Arte Brotto doesn’t use tropical essences, but only and exclusively refined essences obtained from European and North American hardwood, processed and transformed in its own facilities. In addition to the wood – Oak – from its own forests, Arte Brotto is able to work with other fine varieties, such as American Walnut and Ebony, thanks to an important international sales network built up over the years. Direct selection and control are essential to guarantee lasting quality, and we focus on solid walnut and oak, using the finest-quality part of the trunk to craft unique products, such as the Vero table, used continuously or in compositions such as three-later solid wood or blockboard panels. The same superb quality is also evident in the other techniques used, such as engineered or veneered wood. The craftsmanship processes, sensitivity and ability of master cabinet-makers with over 20 years of experience allows quality raw materials – a gift of nature at its most authentic – to be turned into exquisite interior design solutions.
PLANNING
This process is rigorously handmade and it’s essential to make the wood surface unique, slightly undulating. A work that puts the artisan’s ability in close contact with the wood. It requires a lot of attention, but the result is infinitely superior to the one that is obtain from a mechanical planning. This happens because each piece of wood is different and it requires a sensitivity that only experience and the hand of a man can have, to enhance the beauty of the raw material using the right strength and direction, following the wood grain.
FACING
A “noble” alternative to veneering, it differs from the latter in terms of the thickness of the wood applied to the panel: the wood is obtained from the trunk by cutting slices of a thickness that varies between 3mm and 6mm, compared to the 0.6 mm of the sheet used for veneering. This makes a clear difference in terms of the quality of the finished product.
DOWELLING
A specific technique that exemplifies the whole vision the company has of its work. The purpose of the dowelling used by Arte Brotto craftsmen is to leave the natural beauty of the wood unaltered, by working on what many consider flaws and we, on the other hand, recognise as distinctive qualities of the material and the furnishing created from it. To do this, our craftsmen carefully choose the wood grain to be used for creating made-to-measure dowels to cover the small gnarls on the wood. This rigorously hand-crafted technique embellishes the furniture further.
INLAY
In its Heritage collections, Arte Brotto uses wisely the ancient inlay art. A type of decoration of which only the artisan are masters, because it was invented in Italy in the XIV century then spreading all over Europe. The Venetian school is one of the most famous and the Arte Brotto’s woodworkers, thanks to Sante Giorgio’s lessons, are the heirs of this complex and fascinating technique, that consists in the composition of geometrical gures and drawings through the perfect combination and joining of different wood essences. Arte Brotto’s on-going research and development has taken inlay work beyond classic style: the Palazzi Collection retrieves this ancient wisdom and interprets it with contemporary taste: the careful and deep study of some of the biggest masterpieces of the Italian Art and Architecture, of perspectives and geometries, of lights and shadows chasing each other on the monuments facades gives birth to furniture that perfectly replicates the same appearance and extraordinary beauty. This isn’t about drawings made on wood, but a handmade complex combination of small and very small pieces of wood, that convey the volume and depth effect of the buildings, creating an enhanced optical illusion. Each inlay, handmade, gives life to unique pieces, inimitable.
CURVING
Arte Brotto realizes the curved parts of the furniture cutting a big solid wood panel producing a 50% noble waste of the material. On the other hand, companies whom produce low quality furniture use a thin wood that’s steam curved, using little raw material.
ARTISTIC CERAMIC INSERTS
Arte Brotto’s aesthetic research also explores the relationship between wood and other materials, and between art and craftsmanship. An example of this are the terracotta inserts created by Vania Sartori, offering an original twist on tradition that has taken the art of ceramics from classic styles to contemporary design. The artistic ceramic inserts, the hallmark of the Segreti collection, are created in semi-refractory clay printed by hand, decorated with black or earthy white and subjected to matt glazing. Coated with gold or platinum, it is fired three times.
AGING
An extraordinary artisanal technique that Arte Brotto knows well, in each of its secrets, since the founder, Sante Giorgio Brotto, began at a very young age to work to the restoration of precious historical art furniture. The aging allows to reproduce the patina of time, making it relive on the wood surfaces and houses. It’s a rigorously handmade work, because only the gestures of capable artisans can intervene on the most noble wood to exalt its grain, reproducing with specific touches the irregular effect that reminds the one of the surfaces designed by time.
CARVING
The carving is completely handmade, beginning from solid wood that is slowly engraved with different types of chisels. A study of proportions is carried out before the actual carving to create elegant shapings which are typical of the 1600’s Italian style.
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