Mountain meadows in summer, larch and pine forests in fall, blueberries, wasps, moss, gentians. 

Nature has created and preserves each colour, inviting us to experience them as integral parts of our existence and, through them, to celebrate the beauty and richness of diversity.

Nature, without asking anything in return, fascinates, teaches, shelters.

Beyond simply beautifying the world, colours serve essential functions: they help endangered animals camouflage, signal impending weather changes, and attract pollinators.

In daily life, the colours people choose for clothing, furnishings, and walls are more than just decorative; they evoke emotions and create connections.

For Paola Lenti, the story begins with observing nature to explore its colours.

The series of seven short videos titled “Oasi di Colore” is the means through which Paola Lenti shares the emotions and associations that each colour awakens, blending colours and music in a play of aesthetic and chromatic analogies. 

Each episode concludes with words that renowned philosophers, painters, and writers dedicated to the seven protagonist colours.

Let’s discover them together!

Blue has no dimensions; it is beyond dimensions. – Yves Klein

My Fuschzia’s Coral Seams Rip – while the Sower – dreams. – Emily Dickinson

… the young Dawn with her rose-red fingers. – Omero

I have finally discovered the true color of the atmosphere. It’s violet. Fresh air is violet. – Claude Monet

How lovely yellow is! – Vincent van Gogh

All theory is gray, my friend. But forever green is the tree of life. – Claude Monet

My heart is like this red disk of the moon… – Hannah Arendt

Director Maurizio Natta
Cinematographers Maurizio Natta, Fabrizio Polla Mattiot, Gianlorenzo Bernabò
Sound designer Matteo Fusi
Soundtrack Universal Music Publishing Ricordi srl
–
© 2024 Paola Lenti srl



L'articolo Experiencing Colours: An Act of Freedom proviene da Paola Lenti.

Made of straw, wood, or better yet, bricks.
In childhood, home means protection—from the weather, strangers, and anything that could threaten the well-being of its inhabitants. As adults, the house remains a trusted shell, a place where one feels content without the need to seek solace elsewhere, surrounded by personal objects and cherished memories.

The home is a poetic place, where care is evident in the cushion, the plant, and the small feline wandering silently among surfaces of every size, material, and shape. These horizontal and vertical surfaces offer infinite sensory perceptions. Hence, it is also an aesthetic place, from the Greek αἴσθησις (aísthesis), “to perceive through the senses.”

Rugs, furnishings, paintings, family memories, and travel recollections define a temple where daily private rituals occur.

Every house finds its rhythm with the passage of time, a time marked by the presence of what we introduce, akin to the pages of a novel or the growth rings of a tree trunk.

By definition, it is an anthropic element, connecting us through its walls with the surrounding environment. If all walls were made of natural materials, the boundary between inside and outside, natural and artificial, would blur, bringing humans closer to nature.

This philosophy inspired “Àlfa, a Possible Home,” a project presented by Paola Lenti for the 2024 edition of Milano Design Week. This subtle architecture and interior exercise ultimately responds to a precise ethical choice.

It reminds us that initiating new and better practices requires positive thinking and a good dose of willpower.

INSIDE THE ROOMS OF ÀLFA
Director Maurizio Natta
Filmed by Fabrizio Polla Mattiot
Soundtrack Universal Music Publishing Ricordi srl

ph. © Maurizio Natta

© 2024 Paola Lenti srl, all rights reserved

L'articolo Home, the temple of private rituals proviene da Paola Lenti.

The rustle of leaves in a city park, stirred by the wind; the dust particles dancing in the sunlight filtering through dense urban buildings; the gentle patter of raindrops on a military green raincoat; the fiery red sun setting against the backdrop of a bustling street in Tokyo as seen from a van.

These fleeting moments, captured through the eyes of Hirayama in Wim Wenders’ acclaimed “Perfect Days”, evoke the essence of perfection. They remind us of the joy found in simply experiencing nature’s spontaneous offerings without any prompting.

Oki Sato, known as Nendo, finds inspiration in these subtle cues from nature – what he refers to as “hints” or “whispers”. It’s these whispers that he explores in his solo exhibition, “nendo: whispers of nature,” held at Paola Lenti’s new space in Milan during Milano Design Week 2024.

From their shared geographic coordinates in Tokyo, Japan, Nendo and Wenders, with a distinctly Western perspective, advocate for the importance of living in harmony with oneself and the natural world. They encourage us to appreciate life’s simple pleasures and to cultivate a deep respect for the environment.

“Exploring the connection between nature and humanity is deeply ingrained in Japanese culture,” explains Nendo. “That’s why I felt compelled to delve into this theme and chose Paola Lenti Milano as the perfect venue to showcase my exhibition. Nendo and Paola Lenti share a profound love and respect for nature – it’s what unites us.”

In the richness of the Japanese language, there exists a treasure trove of words that encapsulate intricate concepts and the beauty of natural phenomena with remarkable brevity.

Komorebi, as unveiled by Wim Wenders at the conclusion of his film, captures the ethereal shimmer cast by sunlight filtering through swaying leaves – a fleeting glow frozen in a singular, precise moment.

Hana-arashi, as disclosed by Nendo, describes the mesmerizing spectacle when cherry blossom petals detach and dance through the air – a transient beauty more captivating than the blossoms themselves, lasting mere moments.

Lastly, Mottainai, elucidated by Paola Lenti, embodies the ethos of waste not – a call to utilize existing resources rather than squander them. This concept has been embraced by the company, transforming into a project aimed at imbuing surplus materials with renewed function and aesthetic value.

The imagery of petals dancing in the air directly evokes Paola Lenti’s philosophy, which, through the Mottainai project, gathers and repurposes what remains, what literally falls from production processes, thus avoiding any form of waste.

“We were intrigued” explains Paola Lenti, “to explore collaborations with designers boasting diverse aesthetics, distinct from those of the Campana Brothers, with whom we initiated the Mottainai project’s first chapter. Thus, we engaged with Nendo studio. Oki Sato artfully breathed new life into Maris offcuts, harnessing their inherent structure and texture to inform the collection’s form. The resulting Hana-arashi collection exudes a restrained yet vibrant charm, evocative of quintessential Japanese design.”

Nendo’s concept for creating objects that experiment with various forms and combinations crystallized only after visiting Paola Lenti’s headquarters, witnessing the production processes, and grasping the company’s research efforts and unique savoir-faire. The Maris cutoffs, with their quality and array of colours, meticulously recovered and thoughtfully combined according to a cohesive chromatic scheme, give rise to petals of newfound and unpredictable beauty.

“The initial impression I had” recounts Nendo, “is that Paola embodies a certain Japanese sensibility. Quiet, exceptionally courteous, with a deep respect for nature. She truly sees and understands nature in a manner that resonates with me, reflecting an authenticity reminiscent of my own culture. I was pleasantly surprised to encounter the term Mottainai within an Italian company. It immediately felt familiar, akin to home. Through this project, I believe Paola and I achieved a harmonious balance between spirituality, materiality, and sustainability, as we, in a way, speak the same language. It was akin to composing a haiku.”

