Small Black Marble Mortar and Pestle

In 1818, Duchess Maria Beatrice d’Este granted the Vanelli family the right to excavate Carrara’s white marble, marking the beginning of the renowned Vanelli tradition of Italian marble. Since the 19th century, Vanelli quarries have provided marble for public works, buildings, and sculptures throughout Europe and the world.

Aldo Vanelli acquired the family quarry, known as Zona 67, in 1960. Since then, the advent and evolution of robotics has meant an increasing focus on the realization of complex artworks and specialized precision projects. Entrepreneur, designer, and patron of the arts Fiammetta Vanelli inherited this extraordinary heritage. Born in Carrara and growing up with an intimate knowledge of her family’s marble empire, her mission was to take the raw materials extracted from the family quarries—Portoro, Bardiglio, Paonazzo, and Statuario marble—and use cutting-edge technology to reveal the softer side of this solid stone; developing a range of products with a feminine sensibility. A graduate of the University of Florence, Vanelli first founded STATUARIA ARTE—a creative laboratory that facilitated artists and designers to experiment with marble through traditional craftsmanship and the use of high-tech robotics. In 2014, she launched the new brand FiammettaV Home Collection. As founder and creative director of FiammettaV, Vanelli’s success is evidenced by the enthusiastic international following for the brand and its ever-expanding range of bathroom and kitchen accessories as well as tableware.

Vanelli hand picks international artists and designers and works with them to create design objects that will enhance the natural beauty of the marble and emphasize its quality and versatility. Partnerships with designers like Carlotta Turini have been particularly fruitful for FiammettaV Home Collection. Turini’s White Carrara Marble Ashtray with Pineapple Shape for FiammettaV is exemplary of this new generation of marble design, which is fresh, young, and whimsical while retaining the luxe elegance and quality that has been associated with Carrara marble for centuries. Demonstrating the brand’s interest in cross-disciplinary creativity, Vanelli has also partnered with designer Massimiliano Giornetti, the former creative director of luxury fashion label Salvatore Ferragamo, and artist-designer Michel Boucquillon, amongst others.

FiammettaV also works closely with interior design studios, architects, artists, designers, and galleries on specialized projects in marble. Even the open edition pieces in the FiammettaV Home Collection range are actually unique since the individual shading and vein patterning in every block of marble means that each piece retains slight differences. The FiammettaV collections are all entirely made in Carrara and represent the continuation of both the Vianelli and Carrara marble legacies; bringing together history, culture, and technology to create spectacular design. FiammettaV Home Collection pieces are stocked by some of the world's most prestigious stores, including Flair and Luisa Via Roma in Italy; Harrods, Heal's, and Selfridges in London; and Bergdorf Goodman in New York.