LUTHERIE IN DOVERA

Marco, luthier

Visit is split in two parts: first of all I will show you the watermill near my lab, where there is also a rural culture museum. Then we will move to the lutherie lab, where I use to make and repair Manouche and acoustic guitars, besides all the others plucked strings instruments. I will explain you the way I work, displaying all the steps of my guitar making.

DOVERA, Cr

MAKE YOUR PAIR OF SHOES

Olivia, shoe maker and designer

The beauty of a bespoke pair of shoes lies in its construction. This course offers an alchemic journey from the raw material to the finished shoe, a journey through which you will appreciate and understand the hidden beauty of creation. Thanks to slow and repetitive motions, just like a mantra, you will forget about hectic life and delve into a very special mood. The model of shoes for this hands-on workshop is a traditional unlined lace-up with Norwegian structure, but different kind of personalization are more than welcome. The process will be split in two parts: a stage will be totally directed by me and the other one will be carried out in collaboration with other professionals. This second stage consists in a 25 hours program that can be organized upon your schedule. During the module that we will have together, we will also prepare the necessary tools to work, such as leather covers for the fingers and twine for the handmade binding. I suggest you this experience if you want to dedicate some days to creativity and manual work, and it will also be a perfect occasion to enjoy the beautiful Pesaro and Urbino. I’m more than available for any kind of tips for your accommodation and I’ll be glad to suggest you the most peculiar places around the city. Since we will share the whole week together, everyday I will offer you a very special break with the best tastes that Marche has to offer!

PESARO, Pu

YOUR LITTLE TAPESTRY

Mariagrazia, weaver

You will be welcomed in my atelier, where I'll unveil you the magic and the secrets of hand-weaving. You will learn how a 4 and 8 healds loom works. You could try yourself to use a loom, specifically a "telaio/cassetta", to create a little tapestry to bring back home with you. There will be various spun available so that you can free your creative energy.

GUBBIO, Pg

LEATHER CLASS

Giuseppe, leather craftsman

During this experience you'll be able to create 4 small leather or fabric goods, such as frames for your photos or a hard cover for your personal planner. You can choose the type and color of material to work with and, under our guidance, you will learn all the steps for the realization of the products that you will bring home as a memory of the experience. The workshop will end up with a dinner based on pizza, cooked in a wood oven at the craftsman's house.

GUBBIO, Pg

THE PILGRIM’S NOTEBOOK

Lucia e Hans, bookbinder

The experience involves the creation of a notebook made of paper, leather, and string (of about 8x13cm in size). You may choose your favorite colored leather from the many in the bookbinding workshop. With Hans and Lucia’s guidance, you will be able to follow the different workshop phases, which include a medieval technique in the preparation of the paper sheets, which are sewn and bound directly onto the leather cover. This way, book cover and stitching make a single piece and the notebook will be ready in just a few steps. You may also personalize it with graphic or floral motifs, or with your initials, directly embossing the chosen decoration on the surface. Finally, a leather string around the notebook will help tie it shut.

VITERBO, Vt

YOUR UNIQUE JEWEL

Negar, goldsmith

Gerd Rothmann is a master goldsmith and his contribution in making the theme of unique jewel internationally recognized has been huge. The unique jewel is the one made with your fingerprint, or with that of a person we love. In this hands-on workshop we will re-elaborate this concept and you’ll be able to make your own brass jewel, under my guidance. Once in my studio, you’ll be fingerprinted and we will decide together if you are going to create a pendant or a ring. Then we will proceed with some sketches and the design before the actual realization of the jewel in wax. The experience will end with the creation of the wax jewel, after which I will send it to a specialized lab in order to brass molding it with the lost wax casting. I will then pick it up and polish it before sending it to you within 10 days after our meeting.

FIRENZE, Fi

A DAY AT THE ATELIER

Mara, engraver

An entire day to explore the wonderful world of Japanese printing. We will spend the entire day together: from 10 am until 6 pm (with a break of one hour for lunch) and you will have the opportunity to see all the steps that go into creating your own print. After the initial phase where you will learn about the techniques and see some original prints, you will be allowed cut out your first drawing (or you can take inspiration from one of the various books we have in our studio) and create your own 3 colour print on Japanese paper. This workshop is perfect for people who want to create their own cards or presents. This experience is for beginners and people wishing to improve their techniques: in case you have former experience please contact me in advance so I can prepare myself to accommodate your needs.

AVIGLIANA, To

GILDING ON WOOD

Stefania & Carlo, restorers

We will work together for about one hour, depending on the number of participants. We will begin with a brief introduction to the art of gilding, in which we will introduce you to the materials and decorative techniques by which you can understand the historical placements of the object. We will explain how gouache and mission gilding works and give some hints about the techniques of restoration of gilded and lacquered wooden works. For the practical part, you will get to try mission gilding of a small wooden object of Florentine manufacture and its subsequent aging. The wooden object provided by the school for rehearsal will be given to you free of charge as a memento of your visit.

FIRENZE, Fi

FROM WOOL TO FELT

Lucia, felt maker

During the experience, the artisan will explain the various stages of wool processing, starting with the production of sheep's wool by small local farmers in Valsugana. In particular, the processing of carded wool and the subsequent transformation into felt will be proposed. The artisan will explain the path of raw wool from washing to carding using a special tool. After a short break with an organic snack you will go on with the design and construction of a personalized felt hat or alternatively a felt seat / seat cover, suitable for all seasons and all uses. You can choose your favorite hat model and add decorations with various colors wools, that can also be used for the seat cover.

PERGINE VALSUGANA, Tn