Try closing your eyes and imagining an enchanted place, set in the mountains but facing the shores of a lake, a small gem that is a repository of tradition, while never lacking in imagination and curiosity about the future. Over 70 years ago on the shore of Lake Orta, the Fantini company began its family saga of design. The everyday rhythm is measured by the harmonious sounds of the water, its gentle flowing like a caress on the surrounding panorama.
This is also the process that gives rise to the creations of Fantini, a company that creates faucets as functional elements endowed with grace and elegance. The firm’s philosophy is a sign of the evolving times, in which objects express character and every space in the home has to be fully enhanced, going beyond mere practical functions. One emblematic example of this research is the Venezia collection created by Matteo Thun and Antonio Rodriguez as a tribute to the expressive potential of Murano glass, and the artistry of its legacy of craftsmanship.
In its original version the series is a pure representation of tradition and style, with lines based on clear geometry, namely a parallelepiped with a rectangular base that leaves a glimpse of the “liquidity” of color inside – blue, white, red, black – and the magical depth of the material. Glass is then combined with metal in different finishes, in the base and the faucet, creating harmonious combinations that stimulate the senses, from touch to sight.
Just as waves are in constant transformation, so the collection evolves in time, in an ongoing drive to find the synthesis of beauty. Hence the Venezia line also takes on a more contemporary guise of great emotional impact, thanks to the collaboration with Venini. The handles become two-tone and filigreed, masterfully shaped in the historic Venini glassworks in Murano, and therefore made with age-old techniques that render every piece unique, with the crafted quality of things “made by hand.”
While the original model is based on more angular forms, this version shifts towards softer lines. The handles have a cylindrical shape that brings out the color combinations of aquamarine and green, amethyst and amber, red and amber. Finally, again with design by Matteo Thun and Antonio Rodriguez, a variant has been created with handles in ground and faceted glass, in blue, amber and white, or in a transparent matte version with metal base.
Photo © Sara Magni, Walter Zerla
