Continuing our observation and analysis of Raffaello Galiotto’s activity in the stone design sector, we studied the evolutions, gladly allowing ourselves to be blown away by his revamped ideas for a quality design, capable together of meeting the needs of the contemporary market and those of the everyday life of the end user.
We met Raffaello again during the presentation of the "Le pietre incise curve" collection produced for Lithos Design, to ask him some questions about his journey and his vision of innovation.
V.D.B.: More than just stone. Designs by Raffaello Galiotto are distinctive for their shapes and heterogeneous materials. Which method allows you to achieve such different types of productions?
R.G.: Personally, I try to address each and every request with renewed curiosity and interest and this leads me to study, elaborate on and understand the different problems linked to each one. For me, heterogeneity is not an inconvenience, but rather a fascinating aspect. At times I find myself designing plastic items intended for pets, while at the same time working on bathroom decorations for the luxury market. I don’t feel that I belong to a particular category, perhaps the thing that distinguishes me is the capacity to identify with or rather to discover hidden sides of my own personality; in this way, I feel a little like an actor, and why not. The important thing is what captivates people’s interest and emotions.
V.D.B.: How would you describe your work and personal attitude to the profession of designer in brief?
R.G.: From a young age, I have been fascinated by settings where creativity rules supreme, especially the artistic-artisan world where things are hand-crafted. I like materiality, colour, light. I later discovered that these are precisely the elements involved in industry also. It profits from them and I also try to draw my own personal satisfaction. I like my work and I work very hard, even managing to “support my family” thanks to a job that is also a passion, and this makes me happy.
V.D.B.: Among your qualifications you add the role of “industrial” to the definition of “designer”; this implies a particular attitude, could you elaborate?
R.G.: The word design has many different meanings; I intend to imply that my work as a designer has something to do with industry, with the mass production of products sold on the market.
V.D.B.: Beside the logistical proximity, what interests have brought you to the industries of the stone sector?
R.G.: I have always been fascinated by marble as it relates, by its very nature, with an immense array of shapes accumulated over time, related to the figurative culture, to sculpture and architecture. It is an extraordinary, unique material, a matrix of absolute masterpieces. Designing and working it calls for a different attitude in a contemporary sense also, more precisely of respectful "regard”. Compared to synthetic materials, it has incomparable nobility. As a native of Valle del Chiampo, I could not have refrained from repeatedly trying to offer my services to the companies of this sector.
V.D.B.: Speaking of which, how would you describe the marble sector; what are the main differences between the other productive fields in which you are involved?
R.G.: Compared to the others, it is a sector that has profited more from marketing the material than from working it for some time. Thus, companies have always paid greater heed to quantity and saleable “square metres”. Today, the market in Italy and Europe has changed; the quantities of raw material and the profit margins of some time ago are no longer available. This is when a transformative approach also begins to become interesting, where technology and creativity can make the difference.
V.D.B.: In recent years, from your first approach to stone design to date, what can you say has changed – if anything – in this specific production sector?
R.G.: As in all things, the facts are what counts. If my original conviction was that working on the theme of stone design at present could work, now the facts demonstrate it. Thanks to the economic return of past projects, investments are possible that were not possible before. Essentially, there is an attitude of greater trust in design.
V.D.B.: Your experience of working together with Lithos Design has seen you achieve the creation of many, original and moving collections. How has this relationship marked and influenced your path now?
R.G.: Design is not only about the person who conceives it, but also about the person who makes it. Lithos Design is a concern that immediately believed in design as an instrument for innovation and has consequently continuously invested in new projects. This adventure that has been ongoing for a number of years obviously allows me to grow as a designer: each time, I can draw experience from previous creations and the market responses.
V.D.B.: More specifically, how is the dialogue between the Lithos Design client-contractor and the figure of Raffaello Galiotto planner-designer formed and distributed?
R.G.: Companies are made of people and respect and mutual trust allow the relationship to function, as well as leading to the actual success of the company. I meet regularly with the Bevilacqua brothers, Alberto and Claudio, and the strategies for the future are identified step by step. Let’s not forget that almost always, each product entails some investment in specific machinery, which may even be designed ad hoc, so we share projects from their very beginnings on paper, through to the many trials thanks to their availability.