THE PLAY-DOUGH MAN
Director Maurizio Natta
Author Alessandra Noto
Filmed by Maurizio Natta – Fabrizio Polla Mattiot – Gianlorenzo Bernabò
Interview Dop Luciano Limoli
Editor Mattia Cutaia
Colorist Michele Ricossa
Audio Recordist Andrea Serventi
Audio Editor Matteo Fusi
Soundtrack Universal Music Publishing Ricordi srl
© 2024 Paola Lenti srl, all rights reserved

Go to the dedicated page to watch all our videos

L'articolo Nendo and Paola Lenti: A Symphony of Signs, Colours, and Emotions proviene da Paola Lenti.

To truly go beyond, one must possess an attentive and discerning eye. An eye capable of both grasping the details – because it is in the small and almost invisible that often nestles the highest concentration of beauty – and perceiving the harmonious coherence of the whole.

This visual flexibility is what sets Paola Lenti apart, and it finds its purest expression in Paola Lenti Milano, the brand’s new flagship exhibition space in Milan. Designed as a bioecological architecture, it mirrors the company’s aesthetic sensibility and ethical commitment.

Oltre lo Sguardo serves as Paola Lenti’s manifesto, marking the definitive opening of a new destination in Milan, inspired by the key principles of culture, design, well-being, and hospitality that have guided the brand since its inception thirty years ago.

At Paola Lenti Milano, indoor and outdoor products harmonize with diverse plant species across six distinct ecosystems, fostering an unparalleled urban biodiversity.

During Milano Design Week 2024, visitors are guided through sensory experiences, immersed in botanical and chromatic journeys that evoke olfactory sensations, play with light, notes of colour, and showcase furnishings characterized by delicate elegance and occasional whimsy—a hallmark of Paola Lenti’s unique storytelling approach.

Within the showroom, a dedicated space spanning over 300 square meters mimics the ambiance of a contemporary dwelling. Wide windows offer glimpses of lush gardens, inviting exploration and discovery. Carefully curated colour palettes, vintage furnishings, and meticulous attention to details create an atmosphere of sophistication and refinement.

Looking ahead, plans for a bistro and boutique hotel underscore the brand’s commitment to hospitality and well-being. These additions will further enrich the visitor experience, providing opportunities to explore broader themes of culture and sustainability amidst verdant surroundings.

Meanwhile, the building, still in its original state and subject to renovation in the future, will host the solo exhibition of Oki Sato «Nendo: Whispers of Nature» – a fitting exploration of the intricate relationship between humanity and the natural world, aligned with Paola Lenti’s core values.

© Paola Lenti srl

L'articolo «Oltre lo Sguardo» : What Lies Beyond the Gaze proviene da Paola Lenti.

Over two decades have passed since we embarked on a pioneering journey in the production of contemporary outdoor textiles, forever transforming their essence, scale, typology, and colour with a thin, impalpable thread – one suitable for twisting, coupling, shaping, and flattening into fabrics and cords.

The present and future of our company began with the unprecedented intuition, against the tide at the time, that such a flexible and potentially infinite raw material – akin to a thought relentlessly intertwining images, inspirations, and new connections – could transcend the conventional and establish the idea of a home without boundaries between indoor and outdoor.

From short film «Per filo e per segno» © Paola Lenti srl

However, we were not satisfied. We improved its performance, enhanced its qualities, and uncovered its aesthetic potential. Thus, a synthetic material, previously trapped in technology that rendered it rigid and soulless, superficially essential yet a source of ecological issues, became a valuable, sustainable material, functional for designing long-lasting and durable products, meeting the present requirements of the circular economy.

Over the years, that thread transformed into cords of various dimensions and forms, flexible enough to be woven, and into intricate, high-performance textile structures. It also manifested as soft knitted fabrics, reminiscent of classic craftsmanship like rib or plain stitch – a modern take on traditional handmade with a familiar, timeless essence. Additionally, it gave rise to dozens of unprecedented outdoor fabrics in exclusive colours, plush, inviting, and nearly indistinguishable from indoor fabrics, yet equipped with all the necessary qualities for outdoor use.

From short film «Per filo e per segno» © Paola Lenti srl

Per filo e per segno: the title binds the protagonist of our narrative to the meticulousness, care, and precision with which it is worked by the skilled hands of our staff, following the invisible threads of fantasy with their minds. This same attention is devoted every day to our work, to inventing new solutions, and to facing new challenges.

The enduring, contagious enthusiasm, the same as twenty years ago, has defined our identity. Paola Lenti herself guides us on this journey, unravelling and reweaving the thread of our history once again: a delicate yet resilient thread, leaving an indelible mark.

PER FILO E PER SEGNO
Director Maurizio Natta
Author Anna Vullo
Filmed by Maurizio Natta – Fabrizio Polla Mattiot – Gianlorenzo Bernabò
Interview Dop Luciano Limoli
Interview Gaffer Mattia Rossetti
Editor Mattia Cutaia
Colorist Michele Ricossa
Audio Editor Matteo Fusi
Hair styling and make up Karine Valbrun
Soundtrack Universal Music Publishing Ricordi srl
© 2023 Paola Lenti srl, all rights reserved

Go to the dedicated page to watch all our videos

L'articolo Per filo e per segno proviene da Paola Lenti.

Just like Azabudai Hills. Nestled in the heart of the Minato district, this newly inaugurated area spans over 8 hectares, offering a serene escape from the hustle and bustle of urban life. Here, amidst vast green expanses teeming with trees, flowers, and tranquil water features, lies a true garden-city.

Built where once stood a temple and a large park, and where daily business of florists and launderers took place, the project by Heatherwick Studio has radically changed its appearance into one of the greenest areas of the city, carefully preserving its original character. Futuristic structural forms have become the “network” that embraces residential buildings and commercial spaces, temples, art galleries, and restaurants, to recall in a contemporary key the typical architectural congestion of Tokyo, where old and new, large and small architectures are stacked against each other.

ph. © Paola Lenti srl

The ambition of the project, lasting over thirty years, was to create a public space meant to be “lived” and to succeed in involving and retaining the community that has always inhabited the neighborhood. Once the works were completed, almost all of the previous inhabitants and businesses chose to return and populate this extraordinary “three-dimensional landscape”, which has succeeded in adding something fresh and welcoming to the modern urban fabric, too often impersonal, of a big metropolis.

Right opposite the green and sustainable area of Azabudai Hills, Paola Lenti Tokyo flagship finds its new home, transitioning from the residential district of Hiroo. In partnership with Atlantic Cars Ltd., the store seamlessly integrates into the Japanese culture, reflecting the brand’s commitment to aesthetics and craftsmanship. Designed to collaborate closely with architects and interior designers, the space invites creative exploration and bespoke solutions.

The neutral tones chosen for the walls and flooring enhance those bold shades that have always been a distinctive element of the Paola Lenti collections: the green and turquoise of the lava and glass surfaces, the solar yellow and deep red of the coverings, the vibrant pink and the decided purplish blue of the weaves.

ph. © Creare Co., Ltd.

