EXCLUSIVE: A Sneak Peek at What Cipriani’s Furniture Line Might Look Like
MILAN — Architect and designer Leo Bertacchini is the first one to admit the first thing he thinks of when the name Cipriani comes to mind is a Bellini cocktail. A branding success story if there ever was one, the Cipriani family has spun their image onto everything from pasta sauce to private members clubs for high spenders worldwide looking for a slice of La Dolce Vita.
Just a few months after breaking ground on its Miami Residences, the luxury food, hospitality and leisure group is ready to extend its signature taste onto bespoke furniture for the properties’ Canaletto Collection penthouse residences with Bertacchini of 1508 London. Design firm 1508 London has worked on the Mandarin Oriental Residences in Beverly Hills and Njord, the world’s largest private yacht. Overall the Cipriani Residences building rises 80 floors and will house 397 units. There are 74 homes included in the tower’s Canaletto Collection, which are located on the top 18 floors. The furniture collections are available exclusively to these buyers and their homes, which include six penthouses.
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Inspired by Cipriani’s nonchalant elegance, 1508 London has chosen sophisticated furniture collections with palettes that evoke timeless Italian design. Residents have the option to select packages with either a contemporary or traditional aesthetic and the opportunity to choose from an array of rich textiles, materials like Canaletto timber and materials like leather for furnishings.
“In terms of design and language it’s all about anchoring it to where it is. It needs to belong to that place and it needs to belong to the architecture,” Bertacchini told WWD, referencing the sort of nautical culture and details Miami shares with Italy’s coast.
Affectionately named after the year Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel, 1508 London has a pedigree of residential projects around the world, while Bertacchini has worked with fashion labels like Louis Vuitton, Saint Laurent and Ralph Lauren.
“The brand is all about the naval aspect, life by the sea, the canals and the boats etc.,” he said, adding that in addition to furnishings and textiles made in Italy, the firm plans to work with local manufacturers in places like California for rugs and textiles, to reduce their carbon footprint.
Cipriani as a group operates hotels and restaurants in key locations around the world, including Venice, New York, Miami, London, Dubai and Hong Kong. In Milan, for example, the company made an agreement with Italian real estate development firm Merope Asset Management to rent Palazzo Bernasconi, a Milanese palazzo located at the corner of Corso Venezia and Via Palestro for Casa Cipriani Milano, which includes a private members club and rooms and suites, in addition to Casa Cipriani in Lower Manhattan. The group also plans to open Cipriani Ocean Resort Residences & Casino in Punta del Este, Uruguay.
Giuseppe Cipriani Sr. founded Harry’s Bar in Venice in 1931 and is credited with creating the Bellini cocktail. His establishment was frequented by celebrity regulars like Ernest Hemingway and Humphrey Bogart.
In 2018, his grandson Giuseppe Cipriani oversaw a financial operation which enabled the family to buy back Cipriani International from private equity fund Blue Sky for a sum of $40 million.
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