Marcel Wanders’ Creative Director Is Passionate For Murano Glass Works – Born in Metz in 1978, Gabriele Chiave talked with one of the most renowned luxury design magazines in the world in an exclusive interview during the inspiring design event known as Salone Del Mobile Milano 2019. It was in the Barovier & Toso’s stand, where was located one of his latest projects that the interior designer talked about his biggest passions and inspirations with the CovetED magazine team!
Gabriele Chiave studied Industrial Design in Milan’s prestigious IED. In 2007, he moved to Amsterdam and landed the incredible spot as Creative Director for the prestigious Marcel Wanders studio starting an amazing collaboration that lasts to this day. The incredibly busy art aficionado and jazz lover is responsible for overseeing all projects in product and interior design, and art direction for a number of premium design brands. During Milan Design Week the renowned CovetED Magazine talked to the incredible interior designer to learn more about her professional path and passions.
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CE: Can you tell us more about your creative process… What is the starting point?
GC: So, the creative process starts on an idea, in a sketch. But the beautiful thing of these companies we work with, the crafts and the heritage or the specific material, you have to go on the company, you have to develop pieces which are coming out from fire, in really warm and though environments. The masters are tough guys and that’s the point, from all this power, there is this beautiful and delicate feminine material that comes out. And of course, the creative process in the Studio is different. We are 50 people, we work together.
CE: What is the one material that you would like to work with?
GC: When you partner with a company, you really have to dig in their culture, their history, capacity and materials, and the beauty we are really proud to work with glass. And of course, the Murano one is a unique one. Cause it’s from the past, but it’s also, so specific. And of course the colors, you don’t see colors so much but probably in the future, you will see various ones. But it’s a very specific way of working, in a way that’s something that came in the process naturally and there is a very specific way of doing it.
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CE: What can you say about Murano glass
GC: It’s delicate, it’s Light, it’s colourful, it’s thin, romantic. One thing that connects Murano with Amsterdam is of course you know the two cities Amsterdam and Venice and they are connected through their canals and so on. And this chandelier has been done in Amsterdam and has been done in Venice and it reflects this because when we started we really took inspirations from as you see there are nice tulips, and of course, the shape itself causes a few tulip bulbs. There a concept between the two cities.
CE: How do you feel about today’s craftsmanship culture in design?
GC: I believe that craftsmanship it’s essential in our work. Because something that we love is to look at the past and not to lose the expertise that in our modern design word has been lost for a while. And also, crafts make things more durable, there’s a quality into it, there’s passion. There’s something that makes the pieces of it much higher level quality. And that’s what we love the most about our work and the companies we work with are very much rooted in this reality.
Regarding his creative process, Gabriele Chiave starts with an idea or a simple sketch, but his favorite part is going to the factories and develop the pieces next to the master artisans. Murano Glass is one of the most honorable materials in the Italian craftsmanship, so the designer takes great pride in working with it. The glass is delicate, light, colorful and romantic, being the highlight of the new ‘Adonis’ chandelier, a collaboration between Marcel Wanders and Barovier & Toso.
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