L'articolo The Garden-City of Azabudai Hills proviene da Paola Lenti.

Curious by nature, cosmopolitan by choice. Hugo Yoshikawa is a young artist who mainly draws inspiration from nature, from its diverse forms and myriad colours.

Born in Tokyo and raised between Paris, Bangkok, and New York, he graduated from Camberwell College of Art in London. Yoshikawa took his first steps as an illustrator in Madrid and later devoted himself to art in a broader sense, yet always maintained an original, graphic, whimsical, and sometimes naive style that still characterizes his work today.

To ignite his imagination as a child and push him to cultivate the art of illustration, especially influential were the bandes dessinées. These are the comic strips of the Franco-Belgian school, considered in those countries as real coming-of-age novels. One such series was the adventures of Spirou and Fantasio, two journalists facing various vicissitudes and aided by the faithful and ubiquitous squirrel Spip.

In the imaginative world of this French-Japanese artist, nature enters the home and envelops everyday objects. Tree roots infiltrate between tables and chairs, leaves float freely in the air, flowers bloom from milk cartons, and citrus fruits hang from laundry lines like laundry itself. It’s a world of fantasy, permeated by the emotions often found at the heart of haiku poetry – the central theme of nature with all its mysteries. It’s also an expression of traditional Japanese manga culture.

Designart Tokyo provides the perfect platform. It’s an event born with the goal of erasing the lines between art and design, functionality and beauty. This international event transforms the entire city into a museum each year. Through various settings, artists and creatives from around the world can come together, creating new and unexpected opportunities, synergies, and connections.

To produce the animation that will be part of the exhibition, the artist has created a series of sketches. They draw inspiration from some of Paola Lenti’s iconic products: Telar, Frame, Hammock, and Tapio armchairs. They blend these pieces into a nature that’s “intrusive”, and yet inviting, positioning them as central figures within his unique vision of the potential fusion of art, design, and the botanical realm.

The “Outside Inside” exhibition, its title already a manifesto, is organized by Rikka Gallery and open to the public from October 20th to October 29th, running from 11 am to 6 pm. It is held at the Paola Lenti Tokyo showroom in Azabudai Hills, a modern residential district where buildings are nestled amidst lush green spaces and have rooftops teeming with vibrant vegetation, all in harmony with nature.

L'articolo Hugo Yoshikawa’s art in the new Paola Lenti Tokyo space proviene da Paola Lenti.

When Paola Lenti and Francesco Rota met for the first time, they were little more than teenagers. It was the end of the 1990s: The company founded by Paola at that time was still a small reality. Francesco had recently completed his degree in architecture at the Art Center College of Design in La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland. It’s been 25 years, and the partnership of that time is stronger today than ever.

To celebrate this anniversary, we asked them to revisit together the milestones that have marked these 25 years of professional understanding while getting comfortable on a sofa, one of the products that have defined the success of this long-lasting collaboration. However, both of them preferred to sit on the floor. This gave birth to an informal, two-part narrative, which was summarized in an interview revealing a strong affinity of thought. Their bond is founded on mutual respect and freedom, as well as a shared vision of work: a ‘serious amusement‘, as they both like to describe it.

This brings us back to their first ‘official’ encounter. It was 1998 when they began to think together about a project that would enhance and give three-dimensional shape to felt, the material that had been used for the production of rugs already for some years.

The understanding between the two was immediate and at once translated into the essential and linear features of the Atollo sofa and Linea, the indoor chaise longue that over the years has become one of the most iconic products in the collection.

Thus began a collaboration that gave shape and function to furniture elements characterized by an unconventional design and originating from a strong propensity to research and innovation.

Some years later, new territories are being explored. The challenge is then to design outdoor upholsteries that are as welcoming and pleasant to the touch as those traditionally used in the interiors. The research focused on polypropylene, a light and waterproof fiber. While she was studying the materials, he was working on the forms: The success of Linea was renewed with Wave, the first of a long and articulated series of products designed specifically for outdoor life.

The rest is the story of a creative partnership punctuated by dozens of furnishings, innovative and original, that thanks to their understated elegance have survived unscathed over time – seats, tables, side tables, cabinets and complements such as Frame, Cove, Ami, Smile, Harbour, just to name a few –, many of which have been awarded prestigious accolades. In the meantime, the two “teenagers” have kept the same enthusiasm they had 25 years ago and still enjoy sitting on the floor.

Due sopra il divano

Author Anna Vullo 
Director Maurizio Natta 
Filmed by Maurizio Natta, Fabrizio Polla Mattiot, Gianlorenzo Bernabò 
Editor Mattia Cutaia 
Colorist Michele Ricossa 
Audio Editor Matteo Fusi 
Soundtrack Universal Music Publishing Ricordi srl 
© 2023 Paola Lenti srl, all rights reserved

L'articolo Due sopra il divano proviene da Paola Lenti.

Paola Lenti was looking for a place to put down roots. A place integrated into the urban fabric of Milan, open to the city, and at the same time surrounded by green-ery. A venue to be purposefully designed for those who pass through the door to grasp everywhere the beauty of a plant, a flower, a tree, and thus nature, on which Paola Lenti has always drawn to envision her products.

A place that could not only become a permanent reference point during the Milano Design Week, but also maintain a constant dialogue with a diverse public and transmit an entire vision that goes beyond the usual retail concept to incorporate art and hospitality, food culture, and landscape design. A venue capable of telling a story that has a horizon that extends beyond that of a typical flagship store.

The new venue is located a former industrial estate surrounded by gardens in an area, which is undergoing a major redevelopment but far from the canonical routes of design.

 
The entire project has been designed to have as little environmental impact as possible, in keeping with the company’s concept, which has made sustainability one of its cornerstones. For the outside walls, neutral materials and tones were chosen to express the idea of harmony that underpins Paola Lenti’s creative choices and harmonise with the distinctive colours of the surrounding buildings.  
 
I want the new location to be a lively place where people can feel good, – Paola Lenti explains –. A positive oasis for Milan as well».

L'articolo Milan, the new Paola Lenti space proviene da Paola Lenti.

Colours have their own sound, too. So thought Wassily Kandinsky, one of the leading exponents of abstract art at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. According to the Russian painter, a special link exists between art and music. Indeed, his colourful works were conceived like true symphonies. “Red is vital and has the sound of a tuba, orange is energetic and resounds like a bell, yellow rings like a trumpet and is bursting, green is opulent, contented and recalls the violin”, wrote the famous abstractionist.

Nonetheless, Kandinsky was not the only one to identify connections between these two forms of expression. The ancient Greeks were the first to devise a color scale divided into seven parts, just like the seven notes of the musical scale. Three centuries before Kandinsky, the Milanese painter Giuseppe Arcimboldi created a scale of chromatic values starting from the Pythagorean system of harmonic proportions between tones and semitones.

The series of videos Variations on colour originates also from these suggestions: each color can be associated with a certain music; it is enough to be capable of grasping the rhythm and tuning in to the emotions it transmits. Hence, we have devised four “episodes” and as many mood boards, set in our garden in Meda and conceived to present outdoor materials, yarns and fabrics in different shades of the same colour, and have combined them, each time, with specific musical variations.

