Over the centuries, the city of Turin has seen countless examples of outstanding gold jewellery. Demand for elegant jewellery from the Savoy Court and its entourage increased significantly in the late nineteenth century with the development of the important entrepreneurial middle class in Piedmont, resulting in the emergence of an extremely talented workforce.

In spite of this, there is little published work on the master goldsmiths of Turin and many of them remain entirely undocumented.

Of all the interesting figures on the Turin jewellery scene between the 1930s and the end of the 1960s, a special place must surely be reserved for Anna Bacchelli, (1898-1975) professionally known as Orisa, some of whose original works will go to auction at Aste Bolaffi on 28 March. The artist, very well-known among the Turin elite of those years, is mostly unknown even to many jewellery addicts.

We have very little biographical knowledge of her: after attending the Academy of Arts she first approached the goldsmith’s art in her husband’s workshop in Piazza Carlo Alberto but, after his death, was soon to establish her own workshop under the name Orisa on Via Battisti 15 in the late 1930s. This exotic nom d’art was probably taken from the divinities of the Yoruba religion, sacred entities that manifested in and through nature. Nature was in fact a great source of inspiration for her, whether reproduced with utmost precision
or originally reinterpreted. Her creative ability was applied to the design and production of unique pieces in wax that would then be cast by her goldsmith co-workers. Between 1935 and 1945 u nder t he Fascist e conomical r ules, Orisa p roduced various purses, evening bags, brooches and bracelets in silver and even metal alongside these traditional, nature-inspired pieces, drawing inspiration from medieval and archaeological motifs and even reproducing certain techniques such as
granulation.

Her most renowned work, however, remains her splendid flowering vines and waterfall brooches with flower and plant motifs, which were mostly made in platinum in the 1950s (starting price: 2000 euros). It was during this period that the Orisa atelier became a point of reference among Turin’s high society who visited both for her adaptations and adjustments of family jewellery and the chance to purchase unique and exquisitely made pieces.

In addition to the entrepreneurial elite, her clients included the Italian Royal Family and the composer Pietro Mascagni who gave a platinum and diamond brooch depicting two fuchsias to the soprano Margherita Carosio, who interpreted Egloge in his opera Nerone. There are no hallmarks ascribable to Orisa and none of her jewellery bears any signature. The original cases bearing the name of her atelier and identification of certain distinctive features of her original production are therefore crucial in order to positively identify her work.

Among the characteristics of her creations, we can identify a tendency to reject symmetry; the diamond and pearl earrings she made in the Fifties are distinctive thanks to the use of Old Mine cut diamonds, most probably taken from another piece of jewellery, but above all for the asymmetrical nature of the earrings which were similar but not symmetrical. This deformity was their great strength at a time when earrings were always identical.

Another distinctive trait of Orisa’s work is her preference, when using yellow gold, for a matte finish and somewhat coarse textures that recall a bark motif. These are particularly noticeable in details such as the double band of her pearl and
diamond ring (starting price: 1000 euros), another motif typical of her work. Again here we see a lack of symmetry and a model adapted to the shape of the pearls.

Through her innovative and original style, all Orisa’s pieces convey the sensation that the creator was a strong character with a definite taste quite different from the standard model of her age. This also emerges in the pair of rings to be worn together, where the jointed corolla acts as a pendent, emphasising the movement of the female hand (starting price: 1500 euros).

It is important to underline that an Orisa creation, a beautiful bracelet ,was shown in the Poldi Pezzoli exhibition “Italian Jewellery of the XX century “ in Milan this year; for the very first time she has been included in an exhibition on Italian jewellery. This is a sure sign of new interest in this artist from Turin who expressed “the tastes of her time through autonomous and original work” between the 1930s and late 1960s and reveals a recognised talent that has allowed her to break into a sector traditionally dominated by men.
By Maria Carla Manenti

Gold and ruby brooch, 1960. Starting price: 1000 euros

THE AUCTION