Contemporary

Designer
Federico
Delrosso,
architect
 Philosophy
“What makes a construction special, as with
a natural or metropolitan place, is not the
architecture per se, but that alchemy that
emerges between the constructed space
itself, those who inhabit it, and the person
who conceived it.
https://www.federicodelrosso.com/
architects/en/about-federico-delrosso/#
The spirit of the place changes according
to who dwells there and lives from
memories. Only when this delicate
balance is reached can a special place
come into being, a place able to transmit
the diverse degrees of relation with the
context. People need to identify with
their own home, to establish a sense of
belonging, and appreciate its protective
aura.
A home is basically an exoskeleton that
must provide protection in both a literal
sense and an emotional one, a place
whose function is primarily to foster human
interrelations, and hence also family
bonds. This is why it is important to seek
that delicate and subtle balance which
binds a given space to its occupants.
I reckon that true architecture must
not restrict itself to the outer surfaces
of a house, but should involve inside
and outside seamlessly. In my projects
the building exteriors always find their
“natural” counterpart in the interiors.
But rather than a mere corresponding
balance between mass and void, I like
to explore with two basic interfaces: light
and natural materials.
 On Solutions
When I hit upon what I feel is the perfect
solution for a project, I get a sudden flash
of euphoria, only for fraction of a second,
but intense enough. That is what I call
reaching the threshold, the one which
is linked to a given moment or context,
which fuses my previous experiences
and to some extent annuls them, creating
room for diverse new opportunities to be
reconnoitred.
 On Objects
As for designing objects – which
differ from architecture with its set of
building norms, structural parameters,
geographical features, orientation rules
– the act is certainly less limited and
allows for greater creative flexibility. I’m
interested in pinpointing the outer threshold as I
reason through the technological and technical
implications, or the properties of the materials
I’m using, and once this is determined I then set
about defining the forms and functions involved.
 His Fav Quote
‘You believe you have a
breaking point, so you try to
reach it. Something happens.
Suddenly you can go faster,
thanks to the power of thought,
to your determination and
instinct and thanks to your
experience you can fly even
higher.’ Ayrton Senna
Pacific – Monte Carlo
• The first minimalist restaurant-bar in Montecarlo, Pacific is
located inside the Metropole Shopping Center. It is one of the first
projects for a public venue entirely developed by Delrosso, who
viewed the commission for the interior décor of the restaurant/bar
as an opportunity to create a somber and elegant contemporary
style using various levels and amounts of light and materials.

• The design of the interior is centered on the venue’s obvious

essential: the bar counter. Made of white Corian, the lateral
structure is lit on the upper and lower edges, making it appear
ethereal and suspended as though anchored to reality by the
actual counter, made of Millerighe wood (striped cross-section of
layered wood). Projected upward, the counter follows an L shape
that extends to a private area, enhanced by comfortable chairs.
• The blend of planes that give life to the bar’s wall serve
a functional purpose, creating an architectural divider
that constantly harmonizes with filled and empty spaces.
Heterogeneous materials form various degrees of thickness. They
are united to mold a single body that incorporates the walls of
the bar as well as some of the columns. The result is a sort of outer
protective shell made of coarse iron that shelters a Millerighe
interior. Surrounding the central bar, the restaurant area is an
adaptable environment characterized by lights that makes it
possible to adjust both ambience and function, depending on the
time of day (evening, day or night). A soft white curtain divider
can be used to create a private and intimate area, located
between two iron and wood pillars, separating this area from
the remaining spaces, even only partially. Lit from the top, the
curtain transfers and incorporates light, generating an almost
tangible quality so that the VIP area seems enveloped in spaces
of light rather than enclosed within mere separators. This concept
of lighting, which moves from light source to material, is re-
emphasized in the lamps – designed by Davide Groppi – that
illuminate the bar counter.
The furnishings, also characterized by clean, straight lines,
shapes and colors, were selected to create a somberly elegant
environment.

