Found in Béziers, these 20th-century hand-painted Italian plates show the four seasons the old way, each one a figure caught in the work that belongs to its time of year. Primavera, spring, is a child fishing at the water's edge. Estate, summer, is a figure crossing a field with a sickle and a sheaf of wheat. Autunno, autumn, is a figure holding up a bunch of grapes with the harvest at the hip. Inverno, winter, is a figure bent into the wind under a bundle of firewood. Painting the seasons as their labors is one of the oldest decorative ideas there is, the turning of the year set down in blue on white, each with a scalloped border and the season lettered in Italian along the bottom. The seasons are sold individually, so you can take the one you love or gather the whole year. Sylvie hangs them in a row on a wall or stands one on a shelf, the kind of small thing that makes you look twice.
Minor variations from the images may occur unless otherwise noted. All sales are final.
