11 May 28th ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO. Main Exhibition: TANNERS. Heirs of a major art

28th ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO

WHEN PROTECTING TRADITION

BECOMES A CHALLENGE TO CHANGE

MOSTRA PRINCIPE (Main Exhibition)

TANNERS. Heirs of a major art

GENUINE ITALIAN VEGETABLE-TANNED LEATHER CONSORTIUM

KINDNESS AND SUSTAINABILITY

A STUDY

BLOGS & CRAFTS Europe

16/18 September 2022

Giardino Corsini, Florence

From 16 to 18 September 2022, ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO, the exhibition promoted by the Association Associazione Giardino Corsini, of which Sabina Corsini is the president, returns to the Giardino Corsini in Florence, together with Neri Torrigiani, creator and organizer of the exhibition which, every year, turns the spotlight on an original new selection by over 90 representatives of the highest artisan tradition, with particular focus on the emerging generations, selected from Italy and Europe.

The journey proposed by ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO is unprecedented, and involves some of the main players in the artisan culture of yesterday and today – from craftsmen to art designers, following a route that winds through the Limonaie (orangeries) of the Renaissance Garden and a number of locations in the Palazzo Corsini which, animated by exhibitions, installations, workshops and events, offers an opportunity to reflect on the role of the craftsman in contemporary society.

“In the last twenty-eight years our commitment has always been and always will be aimed not only towards bringing the best craftsmen to the attention of a large public but above all to safeguard the independence of the small craft workshops which are the mainstay of their existence, the result of creative ingenuity and experimentation in the field ”, Sabrina Corsini and Neri Torrigiani declare, “because talking of “Made-in-Italy craftsman” above all means rejecting globalization and developing nearness”.

“The contemporaneity of craftsmen is not judged only on the technological innovation they bring, but also and above all by their being an example of “sustainable choices,” Sabina Corsini and Neri Torrigiani explain, “because in the face of socio-economic changes, craftsmen, with their low environmental impact work, highlight what we can “go back to” in order to respect the Earth and pollute less: safeguarding tradition is our challenge today for a better future”, they add.

Hence the reason why ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO chose to dedicate the 2022 “Mostra Principe” (Main Exhibition) to the “Genuine Italian Vegetable-Tanned Leather Consortium” formed by a group of companies that, by telling their story, underline how an artisanal process can keep up with the times and the evolution of fashion.

“We are proud that the Consortium has accepted our invitation, seeing in ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO the right event for sharing the value of their sustainable production with a wide and cross-section public and thus be able to build, in outlook, a more conscious change in purchasing choices”, says Neri Torrigiani.

MEETINGS, EXHIBITIONS, DEBATES

Three days, organized by ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO, where you can discover the masterpieces of over 90 master craftsmen; meet the young people selected by the “Blogs & Crafts Europe” competition; understand the precious nature of leather processed using vegetable tanning techniques in the “Mostra Principe”, this year dedicated to the Genuine Italian Vegetable-Tanned Leather Consortium; attend meetings in the Giardinetto delle Rose, including presentation of the results of a study conducted as part of the “Kindness and Sustainability” project; listen to Annamaria Tossani and her new guests during the “Family Recipes” events and taste the dishes created by the chef-teachers of the Florence Cordon Bleu School of Culinary Arts in the kitchen set up by Casta and served to the public on hand-decorated porcelain plates by Fornasetti, from the iconic “Tema e Variazioni” series; visit the new Artex exhibition dedicated to Tuscan excellences in the Focus space; admire, under the Loggia, the installations by the carpentry workshop of the Community of San Patrignano in the completely new set-up curated by Cosimo Bonciani and learn many artisan techniques, for young and old, in the free outdoor workshops.

And all this along an exhibition path that winds through the Limonaie (orangeries) and the Palace, including some of the private areas on the ground floor with the exclusive pavilions hand-crafted in canvas and hand-decorated by Guido Toschi Marazzani Visconti in the Turin workshop.

