Thomas Fuchs, craftsmanship through the lens of design

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Thomas Fuchs e Michou Mahatani

In the lines of his lamps and table accessories, American designer enamored of Italy reinterprets the principles of world artistic craft creativity, updating them to the canons of an ironic, theatrical contemporary design.

For the gaze and sensibility of a European, American design is something more than a nationalistic label. With the generosity of its proportions and its inclination to solemnity, design in America invokes a grandeur that is both optimistic and concrete, never far from the pragmatism of everyday life but always inclined to encourage redemption. Thomas Fuchs, designer and founder of the eponymous brand that he runs with his husband and formidable right-hand man Michou Mahatani, does not escape this imprint, but reinterprets it with the panache and sensibility of a designer who, from America, looks at the artistic craftsmanship of Europe and the world as a region to be sublimated with new features. His collaborations – the latest is with the porcelain brand Villari, which we will be seeing at the next Salone – are opportunities to explore the deeply embedded skills of historic companies and devise new outcomes, as imaginative as they are unexpected.

Your design advocates “emotionally charged functionality”. How do you overturn a historical dogma of design, that of the link between function and use, and why does emotion make a difference in your view?

Basically there is a predetermined scale and proportion used in my design process but first of all, there needs to be a reason for the design which translates to the function that goes alongside the design and the material chosen to be used.

As a designer I’m influenced by the materials and craftsmanship available to me. Coincidentally the craftsmanship I employ in my designs is also of a historic nature. The biggest compliment I feel is someone wanting to reach out and touch the texture and form of something I’ve created. It demonstrates a gut reaction deep from within someone that travels to all their five senses and resonates with the product I created.

Your collections are produced by skilled craftworkers, but they subvert the classic canons of artistic craftsmanship. What is the reaction of artisans when faced with your ironic universe, and how do you manage to achieve the best possible collaboration between craft skills and your design?

I’ve worked with a lot of craftworkers for many years, but this does not stop me from hesitating over what I want them to create. It’s based on my strong knowledge of function and design, combining their talent with my imagination resulting in beauty.
As a designer working with craftsmen skilled in a historical craft, strongly rooted in a specific craft, I’m very familiar with the answer “No.” Through lots of conversations and finesse, and them seeing my dreams, I realize that they themselves are in awe of the art living in my mind.

You have just created a new collection for Villari, called Garden of Eden, which we will soon see at the Salone. What imagery inspired you?

My husband and business partner Michou and I purchased a home here in Italy years ago, and every chance we have we tour the great gardens large and small in the country. We always say the world is divided into two kinds of people: people who live in Italy and those who want to live in Italy. It was so important to me to continue the DNA of Villari’s history based on floral design, and to bring it full circle by supersizing the scale, using the flowers lily and anemone, which had not previously been used in their designs. I combined this with the fable of Adam and Eve, who started in the garden with the snake and the apple, elements that appear in a line of cigar box, champagne bucket, wine coaster and dinnerware.

Your connection with Italy is long-standing. What do you like about the Bel Paese? As great observers of art and design, as you are, how is the vision of Italian design and craftsmanship being renewed in America? And how are some emerging countries in the field of design positioning themselves, in particular India, which you work with extensively?

Italy as I mentioned above Is more than a “Bel Paese” Michou’s connection to Italy goes back to his European upbringing and his university days, studying art in Florence. So when we married my love for Italy just continued to grow. Michou says, “Thomas is the first artist to design across the whole media of Murano glass, wood, porcelain and linen, being a design ambassador for iconic Italian family-owned companies, such as Cenedese & Seguso, The NapKing, Multiforme, Villari, Lavai and The Marble Collective. Even when working in India, we tell them we want an Indian handcrafted product with an “Italian Finish”. There is no escaping the artistic flair of Italian design. Italy is in our veins, Michou and mine combined, via his growing up in Italy and my working in Italy. We’re almost Italian inside and out, LOL!

During Miami Art week, you’re hosting your annual “Tavolo Dinner Series” in your home. Can you tell us more about it?

This was Michou’s invention. When he was brand director of the Remy Martin Louis XIII brand he created this Dinner Series Concept. Michou then took it to the next level when we moved from NYC to Miami working with LNS Gallery and independent artists. We give the artist our home and let them use it as a canvas, recreating it in keeping with their vision. I design and create dinnerware / drinking glasses inspired by their art series, then Michou creates a theater out of our dinning room with his table settings that turn the art into 3D. Then I home cook a dinner all based to match the art!

What other projects and collections are you working on that we will have the chance to see soon?

We’re constantly in conversation with other legendary design houses to collaborate with them. Michou’s outreach is vital in discovering design houses that we’re able to work with, bringing them an aspect of design or utilizing their techniques in a completely different way. We’re keeping it a secret for now, however our bamboo resin dinnerware has new color combinations every season. In the new version, the sky blue / green color combination is inspired by the sea and the trees near our home in Puglia.

14 February 2024