Each video is named after a different colour, each corresponding to one of the new chromatic proposals in Paola Lenti collections: Yellow (in A Major), Green (in F Major), Blue (in D minor) and Pink (in C Major).

Besides, they coincide with some of the shades celebrated by Pantone, the bible of color, in the new 2023 catalogue, like Viva Magenta, colour of the year, a warm shade of fuchsia, “vibrating with vim and vigour and promoting joy”.

Green – synonym of nature and well-being – and blue “ with its quiet and deep sound” in the infinite shades varying from pale blue to indigo, are also two of the colour-symbol of the company: available in thousands of shades, they have contributed to making Paola Lenti collections unmistakable in the world.

While pink, as noted in The Secret Lives of Colour by British Kassia St Clair, conveys calm and fosters relaxation. A feeling that corresponds to Paola Lenti’s philosophy: designing products that make people feel good.

Directed by Maurizio Natta
Filmed and edited by Fabrizio Polla Mattiot
Soundtrack Universal Music Publishing Ricordi Srl

L'articolo A symphony of colors and music: it is Paola Lenti’s home proviene da Paola Lenti.

The postcard image of Miami framed by palm trees and beaches is a thing of the past. Today the most famous city in Florida attracts visitors from all over the world for its rich cultural and artistic offer. It embodies a cultivated and cosmopolitan glamour and is home to one of the most awaited events of the year, Art Basel Miami, the US equivalent of the Basel fair, the prestigious rendezvous with the best of international contemporary art.

At the same time, the most Latin city in America has experienced a growing interest in design, promoting another event, Design Miami, which has become a fixed appointment for architects, planners and interior designers from all backgrounds.

The indoor space of over 650 square meters with large windows overlooking the street is surrounded by a lush garden of local plants. More than a store, the flagship is a concept house, divided into different environs, the sum of which aims to convey an overall vision and propose harmonious, balanced and bespoke living spaces, which have always been the cornerstone of the company philosophy.

Paola Lenti has decided to open the store on the occasion of the 2022 editions of Art Basel and Design Miami that this year took place almost at the same time, between November 30 and December 4, to present to the American public the new Metamorfosi collection, penned by Brazilian designers Fernando and Humberto Campana and entirely made of Paola Lenti production leftovers.

Six unique pieces living at the intersection of art and design that seduced visitors thanks to their inedited forms and the bright colour palette, unmistakable hallmark of the company. It is a sustainable and responsible collection, born from the desire to reduce waste, that involves migrant women at risk of social exclusion in the production process.

The wide space of the store, opened in partnership with Casual Furniture Group, showcases all of the most representative products of Paola Lenti, from those that made the history of the brand to the most recent ones, such as the Eres furnishings, the first collection entirely made of natural materials, or the outdoor chaise lounges Jardín, a tribute to Cuban born designer Clara Porset. The garden offers comprehensive outdoor solutions, created with modular structures designed to protect from the sun, like Resort, and seating furniture with exclusive technical upholstery covers, which are resistant to humidity, rain and ultraviolet rays, hence ideal for Miami climate.

Furthermore, it boasts a consolidated tradition in the boating industry, a sector where Paola Lenti has gained a considerable market share thanks to the high performing technical materials used for its products, capable of withstanding particularly severe climate conditions.

L'articolo Miami Design and Art Basel 2022 proviene da Paola Lenti.

The desire to explain the body of thoughts that inspire the production choices of the Company is behind the idea to create a series of little precious volumes, printed on paper produced with sustainable raw materials and pictured by graphic designers, illustrators and artists: the Quaderni Paola Lenti.

A project against the flow in this digital era that returns the tactile pleasure of printed-paper and follows the thread of a reasoning on the importance of producing in a sustainable way that began with the inception of the company.

After Twiggy and Diade and after Eres, the two new issues of the Quaderni, Mottainai and Rope, have just been released.

The first is named after a concept originating from rural culture in Japan and Buddhist teachings, Mottainai, and that can be translated as What a waste! It is the ability to create with what is at hand, without squandering further resources while respecting humankind and the environment. A philosophy that draws on age-old heritage that places high value on parsimony but also gratitude for what is owned.

This thought has guided Paola Lenti in a project of recovery of production leftovers, restoring the value of yarns and materials produced in-house.

The volume Mottainai retraces the steps of this process, which brought about the eponymous collection of rugs, armchairs and poufs presented during the recent Fuorisalone in Milan. The same philosophy behind this concept inspired Metamorfosi as well, the series of unique pieces penned by Brazilian designers Fernando and Humberto Campana, equally produced with waste materials.

The forth issue of the series illustrates the genesis of Rope, the high tech yarn that, twenty years ago, has marked Paola Lenti’s debut in the realm of outdoor furniture, accelerating the company development.

Rope is a high performing synthetic yarn, resistant to water, UV rays, bacteria and 100% recyclable – hence sustainable – that over the years has originated dozens of different textile structures – cords, braids, strips. With these products, the company has produced rugs, upholstery and seating pieces of several signature collections.

Recently, it evolved into materials even more innovative like Twiggy and Diade. Twenty years after its introduction, Rope is still unique and inimitable. As yet, many of Paola Lenti’s products are recognizable thanks to this yarn.

Images in Mottainai are by Francesca Crisafulli and Carlo Nannetti – otherwise known as Mook – artists specialized in the creation of visual using all manner of recycled materials. The drawing in Rope are by Vessela Nikolova, whose visual research encompasses the area of fashion, design, photography and illustration.

L'articolo Mottainai and Rope, the new Quaderni Paola Lenti on the company’s sustainable choices proviene da Paola Lenti.

Creating culture through design also means combining tradition with the present, recovering those signs from the past that still have a potential for expression. It is another way to highlight a sustainable attitude: bring a project back to life and restore its values, making it somehow timeless.

The new Jardín collection by Paola Lenti originates from these premises.

It is a tribute to Cuban-born designer Clara Porset, who lived in Mexico, and to some of her furniture, which is still modern today. Refined, cosmopolitan, politically engaged, after studying in New York and Paris, Porset moved to Mexico City where she became a close collaborator of Luis Barragán, one of the most famous architects in the country.

Paola Lenti, through her unmistakable style and a contemporary annotation, has interpreted some pieces designed by Porset for the Pierre Marqués hotel in Acapulco – an example of avant-garde architecture at that time – and later exhibited at the 11^th Triennale di Milano.

The original wicker weaves have been updated with the exclusive Twiggy technical yarn, a high performing outdoor material, which is long lasting, waterproof and 100% recyclable. The result is a collection of lounge chairs and sun beds with rounded shapes and the appearance of garden furniture from times gone by, along with technical characteristics originating from the most advanced research. “I discovered Clara Porset while carrying out a research on Luis Barragán and his extraordinary sense of colour – Paola Lenti explains -.

An investigation made possible thanks to the precious collaboration of Professor Jorge Vadillo López, founder and curator of the Archivo Clara Porset at CIDI Centro de Investigaciones de Diseño Industrial of the Universidad Autónoma de México (UNAM).