Atmospheres that become the subjects of the new communication campaign this year entrusted to the designs of Paolo Fiumi, Florentine architect, theatrical set designer and illustrator whose designs have appeared in the best fashion magazines over the last few years.

The exhibition can also be accessed from the Palazzo (Via Il Prato, 58), in addition to the usual entrance from the Garden (Via della Scala, 115), handy for anyone arriving from out of town by train, tramway or car.

MOSTRA PRINCIPE (Main Exhibition): “TANNERS. Heirs of a major art”.

GENUINE ITALIAN VEGETABLE-TANNED LEATHER CONSORTIUM

The “Mostra Principe” at this 28th edition is entitled “TANNERS. Heirs of a major art”. Set up in the Ballroom of the Palazzo Corsini, it is dedicated to the “Genuine Italian Vegetable-Tanned Leather Consortium” which, founded in 1994 by a small group of Tuscan tanners, today brings together 20 tanneries, producers of vegetable-tanned leather, operating in the provinces of Florence and Pisa, the only area in the world recognized for this particular type of high-quality processing which is deeply-rooted in Tuscan tradition.

“We are welcoming an excellence of the Tuscan region where leather processing has ancient origins and a prestigious present, as shown by the many production centres of high-end accessories for international brands based in this part of Tuscany“, says Sabina Corsini.

Visitors to ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO will be able to learn the secrets of an ancient processing technique that, now as then, uses only wood extracts (Chestnut, Quebracho, Tara and Mimosa) in the slow vegetable tanning process that transforms rawhide into leather.

In Tuscany, vegetable tanning is a prodigious process, an alchemy of ingredients entrusted to the skilled hands of the tanners, who carefully blend natural tannins extracted from trees, the good local water and the passage of time, their greatest ally. It is a process that requires patience and experience, helped by technology while respecting tradition. The result is a natural leather that never goes out of fashion, aimed at those looking for high quality and a style that becomes personalized over time.

The public of ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO will also have the chance to gain experience in the various types of leather and different processing techniques, acquiring a greater awareness of what it means to choose a high-quality natural leather.

“I thank Sabina Corsini and Neri Torrigiani for inviting us. Being at ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO represents an important opportunity for sharing our values with the public, our potential final customers because producing sustainably is not enough since sustainability also includes conscious consumption”, declares Leonardo Volpi, President of the Consortium. “Pelle Conciata al Vegetale in Toscana is not simply a product, but a real philosophy of “luxury”: the luxury of a material obtained by means of a predominantly artisanal and manual process, a natural material produced entirely in Tuscany, with no de-localization, in facilities that comply with the law, fully guaranteeing the safety of workers and respecting environmental sustainability“, he adds.

The Genuine Italian Vegetable-Tanned Leather Consortium is a non-profit organization that works to protect this centuries-old tradition, conserve a typically Tuscan product, guarantee the quality of the raw materials and superior workmanship and promote a processing method that has always accompanied man throughout history and looks to the future.

It carries out a multitude of activities: scientific studies and historical research, exhibitions, conferences, technical seminars, practical workshops and training projects for young designers and students of fashion and design schools.

Over time, the Consortium has worked to build a product culture orchestrated in events that have linked craftsmanship to art in evocative settings such as the Guggenheim Museum in New York or the Centre Pompidou in Paris, helping to affirm the prestige of Made in Tuscany.

The Genuine Italian Vegetable-Tanned Leather Consortium is the exclusive owner of the Pelle Conciata al Vegetale in Toscana brand.

“KINDNESS AND SUSTAINABILITY”: A STUDY

“Kindness and Sustainability” is the project that ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO asked Irene Ivoi, eco-designer and industrial designer and expert in waste policies and prevention, to create, imagining a guided invitation that steers people to act according to the principles of a circular economy. The project saw the creation of a GUIDE and a GLOSSARY, both presented at the last edition of the exhibition and available for consultation on the website www.artigianatoepalazzo.it

As part of this project, ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO carried out a study among artisans and designers of small and sophisticated productions to find out which topics set out in “Kindness and Sustainability 2021” are closest to their hearts, with a commitment to return adequate vertical answers in the future.

