Meet EMANUELE SANTALENA | Interior Designer & Industrial Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with EMANUELE SANTALENA and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi EMANUELE, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Behind the start of my business there has always been the desire to convey with my works the possibility of enhancing attention to detail, craftsmanship and the section of natural materials by referring to past eras with a modern reinterpretation. Since I was a child I have focused my studies up to university on trying to obtain an increasingly specific and detailed training in these areas.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Emanuele Santalena was born in Livorno ( Tuscany ) in 1996, in 2019 he graduated in Industrial Design at University of Florence. In 2018, before the end of the university course, he was selected for an internship as a graphic designer at the United Nations in New York at the Department of Economic and Social Affair-Digital Government Branch.

It was in New York that he began to take his first steps, coming into contact with artists, designers, video makers, advertising agencies and design and architecture studios. Surely the big apple offers the right stimuli which leads Emanuele to fully experience all the opportunities trying to study and fully understand the trendiest styles and how Italian design can confirm itself as the dominant principle in the development of new concepts of both interior and products. The perpetual dynamism of New York stimulates a continuous flow of inspiration in the shapes, which leads him to  create the first minimalist collection of bespoke products with the aim of enhancing the elegance and purity of design.

Once he returned to Italy after graduating with honors in 2019, he decided to specialize in the practice of photo-realistic rendering of interiors and products with the aim of conceiving interiors and products that are increasingly faithful to reality and ensure that any customer can immerse himself and fully visualize every detail of the project. This continuous study of attention to detail allows him to develop further collaborations with design and architecture studios based in New York, Los Angeles, Montecarlo and Milan.

In 2020 he decides to found his own fluctoflip brand with a highly personalized vision and approach to interior design projects and the production of furniture and furnishing accessories.

For about two years he collaborated with a well-known interior design studio in Milan and at the end of 2022 he co-founded an interior design studio specializing in the residential and commercial planning of spaces and products.

He is represented by gallery in Miami with his collection of collectible design

DESIGN VISION
A Italian industrial and interior designer based in Milano, Emanuele Santalena researches an accurate exalting a minimalist and modern vision.
The sober and clean style of the various products takes the form of an extreme refinement of the use of selected, precious natural materials and acute sensitivity in the attention to detail, always keeping as a reference the importance of light within a space .
His approach remains simple but full of meaning:
”The environment must become the mirror of a harmonious connecti- on between art and design thanks to the use of natural materials, pure lines and colours”
His approach remains simple but full of meaning that he encloses in a thought “The house becomes the mirror of a harmonious connection between art and design thanks to the use of natural materials, pure lines and colors”:
In interior design I try to create a balance between shapes, colors and materialsEvery interior must become a collector of ideas and creativity by creating synergies between styles, trends and sectors. Inspired by the great masters.
“The house understood as a balance between modern and classic”

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Being originally from Tuscany, I would give any person a culinary, cultural and historical journey. Tuscany is a region that occupies a prestigious role due to its historical, artistic and cultural heritage, mainly known for the works of art present in the cities and for the beauty of the landscape.
From a culinary point of view, I would go to the Bolgheri area where it is possible to taste the best wine cellars

From a historical point of view I would take this person to all the cities of Tuscany starting from my hometown Livorno, to Siena, Pisa, Arezzo up to Florence where it is possible to admire the historical and architectural beauty of the city.

In Florence every corner of this city is history, walking along all the streets in the center of Florence it is possible to admire all the studies that have been made on an architectural level.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My main thanks go to my family who I have to thank as I had the opportunity to receive teachings at 360 degrees from an early age. My parents have been a point of reference and thanks to them my approach to the world of design has been influenced by an entrepreneurial imprint that I have used during my professional career. Since I was a child I had the opportunity to travel meeting people of different cultures with different thoughts, ideas and thanks to this I had the opportunity to greatly influence my creativity during my design process.

Website: www.emanuelesantalena.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emanuele_santalenadesigner/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emanuele-santalena-91b791169/

Image Credits
Gabriel Munari ©