A unique experience behind-the-scenes of Flora Danica, a witness of Danish heritage since 1700.
"Fine art is that in which the hand, the head, and the heart of man go together."
"She is Susi,
there is only one Susi!"
This is what I was told while touring the facilities where Royal Copenhagen’s most precious porcelain (literally) blossoms: Flora Danica.
Susi is responsible for hand-painting, in perfect symmetry with the central logo, the Latin names of the botanical species on the back of each piece, down to the smallest coffee cup!
The hand-painted species are collected in precious volumes dating back to the 1700s, which still represent the source of inspiration for the line's masterpieces. It was a privilege to leaf through their pages, which still fulfill their role after so many years!
Katrine, the brand's pr manager, took them as carefully as they were made of gold leaf, from well-guarded shelves; her hands covered in black velvet gloves. The artisans are required to paint the different species on the porcelain in dimensions faithful to the original, meticulously following the shape and color specifications, yet the variations demonstrate how a painter uses creative freedom to make unique designs.. thus, if you order a Flora Danica piece you can never know exactly how the motif will look!
By the moment you receive your piece of Flora Danica, it has passed through 30 pairs of hands!
Each pair of hands is highly specialized; the artisans must complete years of training; they perform the work with delicate, methodical and sublime gestures that only true craftsmanship can offer.
There are many stages in the creation of a single piece in the collection and each of these stages is carried out by a highly specialized craftsman in separate laboratories: the first phase of prototyping is followed by the carving and the modeling, in which leaf after leaf, the porcelain buds take shape; then comes the hand glazing and the firing in well-defined moments (some techniques require up to 8 firings), the gold varnishing, the hand-painting of motifs, the delicate gilding, the writing of the species’ Latin name and finally, a service only available in Denmark, the writing of the recipient's name!
Hold an item of Flora Danica porcelain and you hold a witness of Danish heritage in your hand..
The story of Flora Danica begins in the Age of Enlightenment. In a time where humans strive for rational knowledge of nature; King Frederik the 5th of Denmark commands that all the plants in the entire kingdom shall be put in a reference encyclopedia, so that they can be studied. Within 122 years the collection grew into an impressive collection of 3240 motifs of flowers and plants organized in 51 books.
Flora Danica is unbreakably linked to the Danish Royal Family, used not only in grand celebrations, but also as gifts for royal wedding and diplomatic reconciliation! More than 225 years have passed since the first motifs were painted on porcelain.
Today the original Flora Danica is one of the most important Danish cultural treasures; both seen as an ever relevant tribute to the nature of Denmark and the most exquisite example of Danish design and craftsmanship.
A single mistake could compromise the entire piece, which must be discarded..
..and craftsmen do not compromise, their expert eye notices discrepancies that we normal humans would only notice under a microscope! Painting in gold varnish is one of the most meticulous and complex operations. The pure gold paint is applied with the tiniest brush; it appears burgundy red to the eye, but only after firing it releases its typical, brilliant golden color!
[Enjoy this gallery, in which I enclosed a few photos from the department and the production phases]
One last treasure..
the Princess and the Pea.
The Princess and the Pea takes up to 8 months to make and only a few from the Flora Danica team know how.
Katrine was so concentrated on holding this absolute masterpiece that she could hardly speak! She showed it to me holding it with the same velvet gloves she used to leaf through encyclopedic volumes from the 1700s.
The Princess and the pea figurine epitomizes the exclusive craftsmanship of Royal Copenhagen. It is the most prestigious overglaze figurine to be crafted and painted by the Flora Danica department. The two-part bonbonnière-style piece depicts a princess as beautiful and fragile as the fine porcelain from which she is made.
Approximately 80 different colors on shining glaze; thousands of carefully placed brushstrokes.
A homage to Hans Christian Andersen's famous fairy tale from 1835; this is how two of the symbols of Danish artistic, historical and cultural heritage come together in a sublime representation.. I am not ashamed to say that I had tears in my eyes.
Art is more than a gifted intuition. It is an expression of immense diligence.
I don't remember
how old I was..
..when I started collecting memories of Royal Copenhagen, mostly bonded to Christmas in the family; in fact every Christmas it was almost a ritual to give my grandmother the Royal Copenhagen collectible “Christmas Plate” of the season as a gift, which was joyfully added to the family's extensive collection.
All lined up on the wall, they didn't look good at all on the yellow ochre wall, but I guess it was in vogue in the 70s!
100 (maybe 150!) I never knew the exact number, yet it is a precious memory I carry in my heart.
It had a nostalgic feel to see them in prototype form in the brand’s workshops in Copenhagen; it would have been heart-warming to be able to tell about this extra-ordinary experience to my grandmother, who loved these tiny, blue porcelain treasures so much! She would have been happy and proud. Nevertheless I feel grateful enough to have you, the most precious community, to share this experience with and to add one more precious memory to my beauty-full collection.
Credits: all the pictures are created and owned by Francesca Polizzi