ESPRIT NOUVEAU | TRASFORMATIO | DESIGN NON CONVENZIONALE
ESPRIT NOUVEAU, on occasion of MDW 2023, presented at ISAIA shop in via Verri 8, the TRASFORMATIO, unconventional design collection.
TRASFORMATIO is a design line born from the collaboration between the artist Michele Iodice and the Esprit Nouveau Gallery in Naples.
Alberta Saladino, founder and soul of Esprit Nouveau Gallery has been proactively involved in ‘900 antique pieces research during the last twenty years and invited Michele Iodice to think of a way to reinterpret some Art Deco complementary design and furnishing pieces, from her private collection.
TRASFORMATIO project has a pioneer and artistic soul able to set the connection lines between past, present and future.
The whole idea was born with the aim to explore interactions between art and design.
TRASFORMATIO traces an historical path in human minds, that starts with the birth of design and reaches our living present, embracing artistic novelties with wisdom.
The common thread of the exhibition is dynamism.
“Most of the people think a furnishing piece can only be a set of elements that move in the emptiness of space. Nevertheless, for others it can be poetry”.
Alexander Calder described his most successful pieces of work with the above words.
Michele Iodice, fully interprets his thought through TRASFORMATIO. His art works are fluctuating in a dynamic equilibrium where they are able to break the physical limits of traditional static furniture, attributing them movement and lightness.
TRASFORMATIO artistic methods can be applied to every kind of support.
It does not reproduce, but it tears the item out of its traditional context to revive it, instead, in a completely different and new environment.
The setup personally curated by the Neapolitan artist, combines a collection of pieces that express the close relationship between design and contemporary art, as well as the strong connection between cultural stratification and innovation.
Every object signed by Michele Iodice is rigorously realized by local artisans and tells about the attention to detail behind it, in a process that enhances the principles and values of “artigianato cosciente”, in English, “conscious craftsmanship”.
The materials used spans from wood, parchment, and Plexiglas, to steel, combined in a fusion that is aimed to reflect the complexity of the research that Iodice has been performing since years.
TRASFORMATIO, a sustainable design
As part of the TRANSFORMATIO project, the Esprit Nouveau Gallery paid special attention to the sustainable aspects of the reinterpretation of the accessories of the collection.
The awareness of working within a more globalized, interconnected, and competitive world has led Esprit Nouveau to tackle environmental and social issues as an integral part of the company’s overall quality as a necessary factor to compete successfully.
Starting from the TRASFORMATIO project’s objective of transforming obsolete furniture into objects of contemporary design, we see a first sensitivity shift towards the reuse of objects that, through restoration work, have been given a new life, becoming to all intents and purposes contemporary thanks to Michele Iodice’s design.
The applied restoration techniques, which are the traditional ones from the 16th century onwards, include the use of isinglass and the cleaning of surfaces with spirit and shellac as well as elbow grease. Esprit Nouveau restorers, in fact, are the last representatives of the old generation who are consistent in using these techniques instead of the common polyurethane-based varnishes and sealers.
The transformation process also includes several interventions using polymethyl methacrylate, commonly known as Plexiglas, in coloured and recycled PMMA obtained by distillation of production waste to obtain the basic monomer MMA that can be polymerized again.
The communication media, such as the TRANSFORMATIO brochure, also comply with all environmentally friendly regulations. The papers being utilized are natural and recycled and comply with the FSC guidelines. The inks are free of harmful substances and once released into the environment do not leave any trace.
Esprit Nouveau therefore applies several criteria in order to be recognized as an ESG company, sensitive to the ecosystem through appropriate processing techniques, natural materials that can be recycled, and attentive and capable staff able to operate in full compliance with all the regulations into force.
Some proposals of the TRASFORMATIO collection:
FLAMANT VERT
FLAMANT VERT is a seductive console table characterized by asymmetrical elegance and functional elements.
It was created in the 1930s as a small dressing table in poplar briar wood with a loop and Michele Iodice transformed it into a console table by using poplar wood and recycled green PMMA inserts and supports. A transformation that has resulted in a fascinating object capable of furnishing both classic and contemporary taste environments with personality.
Dimensions: cm W91xD40xH91
SOTTO SOPRA
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Using a pair of bedside tables from the 1930s in poplar-root wood, Michele Iodice has designed and created an attractive bar cabinet by combining in a specular manner the two objects.
SOTTO SOPRA is a unique, whimsical, and functional piece of furniture, where the two original bedside tables meet supported by a steel sphere and embraced by a recycled green PMMA frame.
Dimensions: cm W60xD42xH138
INSTABILE
STABILE was created in the late 1930s as a wardrobe made of poplar root with an eye.
Artist Michele Iodice has revisited the object, converting it into an incredible bar cabinet with an unusual shape and oblique appearance. A transformation capable of conveying dynamism and uniqueness at the same time. A perfect balance of shapes, angles and slopes made even more lively thanks to the recycled red PMMA additions.
Dimensions: cm W117xD40xH190