Promotion: designer Fabio Novembre's concept store for Italian furniture brand Natuzzi celebrates the brand's Puglian roots with an interior that reflects the culture, colours and traditions of the southern Italian region.
Novembre, who was born in the Puglian city of Lecce, has created a "new retail concept" for Natuzzi at its Milan flagship store that will be launched during Milan design week next month.
Designed to make the furnishings stand out, the renovated store interior is anchored by a square-shaped central lounge area that sits at its heart. This piazza-like space is lined with lights and arches that recall traditional Apulian architecture.
The central space is used for meetings with customers and also provides an area where they can try out the brand's virtual 3D shopping experience.
Arranged around the central space, various room sets can be accessed through the arches, creating easy and free-flowing pathways through the space.
Four of the room sets are dedicated to the living area while another three spaces set out total living proposals. The Apulian landscape – which is characterised by farms, olive trees and a particular warm light – is conveyed through the soft colour choices and tactile materials that create a relaxed mood.
"There is a deep connection between Fabio and Natuzzi: we share the love for our roots, for what Apulia taught us," said chief creative officer of Natuzzi Italia, Pasquale Junior Natuzzi.
"When we decided to rethink the concept of our showrooms we immediately thought he would be the right choice, as he has a unique ability to translate into architecture those values we share: hospitality, warmth, Mediterranean beauty."
"Natuzzi is the perfect interpreter to narrate Apulia to an international audience," commented Novembre. "Places have a soul, and Apulia has always been a crossroads of different cultures that live together in harmony. We are a symbolic bridge over the Mediterranean."
During Milan design week, the courtyard spaces adjacent to the showroom in Palazzo Durini Caproni di Taliedo will host an installation called Germogli, which translates as sprouts or shoots in English.
Conceived by Italian artist and designer Marcantonio, a series of gigantic golden olive tree sprouts, almost four metres tall, will appear as if they are emerging from the earth.
The installation explores the idea of rebirth and our connection to nature.
"The sprouts I have represented are the olive, the symbolic tree of Puglia," said Marcantonio. "Its wood is precious, it is strong, its fruit is an emblem of fertility and memory for all towns dotted across the Mediterranean, and it provides a unique cultural connection between them".
The brand hopes that the installation will also throw the spotlight on an urgent problem facing olive groves in Puglia where a bacterial disease called Xylella is causing substantial problems in the olive groves and risks compromising crops across Europe.
Also on show is Giampaolo Sgura's photographic exhibition called TRE(E)PIDATION.
The exhibition will present three photographs of olive trees that showcase a landscape that "risks disappearing forever" due to the Xylella epidemic and was created to promote public awareness of the issue and support scientific research.
In 2019, the Italian furniture brand embarked on what it called "a new era of advanced, white-glove customer service" by launching a virtual-reality shopping experience.
Natuzzi's showroom takes place from 10 am to 8.30 pm from 7 to 12 June 2022.
To learn more about the brand, visit its website.
Partnership content
This article was written by Dezeen for Natuzzi as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.