Clara Porset arrived in Mexico in the Thirties, after having married the painter and “muralist” Xavier Guerrero, and found a country in full swing: the works of exponents of the intelligentsia and of the artistic avant-garde like Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and Tina Modotti crossed the boundaries drawing attention abroad. Mexico City was the epicenter of an eventful and lively cultural life.

The designer alternated intellectual encounters and her work as an architect with long trips to rural areas, to learn their traditions and transpose them into her projects. For the design of the seating furniture that made her internationally famous, she drew inspiration from the butaque, a low lounge chair, comfortable and inclined, conceived for relaxation.

Considered as a pioneer of design, Porset has designed furniture for hotels, villas and gardens, reinterpreting with a contemporary style local materials such as wood and wicker. She restored dignity to poor materials and grasped the poetry that can be hidden in a peasant chair, to raise it to the rank of an object of design. 

A timeless design, serving those who use it.

L'articolo Clara Porset: Authorial Design proviene da Paola Lenti.

Over the last twenty years, Paola Lenti has followed a thread: durable, long lasting and in its own way revolutionary. A yarn with a round sounding name – Rope – and an unusual textile appearance that has marked the history of the industrial development of the company.

It is the early 2000s. Paola Lenti is looking for an innovative material for the outdoors. She turns over in her hands a sample of a technical fabric from an Eastern European manufacturer, intrigued by the fact that warp and weft are the same size. She envisages a possibility there: to produce a round yarn with that dimensions, something similar to the lines used in sailing, capable of resisting water and ultraviolet rays. A yarn to be transformed into performing outdoor fabrics.

The research focuses on polypropylene, a not very noble fiber, nonetheless light and waterproof thanks to the “closed” structure of its molecules that prevents water from entering the fiber itself. Two intrinsic qualities that make it ideal for the outdoors. 

Rope, however, is still a long way off. Literature on polypropylene does not exist; it is necessary to test its resistance, functionality and lightfastness.

With the tenacity of newbies and a contagious enthusiasm for everything that needs to be invented, Paola Lenti embarks on a sometimes-naive quest: she uncovers shoe lace manufacturers in the Yellow Pages, regularly visits trade fairs in search of answers to her questions, calls on an automotive expert to verify the robustness and durability of fabrics as well as on weavers. Little by little she realizes that polypropylene, if properly processed, represents “the future”. She brings the pieces together and arrives at the Chemistry Department of the University of Turin to refine the research phases.

A high performing synthetic yarn that has the texture of a natural fabric to the touch, a peculiarity that has allowed it to cross the thresholds of indoor and fully establish itself even in interiors. This is one of the many reasons why Rope has given a new direction to the company: it is the “discovery” that has allowed it to establish a dialogue between inside and outside, to blur the boundaries between different environments to convey a fluid and harmonious domestic universe.

Thanks to its versatility, in these twenty years Rope has given rise to dozens of materials, from cords to weaves, from tubular “socks” to fabrics, which have become each time upholsteries for seating pieces or load-bearing structures of sofas, armchairs or sun beds. “And also outdoor rugs – Paola Lenti remembers -. A revolution for the times, when associating a rug to the outdoors sounded like an oxymoron”

Today many of Paola Lenti products are immediately recognizable thanks to that yarn, originated from an intuition, and to the extraordinary range of colors in which it is offered, which allows coordinating fabrics and materials of several collections.

And from the research on Rope, latest generation yarns, fabrics and materials arouse – Twiggy, Maris, Diade – even more performing and sustainable.

But that is another story.

L'articolo The intuition that has revolutionized the outdoor proviene da Paola Lenti.

A three-hour drive from the Big Apple and near the aristocratic Boston, Berkshire County, Western Massachusetts, is considered a sort of an antithesis to the Hamptons, a seaside holiday destination for true New Yorkers: little worldly life, a lot of culture and generally an open-air lifestyle. The locations are sophisticated, the calendar is rich with quality events and the community is overall well cultured. After all, Boston – full of British heritage and America’s renowned hub for academia – is just a few miles away. And New York cannot offer something near as cool as Berkshire.

What makes the region attractive is above all the extraordinary number of art galleries, theaters and museums. The MASS MoCA (Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art) in North Adams, is reputed among the most prestigious institutions on the American art scene. During the summer, the Boston Symphony Orchestra moves to the city of Lenox vivifying an annual symphony music festival that attracts visitors from all over the country.

Berkshire has been elected as a second home by celebrities who prefer to keep a low profile and appreciate an authentic modus vivendi: Meryl Streep, James Taylor and the cellist prodigy Yo-Yo Ma, are just to name a few. The landscape offers a lot, from the monumental Appalachian Mountains to natural parks and botanical gardens.

This region of Massachusetts seems to be the ideal destination also for Paola Lenti collections. Here, the nature reveals itself in an infinite range of colours – the emerald green of the forests, the blue of the streams and the magenta of the leaves in autumn – which seem to have been designed to evoke the nuances of the company’s furnishings. The selection of the pieces with which the new monobrand store in the centre of Great Barrington was outfitted reflects this philosophy: suggesting correspondences between shades, materials, and the surrounding environment. The choice of products for the store, an open space with exposed brick walls and large loft-style windows, focused on outdoor furniture made with innovative technical materials and yarns, capable of withstanding difficult weather conditions such as rain, wind and humidity.

Writer and poet Edith Wharton, the first woman to receive the Pulitzer for The Age of Innocence, was also in love with the pristine landscape of Berkshire. Today The Mount, the residence that she designed in 1902 so as to retire and write, is a museum open to the public. Wharton, with a talent for design and a sense of proportion as that of a professional architect, had observed that magic is created where there is continuity between inside and outside, in the “subtle transition from the fixed and formal lines of art to the shifting and irregular lines of nature”. A principle shared by Paola Lenti, always looking for a harmonious dialogue between the domestic environment and the landscape, between the interiors and the exteriors.

Paola Lenti by HUNDRED MILE
47 RAILROAD ST, Great Barrington, MA 01230
josh@100mileny.com

L'articolo The new Paola Lenti store in Berkshire, in the midst of art and nature proviene da Paola Lenti.

The “casa dei topi” (house of mice) is an open space full of books, hidden in a Milanese courtyard. The wording that welcomes visitors at the entrance – La casa dei topi, in fact – is not meant to warn those who enter, but ironically indicates the owners of the space, the founders of the publisher of young adults’ books “Topipittori” and of Calamus, a company specializing in design communication.

A large window frames a small internal garden full of plants. Illustrated fairy tales and books about the masters of architecture and design are scattered everywhere. Zoboli and Canton are the editors of Quaderni Paola Lenti, a series conceived to depict the philosophy that inspires and guides the company’s choices.

A project beyond the ordinary: many texts, images created by illustrators and artists, eco-friendly papers. “Produce well and with a sense of responsibility, this is the thought we want to share and spread with Quaderni”, is the synthesis of Paola Lenti.

