echnology, tradition, craftsmanship identity and Made in Italy. From ateliers, workshops and laboratories to true enterprises, often family run businesses, where tradition and know-how are handed down from one generation to another. Marble manufacturing started to be practiced in ancient times in Pietrasanta and still plays a key role in the city’s economic and social fabric. The works of art that embellish government buildings, churches, museums and public parks come to life in Versilia’s characteristic laboratories. The workshops are a very frequent destination of visitors from across the globe. Here, ancient trades such as stone cutting, carving and roughing out, are handed down. Over the centuries, other workmanship of great artistic value has flourished such as bronze casting, mosaic work, inlaying, fine art printing, iron work, pottery and goldsmith’s craft. Great artists may be seen alongside craftsmen, and reproductions of works that have written the history of art stand beside the highly advanced proposals of contemporary art: the culture of marble, which is an integral part of this land, bears witness to the continuity between past and present.
A high degree of professional skill distinguishes the work of Pietrasanta’s artistic foundries. Many sculptors work comfortably in marble and bronze to express their vision, and some use bronze almost exclusively. It is not a surprise, therefore, that the greatest number of high-quality art foundries are located in Versilia, especially in Pietrasanta. Pietrasanta, a workshop of beauty.