V.D.B.: How did the “Le Pietre Incise” project come about and, in particular, how has it evolved: what are the fundamental paths and the future objectives?
R.G.: I had already been developing elaborations about surfaces for some years, contemplating experimenting with their plastic rendering on stone, when Claudio Bevilacqua asked me to develop a research study precisely in that same vein. I couldn’t believe my luck, it was too much of a coincidence. Then, from the first prototypes, it went on to become a real project, with investments in machinery and an in-depth research on the design and form that is still evolving.
V.D.B.: How much research, dedication and attention does the study of a new product line require?
R.G.: It is a considerable undertaking that involves all aspects of the creative, productive, and commercial process... each new line is the result of a thorough investigation into investments and the real commercial potential. In the end, however, the conviction of the contractor is the deciding factor. It could be called a “hunch”. I do not believe in overly planned calculations and strategies. Every true innovation breaks the moulds and fortunately escapes marketing predictions.
V.D.B.: How did you come to “Le Pietre Incise Curve”? Do you believe that this important passage from the surface to the three-dimensional shape and, therefore, to the relationship with the light element can undergo further evolutions?
R.G.: It is certainly a new aspect, a sort of fourth dimension that can be fine-tuned and developed further.
V.D.B.: Focus on formal configurations that take on the shapes found in “nature” or the “classic” shape, all the while using cutting-edge production technologies: how are these two planning aspects merged in your activity?
R.G.: We are well aware how classic beauty is inspired by nature; what fascinates me even more is the underlying geometric-mathematical bond to these relations which is timeless. It is a sort of fundamental hidden order. Perhaps this is where the greater scope for investigation lies at the moment, in order to create products that also accommodate the needs of the contemporary market.
V.D.B.: When and how does the issue of environmental sustainability come into your research?
R.G.: The theme of the environment is certainly extremely topical; unfortunately it seems to me that in some cases this is only translated into an exterior label even though it will play a vital role in our future. It is an aspect that is to be dealt with, regardless of temporary incentives or propaganda slogans.
In projects using stone materials in particular, attention is always directed at the material, not only for its particular availability but also in the production phase. The reduction of the scrap material, almost to its elimination, is a crucial aim that always shapes my projects.
V.D.B.: You hold an official role within the ADI (Association for Industrial Design), specifically for the Veneto and Trentino Alto Adige jurisdiction. From this privileged position, what reflections do you have in regards to the current conditions of design in Italy, and in particular in the north-east sector?
R.G.: I believe that the current situation has clearly shown that our competitiveness plays on the ability to bring out the positive side of the country, the knowledge that it is produced with great skill in Italy. The recent past, especially in the north-east, has seen investment in quantity production, as it was easier and more profitable. Now the scene has changed and quality and design are notably more important. I believe that today it is necessary to urge greater dialogue between the industry and the world of design and research, also involving university institutions.
On one hand, design is not considered a cost but rather a value, on the other, designers need to understand the real needs of the industry or the craftsmen by producing tailor-made products, not hand-me-down, adhering to the false myth of the designer-star. Our task is to disseminate a design culture as a system that involves all aspects, from the way of thinking, to producing, communicating, selling and recycling.
V.D.B.: What do you think of the promotion of the culture of design implemented in this country?
R.G.: I think there’s a great deal of confusion, where the term “design” is often used to designate things inappropriately. I see many exhibitions and experiments funded or sponsored by public bodies that, let’s say, lead to nothing. I see many young people fall into the trap of the illusion of design as “art” or a mere expression of themselves. I see a lack of serious promotion of a design that responds to the real needs of the user. A design that makes the product safer, more comfortable, more cost effective and environmentally friendly.
V.D.B.: What advice do you feel like giving Italian companies and industrial producers in this particular moment in history?
R.G.: Put your trust in young designers; take them on by helping them to understand the productive and commercial work that few would have learned during their studies. In an ever-evolving context, they are the true resource.