Enrico Marone Cinzano’s Otherworldly Furniture
Sculptural, sustainable pieces for the home inspired by nature
After a groundbreaking presentation at Spazio Rossana Orlandi during this year’s Salone del Mobile, furniture designer Enrico Marone Cinzano met with CH to discuss his signature blend of the natural and reclaimed. Cinzano’s sculptural designs—crafted from both sustainable and found materials—demonstrate his interest in nature, but in many ways, they transcend it. There’s a sense of the familiar set in the face of the unknown and the otherworldly, and that’s exactly how Cinzano likes it.
“I never went to school for design,” Cinzano shares with CH. “I’m from Italy. I spent all my childhood in cities like Florence and Rome and Turin, watching the architecture. I was an addict of museums as a child. So I have a lot of schooling and training in the eye, but nothing formal.” In a way, this lack of formal training allows Cinzano to remain uninhibited in his vision. Through partnerships, he overcomes obstacles and realizes his designs. “I am at the beginning,” he notes. “It is always small people, that—through their ingenuity—can solve problems.”
As for what moves him, it’s apparent in his work. “If I have to go to one source for everything, it is nature. Proportions: Fibonacci. It’s a golden rule. I like repetition. I use the coupling of different materials that remain separate and yet all come together. Aerodynamism, biomimicry—these are all things that I really care about.” Cinzano begins by hunting for materials. When he feels as if he has accrued enough, he develops proportions, constructs sequences and applies various technological components. And, as he describes it, “Then the product comes out.”
Materials are key. When his wood and glass and metal is not reclaimed, it is sourced from quality, certified producers. “This is luxury to me: clean, unique, crafted,” he explains. “I am not an inventor. I don’t even know what I am doing,” he jokes. But his furniture speaks to something different. His latest, the Armadillo Console, employs hand-brushed steel, recovered glass and wheels and cork gaskets. The magnificent, extendable piece balances function with aesthetics. Drawing more directly from nature, the Console Geode (362 x 90 x 58 centimeters) appears to be a large crystal shard. His Pinis Cembra Wood Armchair, also carries striking angles, while utilizing 100% goose down and a natural hemp slipcover. Each piece is as distinct as the next.
Next, Cinzano plans to design buildings, from the ground up, in the way he has designed his furniture. “I try to create outdoor furniture that looks like sculptures because it leads into real estate design,” he notes. “Could you imagine a building that looked like my table?” he asks, referring to a glass piece held together by recovered bolts and ball bearings. It would definitely be worth seeing, entering and inhabiting.
Enrico Marone Cinzano‘s full range can be found online, with prices available upon inquiry.
Images courtesy of Enrico Marone Cinzano
