The Artisans

A craftsman’s intuition to apply wood veneering techniques to concrete led to the development of CIMENTO® in 2019, a patented technology that transforms heavy concrete into a light and flexible covering slab. Handmade furniture, home décor, and lighting collections come to life, all pooled together by a trademark cutting-edge concrete veneer. The company boasts collaborations with renowned professionals such as Defne Koz & Marco Susani, Omri Revesz, Studio 63, BBA Studio, and Patricia Urquiola. PEFC and FSC certifications attest to the brand’s commitment to sustainability.

Born and raised in Florence, Patrizia Garganti founded her company in 1976. Her main inspiration has always been the research of simple materials, typical from her lend, transformed, thanks to her ability, into unique and iconic handcrafted products. Craftsmanship, attention to detail, continuous research of new techniques and manual processes, and tailor-made projects have always been considered the company’s strengths, defining its identity. Collaboration with acclaimed designers, like Roberto Lazzeroni, for some of the brand’s most iconic creations, added a further distinctive touch to the brand’s personality.

Milan-based artist Enrico Verger composes portraits that capture a fleeting moment of grace. Born in Rome in 1970, he lived in many European countries before finding a home in Athens, Greece. There, he could no longer ignore the urge to paint, which he enriched with technical skills by attending the Academy of Fine Arts of Brera, Milan. He works out of his namesake atelier opened in 2019. His solo exhibitions are “L’ozio” (2021) and “Piscine” (2022).

Born in Pisa, designer Francesco Maria Messina has a truly international upbringing and artistic training. His studies at the École Spéciale d'Architecture in Paris and Tulane University in New Orleans sowed the seeds for his graduate studies at the Confluence Institute in Lyon. Between 2018 and 2020 he created five collections adding to the launch of the Mauritian luxury furniture brand Cypraea. Following successful exhibitions in Milan, Sardinia, and London, he returned to Tuscany in 2020 to open his own design studio. His pieces have been showcased at the Venice Design Biennale.

Craafts is an Italian artisanal workshop specializing in high fashion production founded in 2013 by Ebi Handmade Accessories. Run by the creative duo of architects Elif Malkoclar and Davide Dell'Acqua, it embodies an elegant, harmonious blend of architecture and artisanship. The brand combines fashion, design, art, and high-end craftsmanship using first-rate fabrics and textiles exclusively handmade following ancient traditional techniques interpreted in a refined contemporary key.

Digital artist Alessandro Pongan was born in 1963 in La Spezia and grew up between Milan and Brazil. Augusto Garau and Bruno Munari are among his teachers at the Polytechnic School of Design, where he graduated in 1983 majoring in Visual Design. He founded Officina Design in 1988 after years of working as a freelancer. His illustrious career as art director, set designer, and content creator in the field of communication and special events includes concepts for the Milan Expo 2015, and Expo Dubai 2020 and on commission for Lamborghini, Fiat, Maserati, AlfaRomeo, and Alessi on important projects and TV design in Athens for the national broadcaster Ant1 for the creation of television programs. Finalist in the international competition LAGI - Land Art Generator 2019, it was published in the book "Return to the Source" published by Prestel for its Red Giant concept, a public artwork capable of generating energy through solar rays.

Michele Stagni’s first drawings were reproductions of animals he found in encyclopedias as a child, spending hours shaping his own personal style. Drawing and sculpture, which he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts of Florence, built the foundations for his captivating, distinctive style which, within the artist’s body of work, finds its greatest expression in painting. Based in Livorno, Tuscany, Stagni’s intimate and emotionally-charged oeuvres have been exhibited throughout Italy.

Founded by Riccardo Redaelli, laErre Trunks is an Italian design company with over twenty years of experience in suitcase manufacturing. Paying particular attention to customers’ bespoke needs, laErre combines craftsmanship with cutting-edge design and industrial techniques to create singular travel companions marked by exceptional quality and sophistication that will withstand the test of time.

Founded by designers Federico Senesi and Michele Strammiello, Studio X is a Milan-based workshop that integrates art and design in their study of forms and novel materials. Studio X creates singular and sculptural objects of interior design hand-modeled using resin, revealing a dynamic and dramatic aesthetic brimming with avant-garde style and timeless sophistication.

