A very Bagni birthday

I love Italian pottery, and one of my favorite designers is Alvino Bagni, who was mentored at Bitossi by Aldo Londi before opening his own studio.

I already have three Bagni pieces, and I'm always looking on Ebay and Etsy for more. A couple of weeks ago, I found a small vase that I loved, but I decided to take a chance that the seller would lower the price if it didn't sell. Sure enough, that's exactly what happened, and today I won the auction at the reduced price...the perfect birthday gift for myself. (Even better, when I paid by PayPal, I discovered that I had a balance from a refund I had forgotten about, so I was out-of-pocket less than $5. Nice surprise!)

The vase measures 5.25" in diameter by 6.75" high and is in that warm Bagni matte brownish-orange that always attracts me. I also find the abstract design stunning.

If you look very closely in the lower right-hand corner of the Raymor tag, you may be able to see the faint letters BAG, which was Raymor's code for Bagni pieces. I'm hoping, without the camera's flash, it will be more legible in person, but I knew what I was looking for and could just make it out.

Eggheads

While I was on my recent hiatus, I reposted about LaGardo Tackett. His Egghead designs always generate interest, so I promised to devote a separate post to them.

These humorous containers entered the market in 1958. They were produced by Schmid International in 8" and 12" sizes and were distributed by Richard Morgenthau of Raymor. Eggheads were originally sold through ads in the back of Playboy and Esquire magazines. Although ads said they could be used to hold pretzels or mad money, they were generally used bedside as condom holders...or as stash holders.

From connecticutexplored.org

Egghead ad
esotericsurvey.com

alamodern.com

ebay.com - vernandvera

igavelauctions.com

modish.net

Yet another Bagni bagged

I've added another piece of Alvino Bagni to my vintage ceramics collection. Imported from Italy by Raymor and still wearing its original sticker, this piece is only 3" tall, but it's big on style and beauty.

Intended to be an individual ashtray, it has V-shaped notches on each side. The glaze is Bagni's lovely mix of orange and brown, with just a touch of ochre. This time, though, it has a faint pearlized sheen, as does the band of incised gunmetal gray.

Best of all, I waltzed away from eBay with this sweet piece for just $20.

Alvino Bagni ashtray, imported by Raymor

Alternate view

Close-up of interior glaze

Close-up of incised band

Close-up of orange glaze

Original sticker

Another Bagni, I think

While researching Raymor tags recently, I found several lists of codes used by Raymor for designers and manufacturers. The lists were made by serious collectors, and while there are admittedly some guesses, I compiled them to post here, since you might find them useful in identifying pieces you run across.

ANE Toscane
BAG Bagni
BAL Baldelli
BIT Bitossi

CIC Pietro Ciccoli
CIN Cinelli (?)
ETR Etruschi
FAN Fantoni

GA Gambone
ICO Ico Parisi
LAC Laca Albisola (?)
MAN Mancioli
PF Fantoni
TAS Tasca
ZAC Zaccagnini 

If you have other codes to share or any corrections to make, please do. Information is always welcome here.

My Alvino Bagni lidded jar, which retains the tag shown above

I happened upon information indicating that Alvino Bagni pieces are sometimes found with only the word "Italy" stamped or hand-inscribed on the bottom, like this:

Bagni Sea Garden vase
modernarmada.wordpress.com

That inscription jogged my memory. I had been trolling eBay a few days before, stashing pieces in my Watch List till I had time to mull them over. I remembered an ashtray with a similar mark. Upon comparing the photos, they looked enough alike for me to hit the Buy It Now button and pay the seller $20.

Roseville for Raymor swinging coffee pot

Yesterday I happened to see a listing on eBay that I consider noteworthy. It is a swinging coffee pot designed by Ben Seibel and produced by Roseville for Raymor.

The fact that it has a slight hairline crack is more than made up for by the low starting price of $60 and its remarkable design, especially since I've seen some sellers list them from $500-1500. I find this one of the most fascinating coffee pot designs to come out the the last half of the 20th century, and this one would display beautifully.

All images from ebay.com - rameau1000

Alvino Bagni

Alvino Bagni (1919-2000) was mentored early in his career by Aldo Londi, art director for the Bitossi family ceramics studio. Bagni worked for Bitossi in Florence, Italy, for several years before opening his own studio called Bagni Ceramiche in 1956 in Lastra a Signa, a town near Florence.

Because Bagni's work was imported by Raymor and Rosenthal Netter, it is very often identified incorrectly as Londi or Bitossi. However, if a piece still has the Raymor tag, it will have BAG printed or handwritten there. Since many tags are missing, a Bagni piece can often be identified by a painted R followed by a three- or four-digit number.

Bagni pieces were generally more expensive than many of the Italian pieces imported by Raymor and often bring a higher price today. For example, while most Raymor imports sold in the $8-12 range in 1960, Bagni pieces sold in the $18-29 range. Bagni pieces on 1stdibs today have asking prices of $500-1000.

From  modernarmada.wordpress.com and sllab.net

Bowl
etsy.com - BMODN

Vase
ebay.com - nwartifact

Ribbed vase
ebay.com - hammerpriceauction

Lidded jar
1stdibs.com

Striped vase
1stdibs.com

I recently found a beautiful Bagni jar on eBay.  It is made of red clay, which indicates it is one of his works from the 1940s or 1950s. In the 1960s he began to use a white clay. The minute I saw the lid with a stylized bird knob, it was love at first sight. Still, I let the end of the auction get past me. Luckily, it received no bids. I contacted the seller and offered significantly less than the original asking price. After some negotiating, he agreed to relist it with a Buy It Now price of $65, which included shipping! Check out the latest addition to my vintage ceramics collection, which arrived in the mail yesterday.

