Cassapanca

It's a small world....now that we have the internet!  Recently, my friend Regina Garay of Fauxology, posted a link to Buzz Kaplan's word of the day-Cassapanca.

He posted these fabulous examples of a vintage cassapanca, a decorative bench with a back and a storage seat.

Italian in origin, cassapancas were usually large in scale and highly decorative.

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Finding a cassapanca on an auction site is not as easy as it might seem.

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They are a rare find and usually cost several thousand dollars.

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This one is not as elaborate as most, but shows the variety in style.

Italian artist Alison Woolley of Florence Art painted this wonderful example of a cassapanca.

I love this black one! Most seem to be done in earth pigments or lighter in color.

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When you "google" the word cassapanca, many times it wants to substitute "cassablanca"!

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The backs of the cassapancas are made of flat wood to fit against the wall and not take up a lot of floor space. The wood is cut into decorative shapes and given dimension through trompe l'oeil painting.

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As decorative as they are, I could not help posting this bench as well! Do you own a unique bench? I have my eyes out for a vintage Italian cassapanca!

Strapwork...

Adrian Card

Strapwork became popular in the 15th and 16thc through its use in grotesques and frescoes.

Taking its cue from actual metalwork, strapwork is a stylised decorative design mimicking leather, metal or parchment curled and woven into strips and bands.

Adrian Card

Its use on musical instruments, mainly harpsichords, has kept it in vogue over the centuries. Adrian Card masters this art today...view his amazing work here.

Alison Woolley

This is a detail from a harpsichord design created by Alison Woolley of Florencearts. Just "google" the word strapwork and click on Wikipedia's definition....Alison's work is one of the illustrations!

Strapwork is used to weave decorative objects together in arabesque designs.

Its origins are in the arabesques of Arabs and Moors in Spain.

Rivets and cabochons complete the illusion....

Strapwork , carved in wood, was commonly used as borders and cornices in many Elizabethan and Jacobean buildings during the 15th and 16th century as well

Ceilings at this time also produced fine examples of rollwork, or strapwork.

It is still found today, sometimes re-interpreted ...

Used in stone, here, it is carved into an intricate band design.

With a celtic twist, this is another example of strapwork.

Victorian Ornaments and Designs by Samuel Leith is a great source for starting your own creation of strapwork!