Matteo Cibic in this collection of objects made for the new Indian brand Scarlet Splendor combines some age-old techniques of Indian cabinetmakers with his disruptive vision on contemporary life.
How did the collaboration with Scarlet Splendour start? How much have the geographical origins of this company influenced you from a design perspective?
This aspect has been very important.
I met the two owners, a brother and sister, almost by accident because he had started collecting my works and one day, he asked me to design a lamp for his home.
This was the beginning of our friendship and from there we created together what is today the first known Indian luxury brand in the world. I would like to underline this concept of nationality because today it is no longer nations that make brands, but vice versa. To give you an example, think of how Ikea makes us think of Sweden, Zara of Spain and Ferrari of Italy etc. India does not have a similar brand so from this point of view it does not exist.
Beginning with these considerations, we have created handcrafted objects whose difficulty and particularity of the construction techniques used mean that they can only be made in India.
What is this particular craftsmanship?
The designs we see are not prints, but hand-made engravings, made by expert ivory carvers who in this case have used their age-old processing techniques on special and technological resins, in place of ivory.
