Curated by designer Jonathan Bocca, the exhibition Design in a Real World marks the first project by VESTIGIA, taking place at the magnificent Villa Marie. A new venture linked to the worlds of collectible design and contemporary art, VESTIGIA explores the deep links between objects, places, and people, seeking to create synergies between the worlds of craftsmanship, Italian designers, and the Tuscan region.

Design in a Real World celebrates the connection between design and the Tuscan territory, a destination from which many of the participating designers originate, and one historically synonymous with a rich legacy of craftsmanship. As evoked by the exhibition’s title, the territory – the ‘real world’ – is contrasted with the constructed, artificial, and often frenetic identity of the city and industrial design. The exhibition, therefore, focuses on a slower, localised, and more reflective artisanal perspective that characterises both the designers’ work and life outside the populated urban centres.