In celebration of the opening of Meridiani’s first U.S flagship showroom, Cultured sat down with the Italian luxury furniture brand’s art director, Andrea Parisio, to discuss his role in the company and the Miami showroom.

Can you tell us about the evolution of Meridiani? The brand was officially launched in 2000. Before 2000, I had the idea of the collection before the actual name was launched. The brand was launched in a temporary space in Milan, which has also been for some time our flagship store. Then after the year 2000, we started with the new name and also we started showing our furniture in international trade shows in Milan, Paris, New York and Moscow.

Can you tell us about your creative role at the company? I have been working with the collection as both the designer and artistic director. I design all of the Meridiani pieces that you see, and oversee the way it is communicated to the public. I also take care of choosing all of our textile ranges and finishes, updating the fabrics and materials every year in order to be current, not trendy. Like in fashion, furniture design and the world of furniture gets a lot of inspiration from what is around us. I do what feels natural.

How did your relationship with Laura Ferraro Crosti, the late Meridiani designer, begin? My relationship with Laura began when the idea of this venture of beginning Meridiani was proposed. When we first met we discovered we shared a special connection on how we would design our ideal home. It was a casual encounter but at the same time Laura was the push for me. What characterizes Meridiani, is that unlike any other furnishing company, we immediately started out with the idea that this had to be something real. In the sense that by real I mean not like a corporate brand that had their own look of a house but instead a personal home. This was done so by proposing a concept that each client can personalize and make it their own space. We shared this common point, trying to design a collection that is for the people and not only for the designer. For this reason whenever I design a piece I try for it to be very simple and very pure.

Why was Miami chosen for the first U.S flagship showroom? Are you planning on opening any other U.S showrooms? Miami is an interesting place. It is a blend of cultures. Miami is a bridge between our clients in both South America and North America. We will open our next showroom in New York. New York is the city- the place one should also be because of the number of projects present in New York.

On November 3, Meridiani and Cultured partnered to celebrate the Italian furniture company’s first U.S flagship store in Miami.