Finally it’s summertime, the sun is shining, nice temperatures and it’s great to sit outside. What better time to show you the Miss Dondola by Angela Missoni for the BARRIQUE project. During my search for upcycled design at the IMM in Cologne this year, I came across this fantastic project. BARRIQUE, “liberating people through reclaiming wood from casks and traditional artisanal work which has always distinguished Italy. This summarises the ‘New life for wooden barriques’ project. It has been created by San Patrignano | Italy, Europe’s biggest drug rehabilitation centre.”

Angela Missoni gives color to BARRIQUE

In my first post about BARRIQUE I showed the project and what beautiful upcycle design they made. And here’s another design from BARRIQUE, a stunning swinging chair. Angela Missoni from the famous fashion house MISSONI based in Varese, came up with the design: “The first thing that came to my mind when I saw the wooden staves of the casks was to ‘engineer’ the object itself, using it in its essence, not transforming it into something other than itself. I like mobile things and the idea of using them just as they are. I therefore came up with the idea of threading multicoloured strings joined by big knots between one piece of wood and the other to keep them together and maintain their alignment. The immediacy of use is what pushed me most in this direction.”
This is truly a fantastic swinging chair for your garden or to hang from the ceiling. The chair is a playful combination between construction, historic wooden pieces and a colorful padding.

Photo © BARRIQUE

San Patrignano is a place for young men and women who have serious drug abuse problems, regardless of ideology, social background, or religion, and completely free of charge, accepting no payment or funding from their families or the government. Since 1978, San Patrignano has taken in over 18,000 people, offering them a home, healthcare, legal assistance, and the opportunity to study, learn a job, change their lives, and regain their status as full members of society. With the help of 32 of the world’s most renowned designers and architects, the wood from the barriques is re-used, upcycled, into furniture and design pieces.
Please visit the great San Patrignano site to find out more about the project and the unique way of making these furniture and design pieces. Progetto Barrique: A new life for wood project from SanPatrignano – “The project is about new starts – both for the wood reclaimed from 230 litre casks and for the young people at SanPatrignano who, thanks to the initiative, have been able to also learn a trade which is dying out. In addition, they have been able to challenge themselves, putting themselves putting themselves to the test with 30 of the world’s best known designers and architects who conceived the design pieces.”

Design by Angela Missoni | BARRIQUE