[en] At Viefe one thing we are clear about is that design has to be present in each detail of our products, from the materials used, to the technique used during installation and the lines used to define each model and which make each one unique. That’s why we collaborate with designers from all over the world and since 2018 Studio Balutto Associati is one of our regular collaborators. Under the management of Adriano and Veronica Balutto, a number of designs from the studio have been included in our catalogues. The harmonious knob known as Disc has been the latest edition presented in our new knobs and handles catalog for 2022.
Established in Udine (Italy) and with an international projection, Balutto Associati is characterized by its elegant, purist and careful designs, right up to the final detail. Specializing in interiorism and industrial design, we’ve spoken to them to try and understand something about their creative process and just how they evaluate their experience in the world of designing knobs and handles. It’s an interview that has helped us to understand even more about that innovative spirit which has a mix of the noblest products alongside the latest tendencies.
Adriano and Veronica, tell us a little about your career up to now. In which sectors do you work?
Our atelier is a creative workshop, a production studio where the input of more synergies creates designer products, a synthesis of form and function.
The activity of the firm is oriented in different fields: programs and lines of furnishing accessories at different scale for domestic use, integrated programs for office and contract use, set-ups for exhibition spaces, showrooms and fairs, planning for the outdoor.
The peculiarity of Studio Balutto is finding a way to insert the product with a correct balance between functionality and aesthetics, without losing sight of the most suitable materials.
The focus of the study is the 360-degree design. Our aim is to constantly grow together with our customers: to achieve a shared success, in the name of the search for form and function, as a transformation, in response to the multiple needs of life today. We try to do our best between being artistic with materials, a bit of shaping of forms and researching the best products to edit. We like to work with whomever gives us space to unleash our creativity.
Can you name any work that you are especially proud of?
We are proud of the relationships we have built in the years with the companies and with every customer that has got a small piece of our style in their homes or offices. In fact, we have fallen in love with every project that has got its own history. We never forget any of them, because they are the result of creativity, passion and attention to detail and technique.
How and why did you start to collaborate with Viefe?
It was like a sort of sign of destiny. We met at one international fair with Mr Marc Font, the Viefe’s CEO, and it was like “love at first sight”. There was a special human and empathetic exchange that was the base to build the working relationship that we have today with the company.
We tested each other with promises and potentialities. We shared the desires from both sides and it seems now that the marriage will last for a very long time 😉
With Viefe we love the constant desire for improvement without losing responsibility, quality and rigour. A wonderful company that always works in an efficient way, with attention to aesthetics, experimentation and the innovation process.
Describe to us the design process behind a product.
Our interest is in a form that is able to give emotions and relate to the person. Not beauty for its own sake, but connected to the human dimension.
We focus a lot on the tactile relationships with the skin, with physicality; rational and organic forms, natural materials are also important.
The culture of the Project is a multidisciplinary ensemble where the technical aspects are always connected to history, tradition and craftsmanship. Our design approach takes place between a synthesis of intention, interaction, inspiration and emotion.
What inspires you?
A material…
We are mostly fascinated by the immaterial aspect, have you ever thought about everything that architecture communicates with its voids? With fullness? With the alternation of lights and sounds?
A shape…
We are fascinated by organic forms, but linearity, purity and balance are our main sources of inspiration.
A colour…
It depends on the story, on the season, each story has its new color …
–Veronica: My favorite color is petrol blue.
–Adriano: I love China blue.
A finish…
We love the finish that evokes the tactile effect of a special sensation or emotion.
The perfect handle is the one that…
Everyone has different tastes. So the perfect handle is the one that fits you, to the best of your possibilities. We, as designers, have the aim to create the field or to guide the customer to recognize the handle that gives its “wow” moment to each person.
A style of interior design that you like…
Each interior that is able to tell a story of passions, travel and life.
Which is your favourite part of the house?
We have both chosen houses with a big living room as we are very much addicted to light. In these spaces there is a big overview to a green garden, where the outside can become a part of the inside.
Which of the products that you’ve designed for Viefe®, gives you the most satisfaction? Why?
The one that is still to come!
We are really satisfied with all the products, we see in everyone a small piece of us, and our project history, growth and development, in forms, technique and materials.
So we are looking forward for the next success. Our recent release “Disc” has been a nice challenge, it has been a new journey from a perfect shape to adding rewarding details to a simplicity that is already perfect in itself. We also loved to play with light: on Disc there is a nice reflection of light during the different hours of the day, due to its surface, that creates an elegant allure on this knob, always connected to a delicate balance between functionality and style. It will be a timeless model for sure!