projects | Viabizzuno progettiamo la luce

zero is a milanese interior. corso magenta, one of the historic streets of milan, is a paradigm of the elegance of the city and of an attitude in which the introjection of dignity has become as proverbial as the reserve of its inhabitants. the example of piero portaluppi, in the nearby atellani house, has inspired many of the choices for this project and induced the client to delegate, as was usual for major commissions in the past. a certain amount of spatial courage in defining zoning, partly dictated by the limited dimensions of the space available, the use of sentimental parameters both in choice of materials and in the charm of craft objects, are the artifices of an intervention mainly non-speculative. on a surface area of about 200 square metres are developed a kitchen open to view - steel structures surrounded by reflecting glass - a dining room to seat sixteen, and a secluded private room for the same number. in a separate space, with independent access from the street, is the take-away, the true functional innovation of this contemporary palace of gastronomic delights. a black marble counter displays foods arranged with the same care and precision as hand-made jewellery, rediscovering the pleasure inherent in choosing food for its looks: shape, colour, consistency and firmness. in the basement flow tidy rows of fish pieces, changing an ordinary cellar into a precision goods assembly line. the food is prepared, as is now a widespread international habit, in the area most visible from the street, corresponding to the entrance, making evident that care in the preparation of food which japanese cuisine considers an integral part of the ceremony of eating. a large gate consisting of cylindrical elements of burnished brass, staggered at a sixth of the radius along the horizontal axis and arranged on two different levels by intersection, produces on the street side a huge sculptured filter recalling the convoluted floral designs of twentieth-century eclecticism. the covering is a stretch of grey, where presence of form and geometric rigour comply with an atmosphere of warmth and sensuality. a number of chosen elements show the dignity of their physical transformation, the photograph of a process of stratification which craftsmen have sectioned and fixed over the course of time. a concept, this, of sober grandeur, which has conditioned the thinking behind much of the project. the horizontal striations of ebony and the himalayan tiger carpets, the calcifications and ferrous deposits of onyx like rorschach marks. the use of nature as a decorative and figurative element of the space is the true link which zero establishes with oriental culture. a long ribbon of white onyx, decorated with intrusions of brown and caramel and pursued by the reflections of the glass masking the utility area, leads to a huge communal table in ebony and steel, over which hangs a chandelier composed of almost four hundred pieces of moulded murano glass. pagliesco, talpa, cristallo and ametista are the names which venini has coined to express the chromatic shades of these objects, two tons of glass hanging from a burnished greek fret and a number of mirror plates concealed among the reflections produced by sources of indirect light. the circular nature of zero, used as a divertissement, describes here and there certain elements of the project. in correspondence with the space overlooking the street 400 cono infinito internally gilded lighting fixtures (produced by Viabizzuno), sunk into the ceiling, make an irregular raster of non-dimensional circles which at night appears as a work of art formed from light. following the same convention, that the space is also a place for unexpected sensations, the bathrooms come to life, and custom-designed washbasins, doors with unusual proportions, and light sources which change colour by means of an electronic control, create a delicate atmosphere to complement the eating experience.