“Welcome to our fourth annual roundup of Designers to Watch in 2014. It is never easy to come up with this list, and I think these 10 represent our most visually diverse group yet. What they all share, however, is the ability to hone their distinctive viewpoints into very special product ranges that manage to make large groups of consumers feel as if the product was made just for them, and is in fact speaking directly and only to them. Read on to see how our annual tensome approaches this difficult task with seamless flair”.
Mattia Rossi
Aesthetic of the Line: Rooted in the tradition of Florentine Renaissance but open to new trends and technical innovations, Rossi 1931 has evolved from a small typographer to a modern factory producing, in addition to stationery, decorative papers, greeting cards, notebooks and journals, paper gift items and more. Traditional designs from the 15th and 16th centuries coexist with contemporary patterns.
Current Bestseller: Letterpress decorative papers introduced at the Paperworld Fair in Germany two years ago have since evolved into a full collection of papers, boxed stationery, monograms, journals, notepads and gifts. The success has been overwhelming and unexpected when we decided to try something different on our vintage letterpress machines, which hadn’t been used for many years.
Personal Favorite: Decorative papers, especially those with gold finish (see too the sample in this magazine).
Surprise Hit: Boxed soaps, not really part of our world of paper, were received incredibly well.
Surprise Hit
Iconic Selection: Fiorenza ,the traditional Florentine Stationery, is where it all started; the first collection was produced by my grandfather Antonio in the thirties.
Favorite Color: Blue in all its shades.
Current Design Obsession: Quality time, not simply time but time to dedicate to creativity without interruptions and intrusions and above all, without having to compromise between ideas and market needs.
Favorite Flower: Wisteria, it’s the flower of the villas on the hills that surround Florence and has such a vintage aura.
Favorite Indulgence: A Negroni drink at the seaside at sunset.
By Sarah Schwartz, editor. www.stationerytrandsmag.com