Lidded jar by Alvino Bagni, imported by Raymor

Tag from my new piece

Pronunciation Guide

Change of plans

I mentioned my less-than-gorgeous early 50s sofa and chair set in yesterday's post. I'd had it on Craigslist for a couple of weeks with only one inquiry that didn't pan out, so I had decided to keep it and find a chair that would work with it.

My SIL and I loaded up the boys and drove to BFE to get the striped chair and ottoman yesterday afternoon. The seller was asking $100, but my SIL worked his magic and talked her into taking $80. I sat in the truck with the boys, because at this point, he's a much better judge of furniture than I am...and a much better negotiator.

He came back to the truck waving a $20 bill, and when he got in, he said, "Good call! That chair is definitely vintage and definitely great quality." He said that, judging from the tilt of the ottoman, it might even be Dunbar, but he'd have to look it up to be certain. He assured me that whatever it turns out to be, it was a great deal at $80. The upholstery is predominantly gold (almost orange) and cream stripes, and while I don't think I'd go so far as to say I like it better than I thought I would, it's fair to say I can tolerate it better than I expected.

We got back to the store, I grabbed a lamp I wanted to buy from him, and I headed back home. As soon as I walked in the door, I noticed that I had an email about the sofa and chair on Craigslist. Sure enough, someone wanted to know if they were still available and if he could come get them right away.

I called my SIL and told him to hold the turquoise daybed in the warehouse for me...and to bring it with him when he drops off the boys on Wednesday. He said he would, so I immediately emailed the person who inquired about my set and told him to come right over.

Since the sofa situation has changed drastically, now I'm doing the room in shades of turquoise, dark teal, green and gold. Maybe just a few bright colors here and there for good measure, because I love them so much. Here are some mood board hints:

A little knowledge, Part 2

When does a genuine attempt to be helpful come across as know-it-all-ness and poking your nose where it doesn't belong?

I recently read a listing for a vase that was somewhat more ornate than is usually considered "mid-century modern" design, even though it very likely was produced in the mid-1900s. The vase retained the Rosenthal Netter paper label, so the seller got the name of the distributor right, but the maker was listed as "Bisotti," rather than Bitossi. The seller had obviously heard of Raymor, another major distributor, and Aldo Londi, the well-known Italian ceramics designer, pulling together these fragments of information to claim, "...the designer is most likely Raymor Londi."

As I often opine, a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing, especially when listing something on eBay, Craigslist or Etsy. Nothing says "I really don't know what I'm selling or how to price it" like including incorrect information about a piece. That's why my motto is "Check, check and check again."

As a buyer, I usually shy away from items with listings like this, because the seller has just enough knowledge to put a huge, unrealistic price tag on a piece that has been incorrectly identified in the first place. I've found I'm much more likely to get a bargain on a "real" piece if the seller knows nothing at all or knows a great deal...and more likely to get burned if the seller knows just enough to be wrong.

Still, I hate to see a seller floundering. It's either the teacher in me, or I have co-dependency issues that I need to deal with, because it brings out the caretaker in me. :) I'm always tempted to drop a quick email that says something like "Thought you might want to change your listing..." and then supply the correct information.

I usually don't though, because some people don't take kindly to unsolicited advice. I'd want to be told if I had a listing up that was incorrect, but I'm sure some people would resent the intrusion.

So what do you do when you run across a seriously inaccurate listing? Do you tell, or do you mind your own business?

At the other end of the spectrum are excellent sellers like these, who really know their stuff and accurately identify and describe the pieces they have for sale. This is the kind of seller I love to buy from. Take a look at these beautiful items:

Accurately identified as an Italian vase imported by Raymor
etsy.com - ten22home

Accurately identified as an 1865-C Adrian Pearsall chair
etsy.com - scoxx30

Accurately identified as an Italian vase imported by Rosenthal Netter
etsy.com - ClubModerne

Accurately identified as a Peter Hvidt table for France and Sons
etsy.com - artebella

Accurately identified as a Paul McCobb design for Jackson China
etsy.com - SmugglersCoveVintage

Accurately identified as 1960s Rid-Jid outdoor furniture
etsy.com - hausproud

Accurately identified as a Tapio Wirkkala Pollo vase
etsy.com - modernrelicsshop

Tony Paul

Tony Paul (1918-2010) was born in the Bronx, New York and studied at the Pratt Institute. He began his career, which spanned 60 years, as a designer for Robert Barber, Inc. He also worked on ergonomic design for Angelo Bisenz Associates. Early in his career he worked and became friends with Ben Seibel, Arthur Umanoff, Russel Wright and Paul McCobb. He eventually formed Tony Paul & Associates.

Although he designed furniture and housewares, he found his niche in the design of lighting, which he practiced for over 20 years. His designs were distributed by Raymor, Mutual-Sunset, Majestic Lamp, Elk Lighting, Westwood, Robert Barber, The Elton Company, Bitossi and many other companies.

His work has been featured in many design periodicals, as well as books such as Furniture for Modern Interiors by Mario Del Fabbro and Chairs by George Nelson. His work won many design awards.

Biograpical information and images from tonypauldesigns.com

Robert Barber, Inc.,  table

Early chair design

Fireplace group, tools

Interlace group, planters

Tempo group,. ashtray/drink holder

Elton lamp, table lamp

Elton lamp, table lamp

Westwood group, table/magazine rack/lamp combo

Westwood group, table lamp

Westwood group, table lamp

Wires collection, table lamp

Wires collection, floor lamp