Achille Salvagni London Atelier

Achille Salvagni first burst onto the scene in 2002 when he founded Achille Salvagni Architelli in Rome. It was then that the designer won international acclaim for designing award-winning luxury residences and super yachts. In 2013, a little more than a decade later, the designer founded Achille Salvagni Atelier, a studio devoted to limited-edition furniture and lighting. With the success of these two practices, the designer opened an atelier in London to expand his offerings to a wider base.

Salvagni’s London atelier displays a selection of Salvagni’s most iconic pieces and presents them in an environment where designers and collectors can examine their distinct beauty and the craftsmanship that goes into each and every piece. About the new atelier, Salvagni told Galerie Magazine, “Historically, Mayfair is the heart of the London art scene and the location of our first gallery when we opened in 2015. This new space affords us the opportunity to expand our footprint within the area and establish long-term roots here.”

This new and exciting space allows Salvagni to “be his own client and build his vision from the ground up.” The location itself needed a lot of TLC as existing rough bricks, uneven concrete floors, and a disjointed floor plan were in play. It took a lot of imagination to turn the space into the end product it became. About the finished product, he said, “I knew that with a refined and simple approach we could create a very sophisticated space that would hide all the sins of the building and highlight some of the original beautiful details, such as the circular and arched windows.”

The atelier’s walls were hand-finished in plaster and the corners were rounded off. The windows have polished bronze frames that are a beautiful contrast to the elegant, white interiors. The parquet floors have a herringbone design which gives the atelier a residential feel. Salvagni hopes that the special store will allow him to properly display the pieces he finds most important in a correct fashion.

The designer experimented with suspended ceilings and shaped moldings to conceal modern-day technologies. The bronze-frames have two purposes… to provide a warm glow and to serve as the stage for pieces crafted from similar materials.

The two levels are linked via a wavelike staircase that is made up of blue South American marble. There is good reason for the two floors… on the street level, pieces are displayed in an undisturbed manner and in an unobstructed floor plan; the lower level is cozier with nooks that allow for unexpected vignettes throughout.

Salvagni designed hidden sliding doors in case he chooses to reimagine the space in the future. He says, “Just because the space is now complete does not mean we stop creating. Every day I have new ideas, and the gallery space is a platform for those.”

Thankfully, Salvagni has been able to garner inspiration from his Roman upbringing with a Scandinavian aesthetic that he discovered while studying in Stockholm. He constantly works with special craftspeople in and around Rome; among which is a bronze-caster who works with the Vatican, stoneworkers who care for the marble and mosaics in Rome’s many churches, and woodworkers who restore cabinets for the city’s elite.

Salvagni learned a lot during the pandemic lockdown; it was during this time that he designed his new collection of furniture, lighting, and accessories that showcase “the home” as the epicenter of everyone’s life. Salvagni believes that our homes should be environments that are inviting and warm, comforting and emotionally fulfilling. We concur!