12,000 stitches installation by Brioni and Carmody Groarke

Handmade 2010: Brioni 12,000 stitches — (Image credit: Beppe Brancato)

At Wallpaper*, we approach fashion with the same furrow-browed seriousness as we do architecture. And we like nothing better than bringing these twin passions together in a single project. So when the idea emerged for a work to celebrate our ‘Wallpaper* Handmade…in Italy’ exhibition, held at Milan’s Brioni house in April and previewing many of the unique works in this issue – we jumped at it.

We asked architects Carmody Groarke to build us an installation inspired by the perfect Brioni suit. The duo took their cue from the 12,000 stitches required to hand-stitch a Brioni dinner jacket. The result is a dramatic box framed by a lattice of 12,000 red threads pierced with white lights.

Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.