Specifically, tables in Wenge wood and padded chairs are by

B&B. Though archetype of a classic style, the furniture is covered
in fabric coverings that add a refined touch.
Papermoon Casablanca MA
The concept for the new restaurant in Casablanca born from a
careful analysis of the historic Papermoon restaurant in Milan.
“I identified – explains Delrosso – the elements that create the
atmosphere of the restaurant in Via Bagutta, historical center of
Milan; to characterize, with a wide point of view, the architectural
and iconographic references of Italian Style.” Delrosso eschews
in fact the usual references to Italian gastronomy, in favour of
seeking something Italian in the atmospheres, colours, materials
and artisan care for detail.

“I created an atmosphere through few strong signs: I placed

along the walls images in black and white of the fabulous 1960s
to offer a memory of the beginnings of Italian design and the
imagery that came to identify Italy around the world as the Bel
Paese. Neutral colours, formal seatings matches with informal
one for the lounge area, backlighted boiserie for a comfortable
environment and a hanging moon lamp as the icon of the new
Papermoon restaurant.”
Miami restaurants FL, USA
FL USA
Dominated by calm and relaxing atmospheres, these venues
are characterized by contemporary and essential styles resulting
from a harmonious blend of reassuring wood surfaces and the
surprising use of fabric for the walls, materials that engage with
the ever-present luminosity of natural light as well as artificial
lighting, provided by lamps specially selected for each project.
atlantic
Minimalist solutions also govern the architectural project for the
news restaurant, Atlantic Miami, characterized by lightness and
pale shades in the roomy outdoor area while darker shades
prevail in the interior, where wood and enveloping forms are
enriched with clear tubular lamps that shape and brighten the
perimeter of the counter. Contemporary design is evident in the
various elements used to enhance the context. Elegant stools with
white leather seats as well as ceiling lights that spotlight each of
the tables are but some of the features that contribute to a unique
dining experience on Ocean Drive.
fox cafè
Delrosso adds modernity and formal purity to the deco style of
Ocean Drive, an example of which is evident in the restyling
project for the Italian restaurant Fox Cafè. The dark, comfortable
chairs and matching tables used in the interior as well as on the
spacious terrace mold a warm and inviting mood. Walls and
columns are also dark, in stark contrast with the white flooring
and some of the furnishings, such as the padded pillows on the
sofas, which are often used instead of chairs. Interior lighting
is appropriate and pleasant, forming scenic cones of light that
produce a soothing effect.
cafè milano
In his restyling of the historic Italian restaurant, Cafè Milano
Miami, Delrosso ideated a new concept of space by using
soft, white fabric curtains that allow for flexibility, making it
possible to conceal or open spaces. Made of dark wengé
wood, the furnishings contribute to creating a contemporary and
comfortable environment, enriched by the use of heavy ceiling
lamps, capable of fashioning an intimate and friendly ambiance.
sea cafè
Bright and relaxing, the Sea Cafè Miami is a great place for
breakfast….but not just. Small and cozy, its personality is centered
on the use of pale but warm furnishings, the bleached oak
contributing to the formal and visual lightness of the architectural
design style. Covering one full wall of the restaurant, bleached
wood beams add to the effect. And though supporting walls are
detached, there is visual unity between them. A full-length mirror
and a projection screen enlarge the spaces or they lead diners’
eyes to other spaces.
notime Montecarlo MC
Notime restaurant in Montecarlo is the sign of a place in which
time is suspended. It is the space/time of the pause, of the
thought that follows paths finally detached from everyday
routine. For this restaurant we first of all conceived a name that
conveyed the idea of a rarefied atmosphere, we designed the
logo, incorporating a video installation by the artist Fausto Mazza
(a clock with the hands “gone haywire” ) and we articulated the
space with wood bars arranged at irregular intervals to delimit
a sort of intangible “Zen cage”. On the outside, the alter ego of
the Zen cage is a light metal structure that defines a cosier and
more intimate space, protected by evanescent white veils. A
concern for the intangible atmosphere prompted our creation of
textual panels because the time of reading is essentially the time
of suspension par excellence. It is the moment when we enter
into the dimension created by someone else, for which reason we
positioned, within the interior, prints with quotations on the idea of
Time, taken from Proust, Chaplin, Einstein…
As in our other projects, also in the Notime restaurant the
harmonic colours of the decor follow the natural palette of the
