Discovering the work of an artist like Siglinda Scarpa for the first time, in some
ways, can be compared to an initial encounter with that heretofore unknown personality with whom you feel an immediate personal
connection... one with whom you hope to develop an enduring friendship.
It is not just the
appeal and simplicity of her art that pulls you in, but also the passion and strength of her fiery spirit and the depth of
her advocacy for the social causes and beliefs which she supports in all she does.
Her sculpture,
which has been exhibited extensively in this country and throughout Europe, is evocative of the natural world in its patterns
and shapes, its textures and its colors. One author wrote that Scarpa "creates things which don't exist but could."
Scarpa's artistry, as well as her cooking, spring from her passion. Cooking, she has said, "is
her way of giving love to people. The idea of bringing beauty onto people's everyday lives - beauty is something that
matters. It makes us better." And she is serious about her cooking. She regularly hosts large gatherings,
where she delights in preparing a meal featuring her native cuisine. Recently she displayed her skills by feeding friends
and neighbors at a charity function where her guests feasted on 150 pizzas from her outdoor brick oven.
Noting the similarity between sculpture and cooking, Scarpa explains that with both you put in those things that
essential and take away the things that are too much.
Some years ago, a local writer described
her pots as elegant in their simplicity, yet with a harmony between form and function. Siglinda swears that when you
taste food made in these simple clay pots, similar to those used by her grandmother in her native Italy, you will never want
to cook in anything else.
For many years, she had her own ceramics studio in Rome, until a
bitter confrontation with the local Mafia ended in the destruction of her all her equipment and pottery resulting in her move
to New York City. There she eventually became director of a noted pottery center where she was responsible for 300 students,
at the same time pursuing her own art.
In 1997 she found herself in North Carolina and, just
outside the small community of Pittsboro, settled on a piece of rolling farmland where she has established The Goat House
Gallery and today continues to create incredible works of art, cook delectable and appealing meals for her guests and, all
the time, pursuing her passion for the care and feeding of abandoned cats and other small animals, as well as numerous other
causes for social justice.