The results of the study, also obtained thanks to the active involvement of partners Artex, ADI Toscana, Centrinno, ZeroW, ALIA, OmA, Michelangelo Foundation, Fondazione Cologni, MIDA, Nana Bianca, StartUpItalia and the Municipality of Florence, will be presented during ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO on Friday 16 September at 4.00 pm in the Giardinetto delle Rose.

“BLOGS & CRAFTS” EUROPE

The special edition of the competition BLOGS & CRAFTS young artisans and the web aimed at under-35 crafts and young influencers is back. Launched by ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO in 2014 it aims to involve the new generations who, with their vision turned towards innovation, bring a fundamental contribution in the changes to the artisan sector.

“Our hope is to be able to accommodate more and more young people and, with their presence at the Palazzo Corsini Stables (the exclusive area in the exhibition dedicated to them) make visitors understand that craftsmanship is a concrete reality for young people“, Sabina Corsini and Neri Torrigiani declare.

Also this year the contest goes beyond national borders and is open up to Europe, thanks to the collaboration with the World Crafts Council Europe.

“We are supporting BLOGS & CRAFTS with enthusiasm, because it is a project that supports the future of craftsmanship and the new generations” says Elisa Guidi, president of the World Crafts Council Europe and coordinator of Artex. “Craftsmanship has its roots in tradition but has always been able to narrate the world and the time in which it operates, showing great dynamism and capacity for innovation. Today this contemporaneity is created by young artisans, who interpret the ancient techniques in a modern perspective, without distorting the origins but rather enhancing them, and by equally young bloggers who publicise these realities using an incisive language that reaches the whole world”.

Collaboration is renewed with the Fondazione Ferragamo which organizes a private visit for participants to the Salvatore Ferragamo Archives, guardian of the company’s tradition and the craftsmanship so dear to its founder.

Florence Chamber of Commerce offers BLOGS & CRAFT 2022 participants a meeting on “How to become your own entrepreneur” organized by PromoFirenze.

Finally, craftsmen from abroad, guests of ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO and gathered in the Palazzo Corsini Stables exhibition area, are welcomed for four nights by 25hours Hotels. Influencers, invited to Florence as guests of Starhotels, have the task of live blogging about the Exhibition on their social media channels.

AWARDS

The various initiatives include presenting the Premio Perseo to the public’s favourite exhibitor and the Premio Giorgiana Corsini for best stand, as voted by the Promotion Committee and which gives the winner the chance of a free stand for the 2023 edition of the Exhibition.

FUND-RAISING

The “ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO: GIAMBOLOGNA E LA FATA MORGANA fund-raising initiative continues and has already reached €30,000 in favour of the precious monumental complex of the Fonte della Fata Morgana, nestled at the foot of the Fattucchia hill in the municipality of Bagno in Ripoli.

REGISTRATION TO PARTICIPATE STILL OPEN

The deadline for submitting requests to participate in the 28th edition of ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO botteghe artigiane e loro committenze is 27 May. A discount of 10% on the participation fee is available for: exhibitors residing outside the Tuscany Region, as a contribution to their travelling expenses; and for young people under 35 or who have participated in a previous edition of BLOGS & CRAFTS, the competition for young artisans and influencers, now open to all European countries thanks to collaboration with the World Crafts Council Europe. For information and registration visit: https://www.artigianatoepalazzo.it/0ld22/en/

The Exhibition ARTIGIANATO E PALAZZO is organised and promoted by the Associazione culturale Giardino Corsini – chaired by Sabina Corsini – in collaboration with Neri Torrigiani; it brings together every year a new selection of Italian and foreign master craftspeople, bearers of knowledge linked to tradition and innovation: potters, glass grinders, silver embossers and goldsmiths, carvers, restorers, luthiers, tailors, hard stone and wood inlayers, straw weavers, designers and much more besides.The Associazione Giardino Corsini is a non-profit cultural association committed to promoting and preserving the quality of artisan excellence, the value of what is made by hand and the wealth of knowledge and skill that every master craftsperson—the heart of Made in Italy—passes on, generation-to-generation.