82
Walter Gropius,
German architect and one of the founding members of
the Bauhaus school, once wrote: “Glass is the purest
form of building material made from earthly matter. it can mark the limits to spaces, it can protect us against the
weather, but at the same time opens up spaces, it is light and incorporeal.
“although glass as such has been known to us for many years, it is the technical age we now live in with all its
modern manufacturing processes that has rendered this substance one of the most valuable materials of our day
and of the future. Glass architecture, until recently deemed purely utopian, is now a reality.”
techniques for producing and utilising glass have evolved substantially over the years, to the extent that it has
become one of the most widely used materials in building today. it has developed to become far more than just a
material to fill window frames – glass interior and exterior walls are widely used for maximising light in all manner
of residential and commercial projects and the possibilities for its use are seemingly endless.
this way of thinking certainly applies to italian company santambrogio Milano, which employs glass as the
primary material for all of its pieces. the company designs a wide variety of pieces for the interior, the outdoors,
for public spaces and more recently for their increasingly architectural projects.
it was the simplicity product range that brought santambrogio Milano onto our radar. the project was born
in 2004 from a collaboration between the architect Carlo santambrogio and designer ennio arosio and consisted
of a table, a bench and a kitchen made entirely from transparent glass including the sink, the tap and the cooktop.
“santambrogio and arosio realised something that didn’t exist before,” says andrea Crespi reghizzi about the glass
kitchen. “this is the challenge and, at the same time, the risk you face when you invent something. You cannot
predict the feedback. But today we can confirm that it was worthwhile.”
the proof of this is the fact that santambrogio Milano was commissioned to create a kitchen project for the
famous fashion stylist Fendi in her villa by the sea in sabaudia near rome.
so what exactly is it about glass that makes it such an appealing material? “the fascination of transparent
shapes and the versatility of a unique material,” says reghizzi. “the main advantage, besides the fact that glass is a
beautiful and very flexible material, is its physiological characteristic – transparency. it allows the division of space ➔
Santambrogio.indd 82 26/8/08 12:22:00
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