The Quaderno Twiggy and Diade, with its essential graphics and illustrations digitally elaborated by Studio Fludd, retraces the steps that led to the development of Twiggy, an innovative single-material polypropylene yarn, and later on of Diade, the weight-bearing material obtained by coupling a rigid plate with a fabric made of Twiggy. Indeed, innovation lays in both materials being fully recyclable.

The experimentation of performing materials goes hand in hand with the attention to craftsmanship. The second Quaderno, Eres, actually reflects this dimension: it is a journey to discover ancient cultivation techniques and fibers such as linen and hemp, protagonists of the new Paola Lenti collection along with other more exotic ones such as bamboo, raffia, igusa and abaca.

Fil rouge of Quaderni is the path undertaken over the years in the direction of greater sustainability. “It is one of the cornerstones that prompted the company to talk about itself,” says Giovanna Zoboli. “In the case of Twiggy and Diade, sustainability is expressed in recyclability and durability, in Eres in the use of completely natural materials, for both upholsteries and paddings, processed, wherever possible, in the places of origin and without resorting to chemical treatments”.

The Eres collection contains an invitation to care: for the environment and for the products, which are delicate because they are natural and therefore need to be treated with particular attention.

Attention and care equally feature the layout of Quaderni Paola Lenti: natural paper, no glue, pages sewn together with a recyclable cotton thread.  “Eres illustrations are penned by Lucia Pescador, an artist who interprets nature in a personal and poetic way”, concludes Giovanna Zoboli.

L'articolo Interview with the editors of the Quaderni Paola Lenti <br>“Research on materials makes the difference” proviene da Paola Lenti.

Large windows, exposed bricks, a space distributed on three levels that “climbs” on an uphill road: the new Paola Lenti store in Sydney features a contemporary layout with an unparalleled visual impact.
Opened beginning of November, it is located in the heart of Darlinghurst, one of the trendiest city districts and home to a lively cultural life, full of art galleries, theaters and bistros.

The exhibited collections are the result of a careful selection from the chromatic palette, the hallmark of the Meda-based company. Tradition and innovation blend within the fabrics and coverings linked by the same colour shades: the new recyclable Twiggy yarn for the sofas, the Rope cord, one of the first exclusive materials developed by Paola Lenti, for the armchairs, baskets and rugs.

Outdoor yarns and materials, in which technique and beauty, handcraft and practicality blend together, such as Diade, a load-bearing material that stands out for its endurance and recyclability or Chain, the tubular knit used to create the weave of the Ami armchairs. Moreover, tables in shimmering colours in lava stone, either glazed or molded with glass, which are made unique by handcraft production techniques.

On the store windows, the trademark of de de ce sticks out, a historical group founded in the late 1970s as Danish Design Centre to introduce Scandinavian design in Australia, and that later on became a reference for international design in the Country.

All around the store, the new artistic center of Darlinghurst with its colourful streets: a cultural environment in tune with the brand of Paola Lenti, always oriented to poise creativity, beauty and innovation. 

PAOLA LENTI – DE DE CE

263 Liverpool Street – 2010 Darlinghurst – Sydney

tim@dedece.com

L'articolo Paola Lenti opens in Darlinghurst, the trendy district in Sydney proviene da Paola Lenti.

Under the expert guidance of art historian Caterina Napoleone, Paola Lenti made a poetic, inspirational journey – at times oneiric – throughout Italy in search for mosaics of neglected beauty.

Paola Lenti tracked them down with the meticulousness of a historian and the amazement of a neophyte, in search of inspirations and assonances with the wefts and warps of the weaves and fabrics of her company, which, since the inception, have made up the colourful “mosaics” of its rugs and upholsteries.

The result is a book, l giochi delle Muse (published by Corraini), which reveals the chromatic correspondences between fragments of mosaics and fabric offcuts; the compositional analogies between the floors of ancient patrician domus and hand-sewn decorated rugs; the similarities between the craftsmanship of imperial Rome and the contemporary one of the Meda-based company.

A sort of journey revisiting the art of mosaics that unfolds from North to South – along an imaginary axis that goes from Murano to Brescia, from Oplontis to Piazza Armerina – recomposing, step by step, the tesserae of “stone carpets”, as Caterina Napoleone defines them.

A book to leaf through to discover an invaluable heritage and what continues to make our country unique: craft excellence.

Video © Maurizio Natta, Fabrizio Polla Mattiot

L'articolo “I giochi delle Muse”<br>A surprising journey of discovery of the analogies between mosaics and fabrics proviene da Paola Lenti.

Giancarlo Morelli, star chef and owner of the eponymous restaurant and the Bulk Bar & Mixology a Milano, finds inspiration for his cuisine in the landscape and its colours.
In this respect, he and Paola Lenti are alike: the enchantment of nature shines through the collection of the company based in Meda as well and colour has always been its hallmark. “A Paola Lenti armchair can look alike my interpretation of a vegetable terrine, that I named Millefiori just like the pouf” says the chef lightheartedly.

To reproduce that essential bond with nature that both cultivate and embed in their projects, Morelli asked Paola Lenti to redesign the terrace of his Milanese restaurant-bar and to create the fairytale atmosphere of a forest in tune with the flow of seasons.
This way, among glazed tables and relaxing seatings, guests will savour not only the chef’s dishes, but also the spring atmosphere conveyed by the bright greens, the warmth of the summer carried by the blue and yellow shades, the coming fall with its red and burgundy hues, down to the muffled severity of the winter – grey, ice, snow.

Morelli, of Bergamo origins and with an international experience, inherited his passion for cooking from his mother and “from the female community who took turns in the kitchen at home”.
The bond with the land comes instead from the grandfather and the father, both farmers, although the baptism in the kitchen took place at sea, immediately after graduating from the hotel school, when Morelli, very young, left the steep horizons of his valleys to take off. Paying his duties on American transatlantic liners and an imperative in mind: to smell, to observe and prove himself.

On his return, Morelli is a chef with a discerning palate, he perfects himself at the French school and in 1993, opens his first restaurant, the Pomiroeu in Seregno. Others will follow – in Sardinia and Milan – confirming its success, culminating in 2009 with the recognition of the prestigious Michelin Guide.

Committed to a waste-free cuisine, respectful of nature, two equally essential principles in Paola Lenti’s work, Morelli prefers a balanced cuisine, based on raw material and color: a quality one.
The artistic partnership with Paola Lenti produces a special alchemy: “My cuisine and its furniture are ingredients that come the heart – assures the chef – It’s hard to forget them”.

L'articolo Paola Lenti and the chef Giancarlo Morelli <br>«An alchemy of taste and colours» proviene da Paola Lenti.

The large spaces overlooking the garden of the location seem to be drawn to allow nature to enter into the house, contaminating with its reflections and its nuances – greens, blues, yellows – furniture and furnishings designed for the interiors, creating a dialogue and a game of windows that breaks down the “walls” between indoor and outdoor.

In Paola Lenti’s mental geography, the home appears as a welcoming and gentle place, lively and open to the outdoors, with a sophisticated elegance, never over the top.
Tradition and research go together and blend with unexpected effects: the texture of the new tables in enamelled volcanic lava, which tell about an ancient wisdom, the pop transparencies of the innovative Twiggy yarn that talk about the new choices of sustainability and respect for the environment.

