Elements with a sculptural form and surfaces that are pleasant to the touch brush Paola Lenti’s outdoor design Concreto collection, designed by Francesco Rota and created thanks to the manual art of mosaic artist Simona Sporchia.
With large dimensions, solid looks, important volumes , and a name that sums up its character, Concreto, is a line of furniture composed of a table and bench, created precisely by expert mosaicist Simona Sporchia based on a design by Francesco Rota.
Paola Lenti & Simona Sporchia: Inquisitive Inspiration
The meeting between Paola Lenti and Simona Sporchia three years ago gave rise to a collaboration based on a common approach to matter – one that is curious, experimental, and inspired by nature. Starting with Nerikomi, a decorative technique from the Japanese tradition used by the artist to obtain exclusive mosaics, together they developed their intuitions to the point of distorting the classical mosaic technique.
The Concreto Collection Table and Bench
The Concreto table and bench are the most recent results of this collaboration – composed of five modular elements that make up its top or seat and rest on bases that echo the same thicknesses and geometries.
Each module is made of a mixture of limestone, clay, aggregates, and colors: a technical material designed to withstand the outdoors, the result of numerous experiments that gave rise to three variants: a more essential one, with delicate color transitions, or “sfumata,” as the artist likes to call it in reference to its smoke-like movements that the color generates on the surfaces depending on how it is deposited during casting, and two decorated ones, Lias and Clastos.
The first finish offers shades ranging from powder pink to powder blue; the surface, subjected to a hand-sanding process, is velvety and pleasant to the touch. Lias, on the other hand, is decorated with ceramic tiles, produced and cut by hand by Simona Sporchia precisely with the Japanese Nerikomi technique, inserted into the base material according to combinations or contrasts of shades designed for each variant and with the unmistakable sensitivity to color that has always distinguished Paola Lenti’s creations.
Finally, a decoration made of irregular geometries, inspired by organic shapes, was chosen for Clastos. “Concreto is a project designed to develop a dialogue between different “topics” united by the same basic shade,” explains Simona Sporchia. “And, at the same time, to offer a sample of the many decorative combinations, freely modulable to the tastes of the public.”
The uniqueness, as with most Paola Lenti collections, lies once again in the exclusive workmanship of the materials, handcrafted with artisan skill, making each piece unrepeatable. Each is a work of tactile as well as visual beauty, to be exhibited indoors or outdoors as desired.