With Dolce & Gabbana’s first ever Casa furniture collection, the Italian design duo’s aim was to create a unique lifestyle, with traditional crafts like glassblowing, hand-painted Sicilian ceramics, fine cabinetmaking, straw weaving, wood carving, and lush hand-loomed brocades all making an appearance.
“You need only to behold one of our furnishings or caress a fabric to immediately perceive its foundational values: impeccable craftsmanship, love for the fatto a mano (handmade), respect for tradition, and the quest for innovation,” say Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. “The senses of sight, touch, hearing, and smell are constantly stimulated by our creations, which all contribute to the dream of building a habitat tailored to your personality, your passions, and your tastes.”
According to the designers, a home is after all a place that best reflects who we are, that protects us from the outside world – but at the same time allows us to open up to it. Italian culture and beauty have always been their main sources of inspiration, and Dolce & Gabbana’s Casa collection is no different.
“Over the years, these elements have been reinterpreted in a unique lifestyle, conceived in the spirit of Dolce Vita. Indeed, the elegance of our furniture and accessories is never cold and austere, but instead tinged with the most festive tones of light-hearted joy. Perhaps because, for us, Italian beauty is not limited to the genius of the masters of the Renaissance and Baroque or to the immortal words of the great poets and writers, but extends to our breathtaking landscapes, our wines, and our incomparable cuisine. Whether in the Faraglioni of Capri, in the blue of Sicily’s sea, in the golden beaches of our coasts, or in the pizza, the pasta, and the sundry sweets that distinguish our culinary traditions, there dwells an extraordinary poetry; a taste for the beautiful and the well-made that for centuries have regaled the world with unique emotions” – in the words of Domenico and Stefano.
“We experienced this same feeling of exceptionality from our very first encounter with Italy’s most renowned craftsmen, thanks to whom we have rediscovered ancient workmanship such as Murano glass-blowing, hand-painted Sicilian ceramics, fine cabinetmaking, straw weaving, wood carving and intarsia (knitting), the age-old technique of murine (mosaics), and the weaving of lush brocades and precious velvets on traditional looms,” they say.
Their collaboration with these artisans led Dolce & Gabbana to Venice’s Scuola Grande della Misericordia – an extraordinary space that was transformed for the launch of Casa. Here, bold and colourful scenes reinterpreted four of the favourite themes of the maison: leopard and zebra patterns, Mediterranean blue, and Sicilian carts.
Through a collaboration with famous Murano glass company Barovier & Toso, spectacular installations were created to complement the various backdrops, like the five chandeliers inspired by D&G’s leopard pattern. Each chandelier measured over five metres in height and consisted of 56 lights, with leopard decorations and black rostrato effects. About 20,000 pieces of hand-blown glass were required to build these works of art, charging the atmosphere with enticingly warm hues for a truly majestic, theatrical experience.
D&G’s eye-catching and signature Carretto print was visible everywhere on the first floor of the exhibition space; an exuberant array of Sicilian folk-inspired motifs found its way onto sofas, tables, cabinets and even an entire kitchen. The first floor also provided the perfect spot to display the brand’s first foray into homewares, such as limited-edition hand-painted fridges and a line of kitchen appliances for Smeg.
The chic and colourful collection also includes seating, tables and cabinetry, all adorned in one of four signature motifs: Mediterranean Blue, Carretto, Leo, and Zebra. There’s a sofa upholstered in a statement swirling blue and white pattern, a round table covered in the eyepopping Carretto motif, animal print stools, and a leopardpattern rug.
The home décor line will soon be available online and, eventually, in stores worldwide.
This article first appeared in the October 2021 issue of Prestige Thailand.