• Eng
    • 中文
    • News
    • Design
    • Living
    • Interiors
    • Directory
  • Home
  • Travel
  • Spotlight
  • Shopping
  • Interviews
  • In The Magazine
  • Food & Entertaining
  • Art & Culture
  • Inspiration to your inbox

    Our monthly digest of the latest design trends, standout spaces, creative people, travel and entertaining in style.

    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Contact
    • Edipresse Media

© 2017 Edipresse Media Hong Kong Ltd. All rights reserved.
All material on this site is © Home Journal, Edipresse Media Hong Kong Ltd.

  • News
  • Design
  • Living
  • Interiors
  • Directory
X

Inspiration to your inbox

Our monthly digest of the latest design trends, standout spaces, creative people, travel and entertaining in style.



  • Eng
  • 中文
Interiors | Milan

The Visconti family’s apartment is informed by art, aristocracy, and time immemorial

The lasting legacy of a 16th-century Renaissance building.

Milan’s magnificent history cannot be considered without mentioning the house of Visconti. The family rose to power in the early 13th century, ruling the Italian capital of fashion and design for almost 200 years. The name continues to command respect today, propagated by the likes of celebrated film director Luchino Visconti and jewellery designer Osanna Visconti di Modrone. Famed for her distinctive, dramatic pieces, Osanna’s creativity isn’t confined to beautiful baubles. Just one look inside her family abode – situated a few steps from the Duomo in the heart of the city’s historic centre – shows that her talents are equally weighted in furniture and interior design.

The sober facade of the 16th-century Renaissance building that houses the apartment occupied by Osanna, her husband (gallerist Giangalleazo Visconti) and their daughter Madina (a fellow jewellery designer) reveals little about the treasures that lie within. The original frescoed ceilings and walls that bear the patina of passing time pay homage to the home’s rich heritage, while a monumental collection of modern art and furniture from Osanna’s own assemblage, as well as key pieces from prominent Italian designers of the 1950s and ’60s, provide counterpoints to the understated elegance of the setting.

See more: A family creates their dream home in the heart of downtown Milan

An Anish Kapoor mirror and large-scale painting by Aaron Young dominate the living room, which is an excercise in combining classic and contemporary. 

Raw and unpolished – a sort of anti-white cube – the walls provide the framework for the family’s art, lending atmosphere and expression to each room.

The dining room unites Chinese and French influences, complete with a spectacular statement sculpture suspended from the ceiling.

Antique appointments intermingle with mid-century modern pieces, items from Osanna's collection and contemporary art throughout the family's abode.

Surrounded by art, artefacts, talismans, tchotchkes and a legacy of aestheticism, it’s easy to envisage where the gifted family's inspiration originates. 

Pieces by American video artist Bill Viola, French Fluxus figure Ben Vautier and prominent British artist Damien Hirst add a vogueish touch to the original centuries-old structure. 

Osanna shares her ground-floor studio with Madina (pictured), who has made her own name through striking, feminine designs that celebrate nature’s raw beauty in much the same way as her mother’s creations.

A sculpture by Jedd Novatt in the courtyard. 

By: Chiara dal Canto | Living Inside

Photography: Fabrizio Cicconi | Living Inside
Additional text: Mercedes Hutton
Production: Chiara dal Canto | Living Inside

HJ Recommends

EDT_8098

This stunning at-home art collection is the result of decades of dedication

Fashion guru Marleen Molenaar possesses a love of all things aesthetic.

by:  Leanne Mirandilla

March 14, 2017 in Interiors | Milan
Home-Journal_01-23-17_Simon-Birch-(18-of-18)no-ringscrop

Simon Birch converted a multistorey car park into a home—and personal gallery

The Hong Kong-based artist pares it back to the bare minimum, and allows his work to speak for itself.

by:  Mercedes Hutton

March 9, 2017 in Interiors | Milan
160204---COLLETTE-DINNIGAN-5509crop

Collette Dinnigan, fashion and interior designer, offers a peek into her Sydney home

This stylish residence tells an intimate story.

by:  Jeni Porter

March 7, 2017 in Interiors | Milan

Top Stories

  • How Peggy Bels created more space in a Hong Kong microflat How Peggy Bels created more space in a Hong Kong microflat
  • A couple whiles away their twilight years in the lap of luxury A couple whiles away their twilight years in the lap of luxury
  • Lim + Lu’s first Hong Kong home is a labour of love Lim + Lu’s first Hong Kong home is a labour of love

kohler-bathroom

Kohler

BATHROOMS

Latest Stories

  • Sean Cochrane transformed a declining Victorian villa into a luxurious family home

    Sean Cochrane transformed a declining Victorian villa into a luxurious family home

    May 29, 2017
  • Modern luxe meets retro glamour in this New York apartment

    Modern luxe meets retro glamour in this New York apartment

    May 23, 2017
  • A couple whiles away their twilight years in the lap of luxury

    A couple whiles away their twilight years in the lap of luxury

    May 22, 2017