The Artisans

Born in Genova in 1974, Raffaele Canepa was first introduced to analog photography as a child by his father. After a twenty-year-long career as a film producer, he started experimenting with infrared light (IR) and architecture, particularly how light responds to different materials and light conditions. Between 2015 and 2018 he produced two extensive series on Milan’s and Rome’s iconic buildings. His travels across the Middle East, South America, and Central and Eastern Asia focus on architecture and minimal landscapes, cultivating his passion for infrared photography.

Landscape photographer, nature guide, and professor of photography, Emilio Messina is a Sicilian-based artist dedicated to exploring the island’s little-known and uncontaminated places. His shots and articles have been published in newspapers, books, and magazines such as “Le Montagne Incantate” (National Geographic) and “Le Vie dei Tesori” magazines. His works have been featured in solo and group photographic exhibitions as well as ad campaigns and TV shows. He is also a co-author of “Borghi di Sicilia” (Dario Flaccovio Editore) and “Sicilia Vulcanica” (Moroni Editore).

Architect and artisan Riccardo Monte specializes in timber charring, a technique that consists in firing the bottom of wooden posts inspired by the ancient Japanese technique Shou Sugi ban used for timber preservation. Embracing the visual and tactile qualities of the technique, he creates bold, monolithic furniture distinguished by a singular texture. After working in London as an architect, he returned to his mountainside home in Ornavasso, Italy in 2016 and spent six months in a remote mountain cabin to get closer to nature and embrace a simple life.

Visual artist and novelist Gabriele Picco was born in Brescia in 1974. His drawings, paintings, and sculptures have been hosted in museums and private galleries worldwide, namely Eutopia in Shanghai and the Biennial Art exhibitions in Tirana, Prague, and Milan. Most notably, seventeen of his drawings have been included in the New York MoMA. In 2021, he participated in the “Imagination is a magic carpet” exhibition for the Turin ATP finals.

A visual artist, designer, and artisan from Rome, Cristiana Vignatelli Bruni has exhibited her works in renowned art galleries and museums in Italy, the Netherlands, and South Korea. Based in the idyllic Roman countryside, her work is interdisciplinary and is rooted in an unconventional definition of luxury, wherein art is present in everyday life in playful ways. Vignatelli Bruni creatively experiments with shapes and colors that do not conform to mainstream beauty standards to awaken our senses, brighten our relationships, and turn a simple gesture into something special.

Born in Rome in 1984 and raised between Argentina and Italy, Ilaria Facci is a contemporary artist and photographer whose stunning works explore a difficult existence, scarred by a retinoblastoma diagnosis when she was only two years of age. In 2014, her series of photographs ‘Autoscatti Sbagliati’ (wrong self-portraits) were showcased in renowned magazines, notably Inside Art and Vanity Fair. She published a book of poetry and photographs titled "Blu" in 2018, with a foreword by Italian art critic and curator Vittorio Sgarbi, who later curated other books and exhibitions for her.

Founded in Milan during the 1950s by designer Piero Fornasetti, the Fornasetti brand is today an internationally recognized name in the furniture sector, specializing in the creation of hand-decorated furniture and home accessories. All creations are characterized by an imaginative, ironic and sophisticated visual language, in a balance of art and design. From porcelain to furniture to accessories, everything is handmade in the Milan studio. The decorations and the manual production techniques make each object unique.

Playfully named after the rolling of drums played during the historic Palio di Siena bareback horse race, it is no wonder that Tatamama was founded right in the heart of Tuscany. Here, artful glass pieces reflect the personality of their designers and the expertise of the master glassmakers behind them, revealing timeless collections where poetic reflections intertwine with lively inspirations. The Sienese’s rolling hills and colorful landscapes are a limitless source of inspiration, just like the limitless transformative potential of glass.

Established by Viola Stancati in 2021, Casa Parini is an eco-friendly and socially-conscious brand specializing in soft bedding made of hemp. Hemp is a superbly sustainable raw material as it does not require pesticides, is not water-intensive, and provides detoxifying and nourishing properties for soil. Every piece of cloth featured in Casa Parini products is entirely handwoven in the brand’s atelier on Via Parini, Turin - where Viola’s grandfather once ran a textile business - by the seamstresses of Colori Vivi, a social enterprise led by professional tailors who employ migrant women.

