two pieces are ever identical. The small imperfections such as the difference in color, shape, diameter or small bubbles that form inside, do not constitute a defect but testify that it is actually an artisanal product. Specifications Pattern: Grape Stomper Espresso Cup & Saucer — a Susanna DeSimone original Material: Hand-painted Sicilian majolica (tin-glazed earthenware) Made in: Palermo, Sicily Artisan: Susanna DeSimone, Fabbrica della Ceramica Care: Dishwasher safe · Some collectors prefer hand-washing to preserve color brilliance over decades of use · Not microwave safe · Not oven safe · Food-safe (lead-free glaze) Signature: Each piece signed by Susanna DeSimone; bears the "Fabbrica della Ceramica" studio mark Questions buyers ask Is Susanna DeSimone dishwasher safe?Yes — Susanna DeSimone pieces can be cleaned in the dishwasher and the glaze holds up well. Some collectors prefer hand-washing for the most cherished pieces to preserve color brilliance over decades of use, but a normal dishwasher cycle won't damage them.Can I mix Susanna DeSimone with other Italian ceramics on the same table?Yes — and the mix can be striking. Susanna DeSimone's saturated reds, blues, yellows, and ochres pair beautifully with the Il Mio Tavolo stoneware line by Chef Dena Marino — the deep stoneware tones quiet the cubist color and let the figures pop. Many of our customers build a table that mixes Susanna DeSimone with one quieter pattern as a foil.What's the difference between Susanna DeSimone and Giovanni DeSimone?Giovanni DeSimone founded the studio in mid-20th-century Palermo and worked alongside Pablo Picasso, who shared his innovation of using bright red in glazed ceramics. Susanna DeSimone is Giovanni's daughter and continues the studio today, now operating as Fabbrica della Ceramica. She paints in a similar cubist-folk style as her father but with her own contemporary palette and signature.Is this a good Italian gift?Yes — especially for housewarmings, hostess gifts, birthdays, and lovers of Italian or Sicilian art. Susanna DeSimone pieces are some of the most distinctively Italian objects we carry. We gift-wrap on request, ship nationwide, and have been the San Francisco source for authentic Italian gifts since 1946.Why buy Italian gifts from Biordi rather than other retailers?Biordi Art Imports has been San Francisco's source for authentic Italian ceramics and gifts since 1946. Voted Best Overall Retailer in the San Francisco Bay Guardian Best of the Bay readers' poll for five consecutive years. Designated a San Francisco Legacy Business (#LBR-2020-21-029), and the city declared May 1 "Biordi Art Imports Day" in 2021. Every piece comes from a named Italian artisan, family workshop, or heritage house we work with directly — FIMA, CF Deruta, Pia Formato, Eugenio Ricciarelli, Susanna DeSimone, Geribi, Bucci Ceramiche, Ortigia Sicilia, Italesse, and Salviati. So each piece is genuinely one-of-a-kind. Not a stock-photo listing, not a mass-produced import, not a reproduction. ARTISAN STORY The Susanna DeSimone artistic tradition was founded in Palermo, Sicily, by her father Giovanni DeSimone — a renowned and innovative artisan known for intense colors and a cubist drawing style similar to Pablo Picasso. Early in his career, Giovanni DeSimone worked alongside Picasso, and the two shared an innovation: the use of bright red in glazed ceramics, which Picasso loved. "I express what comes through my imagination, filtering old and new memories, comparing my experiences and my understanding," Giovanni DeSimone wrote in 1991. Biordi Art Imports was the first US distributor of Giovanni DeSimone's work — a relationship that began in the studio's earliest years in America and continues today with his daughter, Susanna DeSimone, who carries the tradition forward. Her limited production bears her signature alongside the studio's new name, Fabbrica della Ceramica.
