Enhancing terraces and gardens with seats and furnishing accessories that offer the same comfort and elegance as the collections designed for indoor environments is becoming increasingly popular, in both the residential and hospitality sectors. The aim is to create open-air environments in which the same style features, both inside and outside. This is an approach that the company has been developing since 2006.
The growing interest in living spaces that embrace life in the open air has created a new design focus, which conceives outdoor collections as natural extensions of the living area. This is an approach that Minotti has used for some time now in its proposals for furnishing open air spaces, such as private gardens and terraces, the outdoor areas of hospitality facilities, marinas or yachts. Spaces with an inviting, relaxing vibe, whether they are corners of urban nature, exteriors nestled in the lush green landscape or areas overlooking water.
Back in 2006, Rodolfo Dordoni, the brand’s art director, inaugurated the Minotti outdoor collection with his own Alison upholstered system, in a bid to create continuity of the aesthetic flair and comfort between the indoor furniture and the elements meant for outdoor use.
This was the first step in a pathway that was formalised in 2013 with the launch of the Lifescape Collection, a furniture collection for the home designed to cater for a new lifestyle. The contemporary living style expressed by Minotti through the values of elegance, intimacy and comfort had now also been extended outdoors, to the garden and the terrace, using the same sophisticated craftsmanship and exquisite materials. A continuous alternation of the designs and shapes featured in the outdoor and indoor pieces created a strong connection between the two environments, removing all previous stylistic barriers between in and out. The result was a perfectly coherent universal vision, also made possible thanks to the definition of fabric coverings with very similar structures and finishes to the indoor versions, but enhanced to make them more weatherproof and durable.
And an even more evident expression of this close connection between in and out was the Aston collection launched in 2014, which stemmed from the same design approach and shared the same style in the indoor and outdoor versions, finished with different materials to diversify its performances depending on their intended use. Over time, Minotti set about building up a large catalogue of outdoor furniture, consisting of chairs, sofas, armchairs and chaise-longues for relaxing in, all with a distinctive personality, completed by tables, coffee tables and even rugs, enhancing the outdoor living space to maximum effect. In addition to classic solid teak, the materials selected for the frames include iroko and metal in different finishes, and these are paired with surfaces in Pietra del Cardoso or Beola Argentata, among others, in refined combinations of colours and textures.
From sofas, the brand went on to design comprehensive outdoor seating systems that followed the same imprint as those created for indoor conversation and relaxation areas, such as Florida, which was created in 2017 and revisited in 2020, offering all kinds of solutions for conviviality in outdoor living, dining and lounge areas of hospitality facilities.
A carefully chosen selection of furniture originally designed for indoor environments was adapted for use outdoors, such as the Van Dycktable-sculpture by Rodolfo Dordoni. These were all pieces designed to offer a different take on open air living spaces but continue a virtuous dialogue with the indoor spaces: a criterion that was applied in both residential and hospitality environments.
Once the difference between in and out had been eliminated, and the gap between interior and exterior had been bridged, a new, uninterrupted landscape was mapped out, allowing to enjoy living al fresco to the fullest.
One key element that steered the company in this direction was the contribution of Marcio Kogan, the Brazilian architect famous for his designs that open onto the surrounding nature, and feature floor to ceiling windows that erase the gap between the structure and the natural environment. In 2018 he was called on by Minotti to create an outdoor seating system, developing it with a style reminiscent of the simple yet strong designs of his architectural works. With the Quadrado system, starting from a module in solid wood inspired by the grating used in boats, Kogan and his studio mk27 designed well-structured, sunny, organic compositions, conceived to interact with the surrounding environment.
The will to design a living space without visible boundaries, interpreted by elements with a strong identity and exceptional formal elegance was affirmed in 2019 with the launch of the Tape Cord Outdoor collection, the outdoor version of the Tape family designed by Nendo. Oki Sato, Chief Designer of the famous Japanese studio, designed a wide range of refined and subtle seats and coffee tables, offering an original solution that catered for different requirements and contexts, including small outdoor urban spaces.
The 2020 Outdoor Collection developed these principles with proposals that originated from different design cultures, created by designers from the international scene such as GamFratesi, Nendo, Marcio Kogan / studio mk27 and Rodolfo Dordoni himself, but with a versatility that meant they could be mixed and matched. The design was based on the main geometric shapes - square, rectangle, circle - whereas the brand’s excellent craftsmanship, another leitmotiv of Minotti’s interior design projects, could be found in the elegant juxtaposition of the materials, the choice of natural, precious wood varieties, the sophisticated finishes, the textures and the tactile feel of the coverings, crafted with the same care as in a textile studio, and in the colour palette inspired by the shades of nature.
For fifteen years, the brand has therefore developed a fluid and creative dialogue between in and out, welcoming the suggestions of its team of designers. It has also remained loyal to a production made in Italy, chosen sustainable and durable materials, and performed careful research on environment-friendly covering textiles.
These are all qualities held in high esteem by the Italian and international market, with the brand present in over 60 countries. Because the ideal Minotti home is an invitation to enjoy to the fullest all living spaces, both indoors and outdoors, and the perfect harmony that they share.
Minotti by VERRSUS – The Perfect Italian Interior
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