Decorating with wine, on tour with Giorgetti and Spirito diVino Asiato

events
Decorating with wine, on tour
with Giorgetti and Spirito diVino Asia to
export a tricolour oenological
culture, after Shanghai stopping off in
Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.
Three cocktails to meet and get to know
the protagonists of design.
Glasses in hand, making a date
to meet in Hong Kong
(a
t o a s t t o m a d e i n i ta ly
)
Two whites
make their debut
in the Atelier
On this page, Dhow sofa upholstered in fabric by Andrei Monteanu, Leo coffee table by Laura Silvestrini and Nao light designed by Chi Wing Lo in the new Giorgetti Atelier, The Space
Furniture in Singapore, site of one of the events of the ‘Decorating with wine’ tour. Right, two glasses of La Scolca Millesimato, a sparkling wine made from the Cortese variety in purity.
by Guido Daelli photos by Ricky Gui and Nicholas Chin
SPIRITOdiVINO
SPIRITOdiVINO
140
141
( le
prove di spirito
12
56
)
events
34
7
T
(a
t o a s t t o m a d e i n i ta ly
There are some experiences that conquer your spirit. Because they
involve all five senses at the same time: sight, hearing, smell, taste
and touch. But it is in the conquest of the sixth sense, aesthetic taste,
that the other five are exalted. Creating something that pleases is the
condition necessary for stimulating the desire and need to possess that
object and - why not? - drink that wine. Through its profound historical
and cultural differences, the vast and uniform part of the world of Asû,
that place where the sun rises from which the name Asia comes, and
perhaps precisely for this reason, has demonstrated a tendency and
knack for getting used to innovation, preferably objectively beautiful
innovation, with extreme and surprising rapidity.
Shapes, colour, flavours, lifestyles: in a word, tastes. Especially when
they are Made in Italy, a term rich in ‘heritage’ that charms, adding a
special touch, between passion and style. Synonyms in this case for a
love of beauty and pure elegance.
Two cities: Singapore re-designed in the late
50s in its shape and its rules by Lee Kwan Yen,
caught between an important colonial past
that left many fine things (firstly, the styles
of its colonial buildings mixed with Acacia
)
trees), and Kuala Lumpur, today very different to that recounted by
Joseph Conrad, a frontier town that is now rich and cosmopolitan,
full of glass buildings that symbolize the nation’s strength. Hence,
the ‘Decorating with wine’ tour, an aesthetic-cultural partnership between Giorgetti and SpiritodiVino Asia founded on the five senses, to
celebrate this part of the world with three events: the opening over
two nights of the first Giorgetti Atelier in the Villa of the Space Asia
Hub in Singapore, and the renovated area in Kuala Lumpur in The
Intermark hotel, both run by Space Furniture.
The events were also an opportunity to present the new Giorgetti
collection with two wines from La Scolca in Gavi, an area in the
north-west of Italy not far from France, in a region, Piedmont, which
is particularly famous abroad for the success of Barolo. But in this
part of Italy, which is influenced by the nearby Sea of Liguria and the
rolling hills of the city of Alessandria, they
also produce still white wines and an interesting - or rather, stunning - sparkling wine,
obtained from the Cortese di Gavi variety
(as well as Pinot noir and Barbera) featured
here to present the new Giorgetti collection,
Celebrating the
five senses; so as to
capture the spirit
89
10
1112
1314
1516
17 18
1920
21
1. Carlo Colombo and Syddal Wee. 2. A detail of the stitching on the Mobius armchair in leather designed by Umberto Asnago. 3. Francis and Joanne Khoo. 4. Catering by the Italian Garibaldi
Restaurant in Singapore. 5. Leny Supraman, Roberta Giorgetti, Ong Chih Ching and Arianna Borgonovo. 6. Entrance to the showroom of The Space Furniture in Singapore. The Giorgetti Atelier
is on the second floor. 7. Syddal Wee and Dr Easaw Thomas. 8. Mozzarella di Bufala DOP Campana. 9. Augustine Tan. 10. A view of the Atelier. 11. Albert Foo. 12. Ivy Teong and Karen Tey. 13.
Jennifer Soh, Roberta Giorgetti, Ko Shiou Hee and Ravi Shankar. 14. Mrs Easaw Thomas with Ann Lee. 15. Ann Lee and Eileen Tan. 16. Ravi Shankar, Tim Clark. 17. Guido Daelli and Alissa Man.
18. Maria Teo and Oceania Chua. 19. In the background, Ira bed, right, Oro dresser, and foreground, Eon desk, all designed by Chi Wing Lo. 20. Mr & Mrs Tay. 21. Bernice Tan and Don Wang.