Born in Cologne, Germany, and raised in Italy, Stefano De Luigi began his career as an internationally recognized photographer by collaborating with the Louvre Museum between 1991 and 1993. His works focus on exploring the human condition and contemporary social issues. De Luigi is a member of the international photographic collective VIIPhoto, is a published author, and has contributed to the New Yorker and Time covers and editorials. He currently lives in Montreuil, France.

An internationally recognized visual artist, researcher, and National Geographic Fellow, Davide Monteleone’s interdisciplinary work includes image-making, visual journalism, and writing. He lived in Russia for ten years, where he produced his early series and four critically acclaimed monographs. A contributor to magazines such as Time, National Geographic, and The New Yorker, Monteleone’s work has been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums, including the Saatchi Gallery (London), the Nobel Peace Center (Oslo), the MEP (Paris), and Palazzo Delle Esposizioni (Rome).

Born in 1954 in Cagliari, Sardinia, Giampaolo Atzeni is a world-renowned artist whose latest project is paintings of surrealist inspiration with a distinctive style that the artist began developing in the ‘90s. After completing his Architecture studies in Florence, he worked as an actor in theatre and later as a photojournalist working in Africa, India, and the Middle East. He transitioned to digital art at the end of the 1990s during the spread of new computerized technologies. His works are exhibited internationally. He currently lives between Rome and Tenerife.

Reflecting upon reality and its various manifestations, photographer Carlo Matteo Golia began his career with the project "Fuori Orario" exhibited at the Toselli Gallery in Milan, Italy. Inspired by other contemporary artists, notably Marisa Merz, Lisa Ponti, and Giorgio Colombo, his works exude a distinctive pop style that explores different perspectives of mundane or daily life. Golia’s projects have been critically acclaimed and published internationally.

An internationally recognized artist in the Italian contemporary art scene, Chiara Sorgato began her artistic training at the Fine Arts Academy of Venice, where she studied Painting. In 2012, she won an artist residency at the Fondazione Bevilacqua la Masa in Venice where she produced several important oeuvres. Her works have been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums around the world. She currently lives and works in Milan.

Rosaria Corcione has been working in Naples since 2003. Her work is original and devoted to research, transforming real life situations into artworks, including sculpture and eclectic installations. Her work is often symbolic: Classic art, Renaissance, Baroque, but she also explores human existential concepts such as womanhood.

A student of artist and professor Pier Giorgio Balocchi at the Academy of Fine Arts of Carrara, Italy, Federico Caruso first trained as a set and costume designer for opera house and ballet, collaborating with Franco Zeffirelli in Tokyo and New York. At the same time, he developed a personal painting style, exploring the theme of “Anatomy of evanescence” marked by fluid and luminous brushstrokes made with oil painting, charcoal, and pastel colors.

Born in Alghero, an Italian city on the northwest coast of Sardinia, Antonio Bardino is an internationally renowned artist specializing in mosaic art. A graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts, he focuses his artistic work on experimenting with new graphic technologies in painting to portray the singularity of Nature. His latest oeuvres feature evocative depictions of plants inspired by the natural processes of birth, evolution, and growth.

An award-winning artist of the contemporary scene, Sicilian-born artist Matteo Mauro has worked alongside renowned designers and artists the likes of Ron Arad and Isaie Bloch. A professor of digital art in London-based universities like UCL and LSBU, his works have been exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts, Marte Museum, and the Salon des Indépendants at the Grand Palais, to name a few. Defined by Forbes as the main Italian exponent of crypto-art, he collaborates with high-profile international brands on his digital paintings.

Based in Rome where he lives and works, artist Giulio Rigoni crafts artworks distinguished by a ceaseless tension between classic aesthetic and contemporary sensibility. Enchanted, often unreal subjects recur in his art, suspended in atmospheres hinting at a distant, almost mythical past that the observer is invited to reinterpret according to their personal vision. Oil painting on wood and gold leaf decorations reveal his inspired technique, which has evolved over time to include paper, brass, and textile thanks to intense artistic research.

Born in 1988 in Ragusa and currently living in Palazzolo Acreide, Sicily, Salvo Alibrio is a brilliant, world-renowned photographer. A graduate of the John Kaverdash Academy of Photography in Milan, he opened his namesake studio in 2013. He is the man behind the 2020 Dolce & Gabbana’s ad campaign and reporting for Le Figaro Magazine and Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain. His successes include winner of the “People & Cultures” category at National Geographic Italy and first prize in the “Events'' category at the 2016 Tokyo International Photo Awards, to name a few.