Giulio Lazzotti

ITALY (1942)
The name of the town where Giulio Lazzotti lives and works, Pietrasanta, can be alternately translated as Saint Peter or “holy stone,” the latter being wholly appropriate for a designer and architect whose work in marble, metal and wood takes on a serene, sculptural presence. Lazzotti was educated at the prestigious University of Florence, where he later returned to teach architecture. Since 1975, Lazzotti has maintained a diverse practice encompassing architecture, interior design and furniture design, winning such awards as first prize for Design at the Moving Fair of Paris, the Torre Guinigi prize in Lucca for Urban Design for the historical center of Pietrasanta, a top ten in the International Chair Fair at Udine and, most recently, the Good Design prize from the Japan Industrial Design Promotion Organization.

Following in the tradition of classic Italian sculptors and craftsman, Lazzotti’s furniture is produced with an artisan’s eye for material nuance and imbued with modernist simplicity. Internationally recognized for his work with stone, Lazzotti has organized symposia on the material and taught courses like “Design in Marble” at the Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara, Italy (home to the famous white carrara marble quarries). Lazzotti has worked with many international companies, including Iveco, The Conran Shop, Mageia, Up e Up, Bernini and Smith & Hawken. His work is included in the permanent collections of MoMA in New York and the Art Institute of Chicago.