From the peak of the Alps to the very tip of its boot, Italy is a country as rich in history as it is diverse in terrain. And though this is what makes the country so astonishing, it can also end up obscuring some of its most incredible cultural artifacts simply due to the enormous number of such things throughout its territory. Among the obscured is Casa Tabarelli, an architectural treasure designed by the great Carlo Scarpa, which has been all but forgotten. Hidden in the tiny northern vineyard village of Cornaiano, Casa Tabarelli is a stunning display of Scarpa’s ingenuity, with his unique style gracing the entire home from its structure to the tiniest of details. Commissioned by Gianni Tabarelli and built in 1968, the house has rarely been seen by the public and was sold by the family in 2011.
Thanks to the Prague’s OKOLO art collective, the home is now receiving the attention it so deserves in the Casa Tabarelli Rediscovered exhibition at Bulgaria’s Sklada Gallery. The project is the result of pure happenstance—the OKOLO team was fortunate enough to meet Gianni Tabarelli’s son Antonello, who quickly grew fond of the artists and eventually invited them to stay at the home. Stunned by the design, OKOLO documented Casa Tabarelli in a series of photographs and video that will be on view as part of the exhibition. Scarpa’s masterful design is complemented by equally-iconic furnishing with pieces by Marcel Breuer, Man Ray and Marcel Duchamp, making OKOLO’s project a true blessing for the design archives.
Casa Tabarelli Rediscovered is on view now at Sklada Gallery (11 Georgi Benkovski St, Sofia, Bulgaria).
Images courtesy of OKOLO