An extraordinary blend of design, figurative art, and photography, Profilo creates custom sculptural and decorative pieces. Founded in 2015 by artist Andrew Vianello, Profilo’s mission is to capture the profile of our loved ones interpreted in an iconic and personal object, stopping time by creating an object that immortalizes a memory, a tender moment, or a bond. The pieces are deftly handmade by French and Italian craftsmen using just a metal wire to recreate the silhouette. Profilo is based in Venice, Milan, and Paris and can be found in pop-up stores in other cities.

Founded in 2008 by Andrea and Luca Ponsi, Studio Ponsi is a Florentine workshop that blends elements of architecture and interior design to explore the relationship between form and feeling. Linear and clean in aesthetic, its unique pieces are crafted with particular attention to texture, the sensory aspect of material, and the principles of proportion and harmony.

Paolo Anselmo is an illustrious ceramist from Albisola, Liguria. After many years running a gallery where he exhibited his first personal collection, he moved to Biot, France in 1998 where he showcases his oeuvres on the French coast and his Biot gallery. His style can be characterized as primordial and archetypical, bringing to life mythological and hybrid shapes that combine irony with sensuality and a dreamlike appearance.

Imbued with fascinating mythological meanings, Leonardo Dini’s ceramic sculptures are distinguished by a shared allegorical interpretation of the dove, a symbol of peace and freedom, and more deeply, representative of a vivid sense of life. Minutely handcrafted and painted by hand, Dini’s creations invite reflection upon the Self in relation to the planet, and to others.

Artist Daniela Pecorari has spent the last thirty years building a brilliant career as a fashion designer and illustrator. Her professional background nurtured a love for manual creations, which she poured into experimenting with and curating an out-of-the-box aesthetic she explores through her pottery. Her bold pieces - ranging from plates and sculptural objects - reveal painstaking attention to detail and mastery. Rich in animal and botanical references, her pieces always contain a hint of irony that playfully interacts with the audacity and poetry that define her ceramic style.

Sable is an ethical, up-cycled, sustainable exotic leather brand. High-quality leather scraps are rescued and transformed into a variety of functional accessories such as cardholders, napkin rings, pet collars, or wallets - allowing cast-off materials a chance to shine. The brainchild of Agnese, the brand actualizes her vision and desire to showcase artisan traditions through her fresh, creative lens that breathes a second life and meaning into recycled materials.

A needle weaving in and out to craft singular wefts is what artist Giuseppina Maurizi considers her wand. Currently based in Milan, she was born and raised in Viterbo, where she attended the Art High School and the Academy of Fine Arts. After working as a costume and scenic designer for theatres and advertising agencies for over twenty years, in 2018 she turned her focus to sewing and embroidery. The fierce revival of ancient techniques and memories intertwine with delicate gestures, in a masterful celebration of care and sacrifice.

Born in 1980, artist Nicola Felice Torcoli was born and raised in Lumezzane, a small town in the Brescian hills where he nurtured his passion for painting. After high school, he moved to Milan to attend the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, where he graduated in 2005. While focused on painting, photography and installations often emerged in his artistic research, reflecting the impact of the modern shift between analog and digital media in his work. In 2010, he began experimenting and working with the Defrag technique, which he aptly named after the defragmentation of canvases.

UTILE4 is the new fashion brand launched by Walking Sticks, an artisan company with more than fifty years of experience in crafting luxury accessories. Entirely Made in Italy, Utile4 produces fashionable collections of shoe horns that reimagine classic accessories with contemporary exclusivity. The brand's trendsetting spirit, tireless commitment to innovation, and high-quality material sourcing have made it a leader in the luxe accessory market worldwide.

“Uncalculated curves are our nature." Born in 1992, Isato Prugger grew up immersed in Italian, Japanese, and Ladin cultural backgrounds. Trained in Industrial Design, he has been a part of Nèo Design Italiano since 2019, a selection of young professionals operating in the new Italian design scene. He exhibited the FLAI portable lamp with Diomede Light at the Salone del Mobile - Euroluce 2019, one of the youngest designers to participate. Isato currently works as an independent creative in Milan, exploring his artistic vision through novel projects and collaborations.

Born in Empoli in 1955 and now based in Castelfiorentino, Antonio D’Ambrosio has been capturing fragments of space and time through his photographs since 1978. In 1982, he joined the “Giglio Rosso '' photography club in Castelfiorentino, which he presided over between 1984 and 2007. He collaborates with both private and public institutions on catalogs, books, and documents celebrating local architectural-environmental heritage. French critic J.C. Lemagny selected some of his photos and registered them in the prints and photography sections at the National Library of France.