CARLO RIZZARDA, THE POET OF WROUGHT IRON

Carlo Rizzarda was one of the most important wrought iron artists of the early twentieth century. He was originally from Feltre, a town on the slopes of the Belluno Alps, a territory where the tradition of metalworking has ancient roots and in the sixteenth century it reached excellent heights in the forging of swords.

Rizzarda began his profession in Milan, under the guidance of Alessandro Mazzucotelli, a very skilled craftsman and great artistic talent capable of bending iron to the sinuosity required by Art Nouveau. Thanks to the master he experiences the infinite artistic potential of wrought iron. In 1910, shortly after the exhibition of decorative art in Brussels, he separated from the master to set up his own business. His artifacts, at this date, show a dialogue between elegance still with a Liberty flavor and the new geometric canon of almost Deco style.

The art critic Ugo Ojetti defines him as the “poet of wrought iron” and his fame, starting from those dates, knows no end. In collaboration with the best architects of the time, Arata, Griffini, Faravelli and Sommaruga, Rizzarda designs chandeliers, railings, gates, doors, railings for the homes of the Lombard upper class.