In the garden that surrounds the showroom, next to iconic pieces of the company such as Harbour, the modular sofa awarded with the Red Dot Award 2021, are the new collections such as Eres: sofas, chaise longue and outdoor beds in natural and eco-friendly fabrics, with soft and restful colours. Easily convertible into indoor complements, with a pleasant cocoon effect.       

Morelli’s Bulk Mixology Bar enchanted forest

Giancarlo Morelli, Michelin-one star chef and owner of the Bulk restaurant and the Bulk Mixology Bar in Milan (via Aristotile Fioravanti 4) to furnish the exterior of his restaurant has chosen chairs, tables and sofas by Paola Lenti in different shades and materials, with a fairy-tale effect deliberately contrasting with the “male” sobriety of the interiors.

Salvioni’s terraces

Three ways to see the terrace, three atmospheres created with different furniture and colours. Paola Lenti illustrates her vision of greenery in the city with an installation in Salvioni Milano’s showroom (via Durini 3 Milan), open until October 31th. Three terraces overlooking the inner courtyard of the store, each one level, as if they were coloured snapshots that, going up the beautiful ancient staircase, finally create a panoramic view.

The “garden terrace” on the first floor plays with the green hues: a shady place (Resort collection) and dedicated to relax (Harbour sofa and Ami armchairs). A few steps, and a blue oasis appears – a city-graceful style – with cosy armchairs (Nido collection), and glazed tables (Sciara).

On the third floor, where the view extends beyond the roofs, visitors will find the new Eres collection. Designed for outdoor use, but with its natural fabrics and the soothing tones of ecru, sage and dust, it pleasantly creeps into the interior spaces, occupying the volumes with the maxi sofa Frei and the clean lines of Vespucci furniture (armchairs and sofas). A natural chill-out room (raw linen, hemp delavé, bamboo and natural woods characterize the furniture), away from the buzz of the city center.

Showroom Paola Lenti – Via Po 100 A, Meda

Ristorante Morelli-Bulk  | Bulk Mixology Bar– Via Aristotile Fioravanti 4, Milan

Salvioni Milano Durini – Via Durini 3 – Milano
until October 31th

L'articolo Paola Lenti renews her showroom <br>and brings nature into the home proviene da Paola Lenti.

A curator of international exhibitions, visual artist and teacher, Chunghie Lee was born and lives in Seoul.

An Asian cultural and financial epicenter with 12 million inhabitants, Seoul is the capital of South Korea. A city of great contrasts and an authentic passion for art, it offers uninterrupted centuries-old traditions and digital technology, next-generation creativity and a certain conformist rigor. For example, Gyeongbokgung, the royal palace of the Joseon dynasty, is surrounded by many tall buildings constructed using avant-garde methods, overlooking a piazza – Gwanghwamun Square – where one can see people of all ages, dressed in extremely varied fashion, from classic suits to hanboks, a traditional Korean garment.

Paola Lenti is present in Seoul in a new showroom, opened in collaboration with Sanhyuk, in the area of Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, an area full of art and culture. The exhibition space, minimal and illuminated by natural light, delicately emphasizes – in a palette of neutral colors as well as in the green shades of the furnishings – a search for spontaneous harmony between design and nature.

With an area of 250 square meters, including a terrace with a view overlooking the city, dedicated areas inside and out fluidly flow into one another, separated by transparent moveable wings, offering a panoramic view of the brand’s exclusive furnishings, materials and colors.

Even more than a retail space, this intimate and pared-down spot stands out as a true destination for multisensory relaxation, where customers can let themselves be enveloped by the woodland aromas and be pampered by small, welcoming gestures, such as a tea or a simple refreshment. To be enjoyed amidst the peace of the beautiful terrace. 

PAOLA LENTI – SUNHYUK KOREA

Seoul – 43-1, Itaewon-ro 55-gil, Yongsan-gu 

paolalentikorea@gmail.com

L'articolo Ancient roots, new perspectives<br> Paola Lenti opens in Seoul proviene da Paola Lenti.

A lot of the wall paintings scattered throughout neighborhoods of Montreal are an homage to the artists who have left their mark on the city or have been inspired by it. One of these is surely Leonard Cohen, the poet and musician who died in 2016, celebrated in one of the city’s most magnetic works: the wall painting by California artist El Mac and local painter Gene Pendon. They were invited to collaborate by MU, the not-for-profit arts organization that, promoting the democratization of art and civic education with walls by artists, wants to turn Montreal into a grand open-air museum. In fact, it’s working: in less than ten years MU has produced more than 80 murals in 15 districts, in addition to approximately 50 works in social-collective settings.

It is in this city of Quebec, the second largest in Canada, that Paola Lenti opened her new flagship store. Created in collaboration with Latitude Nord, the historic distributor of her brand in French-speaking Canada, this space of more than 300 square meters is located at 4404 Saint Laurent Boulevard, a lively artery that divides the city from north to south.

In an industrial setting with large raw concrete columns and sizeable windows that bring in natural light, the showroom unfolds in complete environments, inside and out, that fluidly follow one another, in a sequence articulated by moveable wings and carpets that define and divide the space without separations.

A showroom designed to tell the local community of professionals and design enthusiasts about the company’s history and uniqueness: exclusive textiles and materials available in hundreds of colors, the result of constant research and experimentation; careful manual processes that reclaim the greatest Italian tradition; flexibility and expertise in the creation of products that can be personalized for custom-made environments.

Paola Lenti – Latitude Nord


4410 Boul. St. Laurent – QC H2W 1Z5 Montreal

info@latitudenord.com

L'articolo Paola Lenti is in Montreal, city-museum of culture and nature proviene da Paola Lenti.

How thin must a thread be to deserve to be called Twiggy? When Paola Lenti described to me the multi-filament polypropylene yarn that she uses for her creations, I couldn’t help but think of the English model from the ‘60s – although her allure holds up in spite of the years – who revolutionized the idea of wearability combined with feminine beauty. An esthetic ideal both ethereal and ironic, irremediably tied to the idea of perfection. Twiggy yarn is a potentially infinite line, harmonious, basic. It is modernity, functionality. 

Paola Lenti did not settle for the polypropylene threads already on the market; she wanted to do something more, creating extremely thin floss-like threads less than 2 millimeters thick, impalpable threads that, united in variable numbers, can be twisted, shaped, flattened to accommodate complex weaves and used in rope-like structures that are the designer’s stylistic signature. Assembling such thin threads, it is possible to play with shapes, but also with colors; scores of nuances are obtained by dying polymers in bulk (that is, dyed before being extruded), and uniting filaments of different colors with nearly endless chromatic options. And Twiggy, in particular, is an extremely thin fiber, capable of creating textile structures that, when reinforced, can replace a metal tube or a supporting element of a chair, thanks to its strength and tenacity. 

