State of MIND

A dialogue between art, architecture and design drives the philosophy of FLORENTINE curator Valentina Guidi Ottobri. Her passion project is a hybrid home gallery of Italian artisanal craft.

There is something innately comforting about a curve. That gentle and organic concave, perhaps realised in a body, structure or sculpture, is intimate, inviting and pleasing to the eye. Curves have intrigued Valentina Guidi Ottobri for as long as she can remember. “I’ve always found female bodies very interesting and beautiful. My grandmother used to have this Fernando Botero painting at home and I remember that I was fascinated by the curves,” Ottobri says. So it comes as no surprise that sensuous lines have a presence in Ottobri’s home and gallery space in her beloved hometown and capital of Italy’s Tuscan region, Florence.

A fiercely proud Florentine native, Ottobri’s curiosity with art and aesthetics has led to her becoming a curator and creative director of art and design. After seven years with luxury retailer Luisaviaroma, managing the home division and working across marketing campaigns, in-store installations and exhibitions, Ottobri struck out on her own to further explore meaningful connections between creatives through collaboration and community. To that end, she has formed her own collective, VGO Associates, which brings together all of these facets. “VGO Associates was born with the aim of creating ‘functional sculptures’ that emphasise the essence of the object itself rather than hedonism, aesthetics or style, to give life and [a sense of] counterculture,” says Ottobri. “It’s about standing out from the prevailing materialism of the last century.” The result so far is a range of furniture, objets d’art and accessories, many produced by artisans utilising time-honoured regional skills. “We think that in addition to techniques and materials, what denotes the quality of a project is the vision and cultural exchange that stimulates and enriches us,” says the creative director. “We work with young emerging designers and established artists with an illuminated and sculptural approach to the project. In this vision, the artistic message that design offers can be as important as that of a work of art.”

Her Florence base showcases the merits of design as a living work of art. Located at the top of a 1970s building, Ottobri’s one-bedroom apartment serves as a microcosm representative of the chaos of the city. Some original elements, such as the marble floor at the entrance, have been kept, and the feel of a Tuscan farmhouse is re-created with the addition of wicker blinds and frangisole brickwork. Walls are swathed in sun-baked tones inspired by weathered terracotta rooftops and examples of local craftsmanship can be found at every turn from the scagliola inlay work of Bianco Bianchi to Poggi Ugo’s renowned terracotta pieces and sculptures by Antonio Di Tommaso.

Contemporary touches also find a place here. Celebrated creative Cristina Celestino’s graphic tiles for Fornace Brioni are featured on the terrace for high-impact contrast with the cacti garden. And gracing the floor of the living area is Germans Ermics’s gradient rug for CC-Tapis, with its own undulating tones and lines.

Ottobri now splits her time between the apartment, a place she calls the Cabana, and the South of France. She hopes that the Cabana is one of many VGO Associates projects that weave the value of design and art into the everyday fabric of life. “My Cabana has its own rituals,” she says. “For example, admiring the Duomo in the morning mist from the small kitchen terrace. Reading a book in the dining room, comfortably seated or lying on the leather sofa. Taking a long shower in the bathroom that recalls a Moroccan desert landscape. Having lunch among the cacti on the terrace on a beautiful sunny day.” This concept of giving life and soul to a space through a combination of animated sculpture-objects, cultural artefacts and artisanal pursuits only enriches the comfort of home. Here is an engaging exhibition of eras and cultures, not at all stuffy or esoteric, but captivating and ahead of the curve. valentinaguidiottobri.com vgo-associates.com

“The artistic message that design offers can be as important as that of a work of art”

VALENTINA GUIDI OTTOBRI

THIS PAGE in the living area with a view onto the terrace of this Florence home, 1970s travertine coffee table; ceramic sculptural speaker (on table) by Misha Khan for VGO Associates; Tidal Chroma Spill rug by Germans Ermics for CC-Tapis, enquiries to Mobilia. OPPOSITE PAGE creative director Valentina Guidi Ottobri in the kitchen. Details, last pages.

THIS PAGE in the hallway, in the central concrete module, sculptures and talismans, a mix of ceramic, raffia and terracotta pieces, all made in Florence, including some by Antonio Di Tommaso. OPPOSITE PAGE in another view of the living area, 1970s leather sofa; The Triumph of Amphitrite (on wall) and Poseidon and Thusa ceramic plates (on table) by Simon Miller for VGO Associates; papier-mâché chandelier from VGO Associates.

THIS PAGE in the bathroom, rose marble stoup found in Assisi, restored by Matteo Peducci for VGO Associates; mirror from Zara Home; terracotta urn found in Apulia. OPPOSITE PAGE a view of the kitchen from the central module.

THIS PAGE in the main bedroom, bed linen from Once Milano; Pebble wall light by Kunaal Kyhaan Seolekar; raffia wallcovering (behind bed) by Misha from VGO Associates. OPPOSITE PAGE on the terrace, Snake scagliola table designed by VGO Associates and produced by Bianco Bianchi; Classic stools from Poggi Ugo; Scenografica floor tiles by Cristina Celestino for Fornace Brioni. Details, last pages.