NEW YORK — Fabio Zambernardi, former design director of Prada and Miu Miu, has returned to the collectible furniture field with architect and designer Massimiliano Locatelli. Their embroidered furniture is being presented at Null Object, a hybrid gallery in New York City’s Dimes Square, through Nov. 22.
The pair developed a process called manomachine, an Italian term meaning “hand-machine.” It combines digital patterns with a modified embroidery machine, while the wood is guided by hand. The technique allows metal threads to be stitched into wood veneer, creating images that emerge from the material’s surface.
Locatelli said the project grew from a shared curiosity about applying a fashion-related gesture to a rigid architectural material. Zambernardi left the Italian fashion group in 2023 after four decades, while Locatelli is known for residential, office, retail and showroom projects.
The collection draws inspiration from the Renaissance studiolo of Federico da Montefeltro, a private study recently reopened to the public in Urbino’s Palazzo Ducale. Its detailed wood intarsia influenced the presentation, as did the decorative cabinetry of 17th- and 18th-century marquetry master Giuseppe Maggiolini.
According to Locatelli, manomachine reinterprets the principles of traditional inlay through contemporary methods, including variations in thickness, color and detail. The process is shown in the exhibition through drawings, tests and samples that document how the furniture is constructed and customized.
The display also includes vases made in collaboration with painter Sally J. Han and limited-edition wooden holiday ornaments created exclusively for Null Object, which was founded by Nikki Mirsaeid and Alex Gvojic. Nullus Locus was previously presented at Milan Design Week and Design Miami Paris in 2025 with New York gallery Salon 94.
Sources: WWD.