Cords that become wicker, fabrics that become three-dimensional structures. A result obtained through years of research that have made it possible to identify the best coating process in order to cover and strengthen the Twiggy yarn, making it moldable and extremely resistant and light. Paola Lenti’s Twiggy also has documented characteristics of sustainability. The yarn whose technological features we have praised is plastic. That’s right, widely loathed plastic. For there is no material that is more functional if you want to create objects that are durable and resistant to chemical and environmental pollution, to mold, to bacteria.

Because human imbecility has caused it to become an enormous ecological problem, abandoning it in the environment and in the seas, constructing articles designed to be used only once, even for just a few minutes. A waste, something that makes no sense. Used properly, plastic is an exceptional and fundamental material. Paola Lenti is well aware of this, and with her polypropylene Twiggy she creates chairs, carpets, panels, furnishings and much more. Combined with a 100% polypropylene sheet, Twiggy becomes Diade, a surface that simulates the roughness of fabric. And of course we are speaking of objects conceived to last, to acquire value over time, capitalizing on the investment.

While derived from a non-renewable source, Twiggy has sustainable contents. Paola Lenti talks about manufacturing with low environmental impact, with reduced use of chemical agents, an absence of PFC and phthalates, coating without solvents and the recovery and recycling of production waste. According to the designer’s view, there is room for manmade polymers as long as they are designed and produced to be circular, to ideally last forever, to be bio-based or to derive from their own recycling. An innovative trend that the polymer industry is pursuing with commitment.

The recyclability of polypropylene is a characteristic that has been broadly recognized in the scientific literature, and this could have been sufficient. But Paola Lenti wanted to do something more, subjecting samples of materials to recyclability tests at specialized laboratories. The result was a research project that allowed the Company to identify further lines for the improvement of the performance of the materials, and above all to reassure our clients about the behavior of furnishings and their end-of-life completion. Being mono-material, they are not only recyclable, but can give rise to a new, high-quality polymer, avoiding the production of non-renewable virgin materials.

Paola Lenti has utilized the methods indicated by regulation Iso 14021:2016 and has studied its own environmental claims, validated by an audit carried out last December by an accredited third party, Centrocot spa. To communicate the recyclability of its products, the Company has decided to use a Möbius triangle: simple and thorough, known internationally. We are accustomed to seeing the triangle formed by three arrows on packaging, and it seems strange to see it, for example, on a valuable chair. Instead, from now on every Paola Lenti product will be accompanied by the distinctive symbol of recyclability, as confirmation of the desire to clearly communicate to our clients the undeniable value of circularity.

Not only this: the Company is also collecting data to map throughout the world collectors and recyclers of polymers, in order to offer buyers correct instructions so they might dispose of products at the end of their life. Even though, as a consummate example of “Made in Italy,” Paola Lenti’s design has no planned obsolescence: it comes into the world to offer visual and functional joy of unlimited duration.

[Translated from Italian by Marguerite Shore]

Twiggy and Diade, the recyclable mono-materials of the outdoor collection

find out more

L'articolo Paola Lenti’s filamentary philosophy proviene da Paola Lenti.

“I want young girls to see themselves represented in such a positive and uplifting way.”

Phathu Nembilwi, 26 years old. The Johannesburg-based illustrator celebrates the beauty and strength of young women, urging them, through her vibrant graphic art, to express themselves freely. Since 2017 Phathu Nembilwi is the artistic director of the Phathu Designs agency.

Founded in 1886 in Witwatersrand region, Johannesburg has grown from its origins as a European gold miners outpost to a city with more than 5 million inhabitants. Today it is the largest city in South Africa and bustles with activity, restaurants, sophisticated shops, galleries and theatres.

Creatives and design enthusiasts should explore the Maboneng district, with its Museum of African Design, the artist studios of Victoria Yards and August House, but also don’t miss out on the hipster neighbourhood of Braamfontein with its many contemporary art galleries.

The brand new Pola Lenti flagship store is located in Craighall, inside Il Lusso – Italian Luxury Living: an exclusive emporium of more than 5000 square meters designed by Paragon Architects and Jean Du Rand Interior Architects. A place that promotes the best of contemporary ‘Made in Italy’ design with the aim of becoming the essential point of reference for local architects and interior designers.

IL LUSSO
39 Commerce Crescent, Kramerville Sandton, 2031 Johannesburg, South Africa

info@illusso.co.za

L'articolo Color, art and vitality<br> Paola Lenti opens in Johannesburg proviene da Paola Lenti.

“I have always appreciated diversity. I believe American culture is founded on diversity and for this reason it is still very dynamic and stimulating. I grew up in what you might call an unfortunate part of Los Angeles where there wasn’t much to do but experience diversity, go to different places and hear different stories.”

Robert Redford

Founded by Spanish settlers in 1542, Los Angeles is a multi-ethnic city, home to people from more than 140 countries. After Miami, L.A. is the second largest number of foreign-born inhabitants and it is therefore no surprise that over 224 different languages are spoken. Known throughout the world for its ‘Hollywood’ entertainment industry, L.A. is also famous for its lively street culture.

This Californian city that, despite its many contradictions, more than any other embodies the American dream, is where Paola Lenti opens a new flagship store in collaboration with Robina Benson Design.

It is an area of more than 450 square meters in a prime location along Melrose Avenue, the famous street that runs through Los Angeles, from Beverly Hills to Silver Lake.

The blend of shapes and materials together with the apt choice of the distinctive bright colours of the collection designed by Paola Lenti for Los Angeles, once again shows the company’s ability to be tune in with its surroundings, without ever imposing, establishing a constructive dialogue that allows the creation of unique solutions all over the world, each time customized in different ways.

PAOLA LENTI L.A. BY ROBINA BENSON
8311 Melrose Ave.Los Angeles, CA 90069, USA

 robina@robinabenson.com

L'articolo The city of thousand faces<br> Paola Lenti opens in Los Angeles proviene da Paola Lenti.

“Some Japanese stories end violently. Others never end at all, but only cut away, at the moment of extreme crisis, to a butterfly, or the wind, or the moon.”

Brian Phillips, The Passenger – Japan, Iperborea

Tokyo is a fascinating megalopolis, as well as the largest urban economy in the world. Its numerous neighbourhoods are like small towns, each with a distinct character.

The exclusive district of Minami-Aoyama, located at the intersection of Aoyama-dōri and Omotesandō, the long tree-lined avenue leading to the Meiji Shinto shrine, has over the years become the centre for Tokyo’s commercial development and a link between Japanese and western cultures.

And this neighbourhood is now home to Paola Lenti’s flagship store, which pays homage to the traditional karesansui garden, where natural elements dominate the composition. Large Mandala movable backdrops create welcoming environments, discreet yet open towards each other, telling a story of intuition, innovation, and products of yesterday and today.

Paola Lenti is already present in Tokyo in the nearby Hiroo district, where she informally furnishes the lounge on the first floor and the Paola Lenti Cafè in a 1960s building that has been restored and transformed into an urban meeting place.

PAOLA LENTI MINAMI AOYAMA

1F 5-10-17 Minami Aoyama, Minato-ku – Tokyo 107-0062 – Japan

info@paolalenti.jp

L'articolo Tradition and innovation<br> Paola Lenti opens in Tokyo proviene da Paola Lenti.