Davide Aquini
Cooperativa Artieri Alabastro
The two lamps have been crafted using one of the most traditional techniques connected with the precious alabaster from Volterra, Tuscany. Several types of this material have been assembled, lathed and polished.
Davide Giulio Aquini
Davide Giulio Aquini, born in 1982, studied Graphic Design in Venice, then started cooperating with advertising agencies while undertaking his own freelance activity.
He also attended Product and Interaction Design courses. His attention to materials is a result and a reaction to his “bi-dimensional” training as a graphic designer. The underlying concepts in his projects are self-production and experimentation on materials, notably natural materials. Lamps, accessories and home furnishings are created in his workshop by observing traditional techniques and the work of craftsmen while they are solving “problems which would require several hours and needless frustration, if they were to be worked out on paper”.
Cooperativa Artieri Alabastro
Cooperativa Artieri Alabastro was founded in 1895 in Volterra. The name “Artieri” was suggested by Gabriele D’Annunzio, who visited it in 1908. The co-operative brings together the alabaster craftsmen from the surrounding area and is strongly committed to preserve and support the traditional manufacturing techniques of this material. The master craftsmen work in teams and each of them takes care of a specific step in the process. A designer creates the drawing, a squaring worker shapes rough alabaster by cutting it in accordance with the thickness stated in the project, a turner carves and shapes the alabaster slab and a decorative artist drills, engraves and carves it.
The finished work is a seamless, integrated whole, a unique example of artisan skill.