Shining a spotlight on glass in the world of design. FIAM Italia, the brainchild of Vittorio Livi, was launched in 1973 with this mission in mind. The first company in the world to dedicate an entire collection to furnishing elements made entirely using the technique of bending sheet glass. An intimidating material, with no existing technology or production facilities to refer to, hitherto used in furniture only as an accessory, would take a prominent place in the middle-class homes.
It was a victory over common sentiment. The initial diffidence towards such an ambitious and highly original project soon captured the attention of world-renowned artists and designers. This led to the first partnerships with leading designers who had already made their name with the international jet-set which would motivate the company to experiment and develop avant-garde techniques and processes to the point of offering increasingly comprehensive furniture solutions.
The evolution of design brought with it ever more ambitious challenges that Fiam proved more than capable of meeting. The Ghost armchair, designed in 1973 by Cini Boeri, is a clear example of this. It was the first single-block seat made entirely of curved glass, which went on to win numerous awards and recognitions.
Sculptural creations capable of stamping their mark on a space, through the innovative material processing techniques that allowed the glass sheet to be moulded to accommodate the most daring of shapes. Thanks to the Phaser, now known as waterjet, in 1989 Fiam launched the revolutionary Hydra coffee table, designed by Massimo Morozzi.
Enzo Mari, Giugiaro Design, Ron Arad and Vico Magistretti treasure the working techniques developed by Fiam to design products that would mark an era in the Italian design scenario.
Papiro (Giugiaro, 1991), Montefeltro (Mari, 1991) and Vulcano (Magistretti, 1998) dining tables and the Clear coffee tables collection (Arad, 1998) are clear examples of this.
From refraction to reflection. With this concept, in 1998, Fiam and Philippe Starck overcame the conventional transparency of glass with the Caadre mirror. For the first time, the beauty of curved glass encountered the magic of silvering.
Within a short time, numerous mirrors by prestigious designers, such as Libeskind and Fuksas, would grace an ever-expanding collection.
“There is a very fine line between art and design. Art appeals to the emotions of the heart and spirit, while design, in addition to emotions, must meet the practical needs of everyday living.”
In 1992, with this philosophy in mind, Vittorio Livi founded Spazio Miralfiore, the first museum in the world dedicated to unique works made entirely of glass, stemming from numerous partnerships with world famous artists. In addition to being a museum, Villa Miralfiore is also the site of the company’s showroom.
This approach is soon recognized internationally so much that some of historic icons of FIAM’s collection are exhibited in the most prestigious museums all over the world.
In particular, the Atlas table is displayed at the Musèe des Arts Decoratifs in Paris along with the Ghost armchair, also present at the Musèe des Arts Decoratifs in Montreal, as well as the Caadre mirror at the Fonds National d’Art Contemporain in Paris.
The evolution of the material is translated into a determination to transcend the purity of transparency by impressing innovative patterns onto the material combined with novel colours and finishes. Thanks to the technique of melting the sheet at high temperatures, the glass loses its original flatness to create new, warm, textured surfaces as in the case of the Echo collection, produced in collaboratin with the Marcel Wanders, and the innovative DV-Glass, a patent developed in-house.
No longer just objects, but subjects that begin to inhabit an internal landscape by interacting with other materials, entities capable of coexisting in settings where diversity is highlighted and becomes a stand-out feature. This is how our Moods come to life, atmospheric styles in which our products come together in a perfect balance.
Giacomo Mornico
Irene Sartor
Marco Tonet
Nicola Carpene
Simone De Gasperin
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