Here above, a detail of the wines served: centre, Millesimato Brut La Scolca Metodo Classico, a sparkling wine produced in limited quantities which rests on its lees for 72 months. Right,
Gavi dei Gavi, a dry white obtained from 100% Cortese grapes grown on the hills of Rovereto Superiore in Alessandria province. The yield is meagre: only 7 tons per hectare (www.scolca.it).
SPIRITOdiVINO
SPIRITOdiVINO
142
143
events
(a
t o a s t t o m a d e i n i ta ly
)
Around a table,
little ideas become
great projects
which made its debut among the designers
of the world-famous Italian architect Carlo
Colombo. “This is the first collection I have
designed for Giorgetti”, he specifies, “thanks
to an encounter in Kuala Lumpur a year ago
when I met his family personally. That was
followed by an informal dinner in Milan. Great projects are created
around the table, with good wine to hand. And so, Carlo and Roberta
Giorgetti suggested that I contribute towards the new collection. I
was unsure of the result, on account of the cultural and aesthetic
differences between my modern and austere style and theirs, which
is more oriented towards modern classic. But a touch of renewal
was necessary. I could not but try. The first attempts pleased immediately and to my surprise, Carluccio (Carlo Giorgetti, ed.) decided
to present my collection (the Altea bed, Morfeo bedside cabinet,
Diana armchair, Minerva bergére and the Vittoria sofa-armchair) at
the Milan Furniture Exhibition. The underlying idea is a line”, continues Colombo, “a sinuous sign, soft and vaguely feminine in its
harmonies, a modern clone of their sophisticated style, echoed in
the headboard of the bed and the structure of the sofa, which blends
leather and fabric. This is new that does not
forget old. From that, then, the collaboration
extended. Now I am not just a designer; I
also work on architectural projects managing the world of showrooms. Going beyond
the design to encroach into the visual project
seen in its entirety is one of the things that interests me the most.
In terms of materials, shapes, function, elegance and sophistication,
Giorgetti expresses that which the Asian public desires.”
“We have 25 new pieces from our large collection here in Asia”,
adds Roberta Giorgetti, “on display in the ateliers. For us, these
places are a new way to extend a welcome to designers, architects
or the end customers in a more intimate and reserved space; with a
very familiar atmosphere. The Asian public can see an ideal house
created with articles from Giorgetti thanks to the contribution of
our prized artists, Design MVW by Xu Ming and Virginie Moriette,
Massimo Castagna, Rossella Pugliatti, and Toshiyuki Kita, in addition to Carlo Colombo.” This is how Italy is celebrating style and
elegance. With a glass of bubbly in hand. There is a little Italy in
this gesture. Or perhaps it is better to call it a ritual.
( le
prove di spirito
12
56
8
9
13
)
3
4
7
10
14
1112
1516
1718
1920
21
Here above, Sam Bassett and Alexia Koh admire the Oro dresser made in black walnut and leather, designed by Chi Wing Lo. The Giorgetti collection is created by architects and designers
such as Xu Ming and Virginie Moriette, Massimo Castagna, Rossella Pugliatti, and Toshiyuki Kita. This collection marks the debut of Carlo Colombo, with five pieces (www.giorgetti-spa.it).
1. Michelle Ong showing the Giorgetti catalogue to a guest. 2. Margot armchair by Antonello Mosca and Ivi table by Chi Wing Lo. 3. Faizatul Ashikin & Mohd Faizal. 4. Chan Yue Yee & Arianna
Borgonovo 5. Ann Lee, Pearly Ng, Elizabeth Soong, Jennifer Soh & Karen Yeoh. 6. Datuk Giles Bien, Syddal Wee & Datin Debbie Bien. 6. Roberta Giorgetti, daughter of the founder Carlo.
7. Datuk Giles Bien, Syddal Wee & Datin Debbie Bien. 8. Anand Krishnan. 9. The catering. 10. The Chinese game Mahjongg re-designed by Chi Wing Lo. 11. Susan Merllesh-Lucas 12. Vittoria
sofa by Carlo Colombo behind Artù coffee table by Massimo Scolari. 13. Alex Wong, Lim Hooi Yen & Pearly Ng. 14. T.J. Wong. 15. Monia Fragomeli & Barbara Goltermann. 16. Hendrick Yee &
Go Lee Bin. 17. Mr & Mrs Peter Lenhardt. 18. Mr Huat Lim and his colleague. 19. A detail of the labels of the wines tasted. 20. Barbara Allen, Michelle Ong & Shane Chaplin. 21. The dessert.
SPIRITOdiVINO
SPIRITOdiVINO
144
145