L’ARTIGIANO is located in a historic building on Zhongshanzhong Road along Hangzhou’s Southern Song Imperial Street. milanesi|paiusco introduces the openness of the Italian Piazza into the building. When the doors and windows on the ground floor are fully opened, the interior extends toward the street, creating an open interface that directly connects the restaurant with the Southern Song Imperial Street.
Projecting Geometry
The space is organized through simple geometric relationships. A square bar rotated 45° divides the functional areas, while the kitchen is inserted into the existing building as a “box”, creating a new layer within the façade. On the second floor, the open kitchen directly faces the dining area, bringing the movements, sounds, and aromas of cooking into the space. Circles and squares are also applied to tables and chairs, echoing the geometric language of the interior.
Material, Texture, and Touch
The ground floor uses tiles inspired by traditional Italian piazzas, laid in different directions around the central bar. The concrete bar creates a gradient through iron oxide pigments in different concentrations. The long table and benches are made from reclaimed timber from the original building, while the courtyard floor reuses old roof tiles, preserving the original colour and texture of the materials.
What Colour Is Italy?
The colour palette draws from terracotta, olive trees, and sunlight associated with Italian and Mediterranean life. Terracotta planters, olive trees, and rosemary are paired with Naples yellow, soft purple, pink, and white furniture to create the overall colour system. Bright yellow contrasts with the original grey of the building and appears in the glazed bathroom tiles, courtyard benches, and furniture details.
Art & Home
The interior styling follows the scale and atmosphere of a home, with frames, mirrors, and artworks placed throughout the space. The mirror at the entrance displays the menu and brand information, while the mirror above the kitchen allows people on the street to see the chef’s worktop. Vintage mirrors sourced from European markets add a sense of Italian retro character to the interior.
From Food to Furniture
Everything Is Handmade
L’ARTIGIANO means “artisan” in Italian. Inspired by Enzo Mari’s idea of self-production, the practice of making extends from the kitchen into the spatial design. The design team took part in making tables, benches, handles, and other details, reducing unnecessary processing and decoration.
Vivi Lentamente
The renovation preserves the original columns, beams, eaves, walls, and traces of years of use. New spatial interventions are placed alongside the existing structure, integrating the project into the Southern Song Imperial Street and expressing the lifestyle the brand seeks to convey: Vivi Lentamente, or “living slowly.”
