A residential project where custom metal furniture becomes a true spatial design tool, defining functions, visual relationships, and architectural identity.
Designed by Francesca Vizzari and Nicola Donda, this project interprets contemporary living with a systemic approach. A custom-made steel bookshelf, paired with an integrated peninsula, acts as the organizing element around which a TV unit and steel-framed doors are developed.
A coordinated system of bespoke metal furnishings, conceived for architects and interior designers working on spatial continuity, material coherence, and high-level detailing.
Metal as a tool for spatial organization
Dividing without closing, organizing without adding visual weight: this is the core requirement driving the project—one that strongly reflects contemporary interior design principles.
The custom steel bookshelf, positioned alongside the peninsula, rationalizes the domestic layout while preserving transparency, visual lightness, and continuity. Here, metal is used not merely as a structural component but as an architectural element. The same design logic informs the TV unit and the steel-framed doors, conceived as parts of a single bespoke interior system.
Structure, proportions, and formal control
The bookshelf structure is made of 10×10 mm solid steel bars, selected to ensure precision, stability, and a controlled visual impact. The composition is carefully calibrated to balance the presence of the adjacent peninsula, maintaining equilibrium between solids and voids while avoiding perceptual overload.
Paired vertical steel rods integrated into the structure serve not only as aesthetic details but as architectural elements, defining rhythm and reinforcing verticality. The shelves, composed of a double layer of 2 mm steel sheet, are flush-mounted within the frame to create continuous planes without recesses or interruptions. The peninsula frame, made of 40×40 mm steel, integrates the marble top using the same principles of precision and seamless execution.
Materiality, finishes, and structural performance
Material selection becomes an integral part of the design process. The steel sheets forming the shelves are carefully filled and leveled prior to finishing, achieving perfectly continuous surfaces aligned with the frame and eliminating any visual breaks.
All solid steel elements feature an antique brass finish, adding depth, warmth, and material richness, transforming steel into a decorative element well-suited to residential interiors. Originally conceived in aluminum, the project evolved toward steel to ensure greater rigidity and structural solidity. A technical decision that enhances durability, precision, and perceived quality.
This project demonstrates how bespoke metal furniture, when developed in close collaboration with architects and interior designers, can become an integral component of domestic architecture, merging structure, function, and aesthetic identity into a cohesive spatial system.
