Ceccotti Collezioni blurs the lines between furniture and sculpture
Ceccotti Collezioni’s roots as an artisan workshop, Ceccotti Aviero, in 1956 is evident in its mastery of solid wood furniture. The signature organic curves and seamless “hidden” joints are marks of its highly skilled craftsmen, made even more remarkable by the fact that they are all produced wholly by hand, without the aid of 3D-modelling techniques or numeric control technology. Although the Italian company is renowned for coaxing luxury furniture out of American walnut, cherry wood, oak and maple, its team of 40 craftsmen are also particularly adept at working with natural leather, brass and stone.
The Tuscan company’s meticulously handcrafted pieces are venerated outside of Italy for its exceptional expertise in woodworking, with the family-run business now spearheaded by its director Franco Ceccotti after he took over from his father in 1986. In Malaysia the Ceccotti Collezioni is available at Xtra Furniture.
Two core collections make up the Ceccotti brand – Storica, which can be categorised as the more classic of the two, and Modern Sense. Mainly designed by long-time collaborator architect Roberto Lazzeroni since 1988, Storica is home to several of the European label’s iconic pieces such as the Bean writing desk and the D.R.D.P., an asymmetrical two-seater sofa with a polished brass tray.
Although all the pieces are unique and custom-made with premium wood personally selected by Franco Ceccotti, perhaps the most unique and closest to his heart is the Gentleman’s Wardrobe. At S$155,000 (RM450,000), it is the one of the most expensive Ceccotti pieces and one of only ten in the world. The rosewood wardrobe features calfskin covered doors with maple interiors and rare ebony handles, and cleverly engineered with hidden compartments. Franco Ceccotti tells us its origins and why it is special to him.
“I collect antiques and on one of the occasions in Lucca, I found this wonderful wardrobe that was made in the 1930s in an antiques shop. I had to find out its history so I did some research and found out that it was designed by Guglielmo Ulrich, who was commissioned to create a cabinet for a powerful family. I managed to contact Guglielmo’s son who attested that the wardrobe was indeed designed and made by his late father. I thought that if I wanted a wonderful wardrobe to contain all my favourite clothes and accessories, there would be others like myself. So I decided to recreate Guglielmo’s design (with his son’s permission) with some updated details and finishing and that became Gentleman’s Wardrobe.”
