Minotti's art director Rodolfo Dordoni describes how the brand is working with a diverse range of international designers to develop its identity in this movie shot by Dezeen for the Italian furniture manufacturer during Milan design week.
Minotti is showcasing new pieces of furniture from designers including Nendo, Christophe Delcourt, GamFratesi and Studio MK27, as well as by Dordoni, at its stand at Salone del Mobile this year.
According to Dordoni, the booth was designed to showcase Minotti's updated brand identity, as well as to display the new collections.
"In the past, we have worked with square geometrical forms," he said. "The space that we're presenting this year is more curved, more round. It's a new form."
Chief amongst the new products being launched are three sofa systems – West and Lawson, both designed by Dordoni, and Daniels, which was designed by Delcourt.
Dordoni, who has been working with Minotti since 1997, stated that his design for the West sofa system is most in line with the rectilinear style traditionally associated with the brand.
It features sofa seats backed with solid leather panels, and tables designed to seamlessly integrate with the seating elements.
The Lawson system features softer edges and seats that create gentle curves when combined. "It's a system that is in between what the company was and what the company will be in the future," said Dordoni.
Delcourt's curvaceous Daniels sofa system represents the greatest deviation from the cubic forms for which Minotti is better known.
"Delcourt is French, and his point of view is very decorative," Dordoni said.
Beyond the flagship sofa collections, the brand is also launching two sets of outdoor furniture as part of ongoing collaborations with Nendo and Studio MK27.
A range of outdoor armchairs, sofas and chaise longues from Japanese studio Nendo features wicker-effect cords wrapped vertically around the metal frames of the seats to form the backrest.
Studio MK27, a Brazilian firm led by architect Marcio Kogan, created a collection of outdoor tables, armchairs and daybeds made of grid-like teak panels with square perforations.
Minotti are also revealing a new collaboration with Danish studio GamFratesi, which has created two armchairs encased in leather frames. "We asked GamFratesi to show us Minotti's identity in a Nordic way," said Dordoni.
Minotti approached designers from around the world in order to incorporate points of view from different cultures.
"How to make different cultures work together in developing products for the same company was the question we asked ourselves," said Dordoni.
"What we found was that all of them understood the company, and now we have products that are absolutely Minotti, but also different."
He suggested that combining styles from different design cultures allows brands to gain an advantage in a competitive market, and to attract the attention of consumers with high expectations.
"Working with different people, different cultures, different sensibilities, I think gives the market what it's looking for," he said.
This movie was filmed for Minotti by Dezeen in Milan. Minotti's new collection is on show at the Salone del Mobile furniture fair, which takes place between 9 and 14 April 2019.