materials: white, black, sand and rust tones for walls, floors, tables
and the restaurant counter in American birch and Corian.
The candlesticks, in glass and metal, specially designed for the
restaurant, discreetly define the pattern of the tables arranged
regularly in the some 300 square metres of the restaurant.
bice restaurants NY,CA,TR
istanbul TR
This project is a global re-interpretation of traditional “Bice
Restaurant” concept in a new modern key, trying also to keep
a warm and domestic atmosphere. The re-examination of
details and materials construction and colours merging create
a perception of a light and polished ambient. Using scale of
brown colours, a mix of recessed and direct lights we try to reach
a global good feeling, introducing design elements on draw,
always looking for lines pureness and careful graphics search.
san diego CA USA
A trip to the restaurant industry abroad for Federico Delrosso, on
an all-Italian concept: the second Bice restaurant in San Diego
(California). The architect Delrosso had already designed the
Bice restaurant inaugurated in Istanbul in 2008 and, as in the
previous project, in his latest work he continued a consistent
line of modernization of the Italian way of food. Unlike some of
its locations (Bice is also in New York, Tokyo, Miami, Chicago,
Houston, Montreal, Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Palm Beach,
Madrid, Dubai…), Delrosso designed spaces devoid of immediate
references to the traditional iconography of Italian cuisine.
Instead the volumes and furnishings were designed to offer an
immersion in the most contemporary Italian mood, in emotionally
relaxing atmospheres. Besides the actual Dining Room, Delrosso
also created the relaxation area, for conversation, reading, and
a pleasant, specially lit cocktail-bar. In this way Bice San Diego
has an ambiance where the public, the food, the flavours and the
feeling of serene conviviality … and not the excess of marks and
images, are the true protagonists. The attractive wengé panelling,
the imposing wall and see-through cellar, the “bookcase of
vases” and the sliding doors with black-and-white images of
the past form the distinctive features and at the same time the
silent backdrop on a very special stage, where the cuisine of real
Italian style is performed every day.
total area: 400 sqm
new york city USA
Restyling of the Bice restaurant in New York, first opened on
54th Street in 1987. The project was by the then emergent Adam
Tihany, later well-known for his designs of numerous restaurants
and hotels. “From the strictly design point of view, I tackled the
restyling project in a way I would almost describe as ‘ethical’.”
Rather than destroying the original layout, I chose to respect
Adam Tihany’s design and bring out the distinctive features
of his project by highlighting them. I removed the elements
that I saw as accretions on the original project, stratified over
time: lamps, pictures, floors … seeking to recreate the original
elegant atmosphere with a palette of shades that would be
darker but also more luminous. F.D. I added as the only new
feature a collection of black and white photos running along the
walls in the interiors. In this way, I sought to evoke that special
atmosphere of Italy in the ’60s, which perhaps the patrons of an
Italian restaurant will be looking for, naturally in addition to the
flavors of our tradition. The black and white photos are also the
common thread that Ideally links this project to the other Bice
restaurants that I designed in Istanbul and San Diego. F.D.
zero yatch
Open space on the water
This catamaran was built in 1991 (55 feet in length) by the
glorious Lagoon yacht-building company, known for its Oracle
trimaran that won the coveted America’s Cup in 2010. The job
of restyling the racing yacht was a kind of athletic challenge in
itself. Any jeopardising of the vessel’s sailing performance with
any alterations to the structural characteristics of the boat was
clearly to be avoided. “We wanted to transform the yacht into
a modern, manageable sailing vessel,” relates the architect, for
this project which took him to the coasts of Miami. The yacht was
placed in dry dock, dismantled, and completely redesigned,
its appearance overhauled through an interplay of black, grey
and white, visible throughout as in the new prow cabin, with
its dark-tinted privacy glass. Furniture in grey laminate with
matching upholstery throughout the deckhouse and cockpit.
Dark paintwork on the original wooden interiors. Teak floors for the
outside decks, and grey Bolon synthetic resin inside. The entire
concept aims to enhance life onboard, transferring the principles
of living style to the seas, transforming the Zero into a comfortable
and minimal floating studio apartment.
Questions/Dicussions
1. What is the design philosophy of Federico
Delrosso?
2. Contrast between the design zero yatch
by Federico Delrosso and Aquariva by Marc
Newson.
3. Discuss the design notime Montecarlo MC by
Federico Delrosso.
4. Discuss the design Pacific – Monte Carlo by
Federico Delrosso.