I’ve been teaching for 40 years, and in the past, the idea of holding a short workshop on wood inlay techniques seemed absurd to me. I couldn’t fathom the idea of having people work for such a short time. Then one day in 2019, the Cologni Foundation for the Métiers […]
Stories
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Andrea, now 81, is part of the history of my workshop. His uncle worked with my master in the 1950s, and as a boy, he would go to their workshop after school. He later worked in a museum, but in his free afternoons he would help his uncle, who had […]
Luigi’s story in this workshop across from me dates back to the 1960s, when he specialized in wood carving and gilding. Luigi and I remained face to face until, at the age of 88, he too had to close. I like to remember his great tenacity and passion for his […]
And I also want to talk about the Church of Santo Spirito and its square, because it is one of the most unique churches in Florence. Just steps from my workshop, the church gives its name to the neighborhood I live in. With its simple yet imposing façade, it is […]
I still want to write about Florence’s Ponte Vecchio. It’s an architectural work I’ve seen for over 40 years, crossing the Santa Trinita Bridge, located on its western side. I see it every day, morning andevening. I see it in the morning light with the sun behind it, or in […]
Memories of Via dei Velluti: The artisan heart of the Oltrarno A personal journey through the historic workshops of Florence. Via dei Velluti in Florence’s Oltrarno district, like everywhere else in the Santo Spirito and San Frediano neighborhoods, is a street that once housed numerous artisan workshops. When I arrived […]
Inspiration from Florence: Santo Spirito and Ponte Vecchio Next, I couldn’t help but draw inspiration from the Church of Santo Spirito, a constant source of inspiration for many artisans and artists, not only woodworkers. In my various works, I also tried to use rare marbles and semiprecious stones to represent […]
In addition to restoration work, perhaps because my background as a young man was in woodworking, I enjoy creating new pieces and giving space to creativity. In these works, I recover ancient inlay techniques and reinterpret them from new perspectives. One day, while walking through the streets of Matera during […]
Now that I’m retired, after over 50 years working in the wood sector and the experience gained from more than 30 years of teaching at private schools and public institutions in Italy and abroad, I enjoy continuing to work in the workshop, dedicating myself especially to teaching. In the last […]