Learn calligraphy inside Italy’s oldest fountain pen manufacturer
From Tolkien and James Bond to gold nibs, miniature painting and rare Italian celluloid, discover the historic Bassano manufactory featured by Forbes and The Times.
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MADE IN ITALY DESIGN & CRAFT
Italian design, craftsmanship, ceramics and contemporary art in Vicenza
A Mini dressed in 37,000 glass mosaic tiles, a monumental Mendini armchair, one of Ettore Sottsass’s final installations, and a textile factory housing a Fluxus collection with works by Yoko Ono and John Cage. In Vicenza, Italy, explore some of the country’s most unusual design museums, contemporary art collections, ceramics and specialist craft workshops.
Learn paper craft at Carteria Tassotti, Homo Faber’s Bassano del Grappa address
Eighteenth century originals, decorative papers made in Bassano and four workshop ideas, from colouring prints to books assembled without glue
The Italian lighting story behind Zaha Hadid Architects and 800 lamps in Dubai
A lighting company founded in the Vicenza area in 1982 reached more than 50 countries, international architecture studios and major hotel projects.
Find Yoko Ono, John Cage and Nam June Paik inside a working textile mill
A major Fluxus and experimental poetry collection lives among the looms of a textile company in the Vicenza countryside.
Where books for Taschen, Bloomsbury and the Venice Biennale take physical form
Inside the printing house behind books for Taschen, Bloomsbury and the Venice Biennale
Italy’s oldest working ceramic factory still uses its 18th century moulds
Book a factory visit to see original eighteenth century moulds, hand painted ceramics and a monumental wood fired kiln.
Secret drawers and floral marquetry, inside a family furniture workshop in Vicenza
A visit by appointment to discover handmade cabinets, concealed compartments and classical furniture made to order
Where Bottega Veneta comes from
Founded in Vicenza in 1966, the Italian luxury house went from American Gigolo and Andy Warhol to a main atelier inside an eighteenth century villa nearby.
Write a love letter with Italy’s historic fountain pens
Jane Austen romance, Hemingway, Renaissance handwriting and three Italian calligraphy experiences.
Make your own ceramic piece and try Japanese Raku in a working studio
Pottery courses, wheel throwing and a monthly Raku firing day
The Vicenza Ceramic Festiva
An annual festival of workshops, open factories, exhibitions and experimental firings
Vicenza’s free design museum, where you’ll find Sottsass and a Mini wearing 37,000 mosaic tiles
Monumental furniture, fashion prints and architectural installations fill a former mosaic factory, with free admission by reservation
De Chirico, Guttuso, Vedova: the Italian print studio you can work in
See the historic presses, explore the archive and print your own artwork.
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