Does this work require a specific training?
What is really important is to be manually skilled, which is a specialised training provided by very few schools in Italy. Experience is also absolutely necessary. In my case, I studied computer and mechanical sciences. I would run to my father's workshop every day after school. I liked it more than being in class. I owe my training to the Officina Metallica Mingardo.
How do you reconcile this craft with the new market trends and demands?
I am 26, and I started my activity only recently. For the time being I am content with working at my father's smithy and continuing in my new activity as producer of handmade designs. I often work at night and during the weekend, to finish the orders for my designer|faber collection (that I sell directly or online through my website, as well as in a couple of shops in Milan and Venice) and also the new prototypes of the next 2015 collection.
Do the institutions protect this artistic craft?
I suppose so, but I did not have the chance to find out firsthand yet. The opportunity will certainly arrive in the near future, now that I started my own activity. I think that being supported by the institutions is very important for anyone who wants to follow this profession. Many of the techniques and know-how of this craft disappeared twenty years ago when, in the natural generational turnover, white-collar jobs were preferred to manual ones. These techniques and traditions are part of Italy's cultural heritage, and as such they should be relaunched and then protected. But we have to move fast, or they will be lost forever. Which is what I have set out to do, working side by side with my father.
It was my decision, because I was fascinated by what he was doing, and I wanted to try.
I hope my choice will prove to be the right one.
Do you think that young people today could be attracted by this type of activity, as in your case?
I think they would. But it takes a cultural revolution, because we need to invert a consolidated trend, in order to inspire the younger generations. Today, very few young people want to get their hands dirty, sacrificing their free time. I think we need to cultivate the passion for beauty, for manual details. And we must encourage respect towards those who work with their hands.