MASSIMILIANO LOCATELLI
ARCHITECT
PARTNER OF CLS ARCHITETTI (Giovanna Cornelio, Massmiliano Locatelli, Anna-Maria Scevola), MILAN AND NEW YORK CITY
B: What did you study?
M: First of all, I always studied hard…
B: This is not true. Ok, what did you take at college?
M: Architecture in Milan and Dublin, then I went to NYC for a PhD in Interiors at Columbia University.
B: How old were you when you started working?
M: I was 23, working in the firm of one of my teachers. At 25, with Giovanna Cornelio and Anna-Maria Scevola I founded my own firm, CLS Architetti.
B: You were very young! Which was your first job as an independent architect?
M: An apartment in Milan.
B: And the first “big” job?
M: That was with Trussardi, the leather fashion company, when they redid the entire brand image. We did the layout and some shops.
B: What are your specialties as an architect?
M: I make people’s dreams come true.
B: Even in fashion stores?
M: Dreams can be in a shop too. For I Pinco Pallino, a children’s fashion brand, we wrote fairy tales on the floor, hung fantastic chandeliers on the ceilings, we gave dreams an actual form.
B: The shop you loved the most?
M: The first one I designed. It was in Corso Venezia in Milan, a fashion store. It was 1995.
B: Why was it so special?
M: We designed a stage structure on the ceiling where you could hang almost everything in every possible way. For the opening we invited a special design exhibition from London’s 100% Design. In a time when nobody knew what London’s design was.
B: Is it better to work for big fashion companies or for small ones? Which ones give you more freedom?
M: It depends. I had a lot of freedom with big brands too. For Missoni Sport, for example, I was able to use very innovative materials, like printed concrete to give softness to stiff textures.
B: And what about houses? Who are your clients? Can you name names?
M: Unfortunately I can’t but in general we work with the owners of the fashion companies and their friends. For some brands I did shops, showrooms, offices, factories in Italy and abroad. And the private homes of the owners or designers.
B: What type of houses do you design?
M: From the ch
