Precious Collection

There is a long corridor in which the doors seem to disappear. It is black, that corridor. And it is full of light. On its lowered ceiling there is a small slot in which round lights are inserted and alternate. The rays illuminate the walls, and with them, the paintings and their images. It is from here, from this long, black corridor, that the project by Dep Studio and Zenucchi Design Code takes form. We are in the home of an art collector, and we need to give prominence to those works. Paintings, photographs and sculptures by Italian and international artists from the 1950s to the present day. And so, in this art-rich home, everything else takes a step back. Design. Material. Colour. Starting with that very corridor, with its split sandstone and the flush doors. The room it leads to is the opposite. Different, complementary. It is a large white room, coloured only with the ochre of a patchwork rug. It is a space of leisure, art and entertainment. The 202 8 sofa by Piero Lissoni (2014, Cassina) faces the TV and the bookcase that Dep Studio designed. At its side, the iconic Grand Repos armchair by Antonio Citterio (2011, Vitra); behind it, a billiard table that becomes a dining table. Although the light is completely artificial – LED projectors, with tracks embedded in the ceiling, – the atmosphere is warm, comfortable. The different switch on and intensity adjustment system allows for the creation of different moods and impressions. The ventilated crawl space, plasterboard false walls and automatic ventilation system insulate and protect. Colouring the walls there is only art. With its greens, with its yellows. Abstract shapes of dreams and fantasies.

The relaxation area next door is also lit by art. Women’s bodies hide their faces as life unfolds at their feet. With its greens, with its yellows. There is even a small stone-clad grotto with its own mini pool and Iroko wood chaises longue. To reach it, there is a staircase, whose geometry has been preserved and its heart and material restored. In the sunlight, it is the actual house that shines. To reach it, there is a staircase, whose geometry has been preserved and its heart and material restored. The steps are now covered in stone, while a custom-made iron railing stands where there used to be wood. Smooth, continuous sheet metal, winding sinuously around itself. The edges are sharp, the peak is the attic. The walls are again white and grey where they meet the landings. The colours alternate, the art stands out. Like in the living area, which the large window looks out over the garden and swimming pool. The Andersen sofa by Rodolfo Dordoni (Minotti) is just a shade lighter than the dark grey rug (by Sartori). Opposite, the MODERN cabinet and LOAD-IT bookcase by Piero Lissoni (Porro), in the corner the iconic Barcelona Chair by Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe (1929, Knoll). Few furnishings, lots of light, for a modern space that defers to art. In the dining room, Eero Saarinen’s Tulip table (1957, Knoll) is surrounded by Rodolfo Dordoni’s Aston Armchairs (Minotti), with their frame that is like a gentle embrace. A slim Max. Mover (2000, Ingo Maurer) illuminates them with studied precision. The telescopic body hangs from nylon threads. It is reflected in the full-height white lacquered cabinet, with dark open compartments that are shrines for sculptures. A wall with a “buckskin” finish leads to the kitchen. It is soft. It is unusual, it is a setting for art and artists. Yet another canvas that, in this house, the works of art fill.