Years ago, when I went on a free-and-easy trip to Italy by myself, I visited Sorrento because of the famous song “Come Back to Sorrento” I learnt as a child. It sounded like such a romantic and attractive place and looked so beautiful in photos that I felt I should try to visit Sorrento. A friendly Italian gentleman joined me at my table while sitting at an open-air cafe by the seaside in Sorrento. He said he was a resident and would like to introduce me to places I should see while in Sorrento. He mentioned a unique handicraft product for which Sorrento is well known, intarsia (or wood-inlay). When he finished his food and drink, he quickly spoke to a waiter and bid goodbye. I realised then that he could be having free meals habitually at the expense of unwary single tourists. Fortunately, his bill did not cost much.
Indeed, Sorrento’s most extraordinary craft is wood inlay—whether artistic panels in a Classical style for the Duomo doors and choir stalls in church buildings or simple post-modern patterns on jewellery boxes, tabletops, picture frames, or other souvenirs for the tourist trade.
Sorrento inlaid woodwork is a decorative composition achieved by cutting, inserting, and putting together different coloured pieces of wood to create a design or picture. These pieces are then set into a surface to create a design that is usually level with the character. The art of handmade inlaid woodwork is an old and noble Italian tradition typical of Southern Italy, especially the Sorrento area. It can only be performed by skilled and highly trained artisans whose craft is handed down from generation to generation.
The first records of inlaid art go back to the Middle Ages, where it was known as “Certosina Woodworks”. During the Italian Renaissance, the artisans and their apprentices reached high artistic levels by copying the drawings of the many famous contemporary artists of that era. This age-old craft continues to flourish to the present day.
I am glad to have acquired several beautiful woodworks showing scenes of Sorrento and floral arrangements in various traditional designs. I also acquired a small table with detachable legs and complex, intricate tabletop designs. Please enjoy Italian handicraft works rarely seen in Singapore.
Tan It Koon
Before retirement, Dr Tan It Koon was, among many appointments, Head of Clinical Biochemistry at SGH’s Dept of Pathology. He was the Deputy Chairman of the National Theatre Trust and Chairman for Grants and Scholarships of the Spore Cultural Foundation. He received the National Day Awards, PBM, and PPA, for his contribution to cultural and community development and excellence in Public Administration.
