We might ask ourselves whether in the urban dimension of life, where we spend most of our time, our senses are solicited too much or too little. Sometimes I think about it, I ask myself the same question and then I always say the same thing: “Leonardo, this is not the question”. I must have a short memory because I know very well that what affects the mind, what can inspire it by giving it new visions – in every field, even in our work – is not so much what we have in front of us as the predisposition to attention, to conscious vision , to empathic listening.

Well, I understood that this soul status is not always easy in the size of the metropolis, because speed annihilates most of our listening and reflection skills. And this is why Michele and I often feel the need to get out from our agenda, to stop so as not to be overwhelmed by an inevitable mechanism, and to free the mind in another space, to make it fly with new energy: that of nature , of other geographical places, of other perspectives and cultures.

For us, every trip, even for a couple of days, is truly a vacation, in the literal sense of the term, a moment to be vacant, “empty”, and therefore free to welcome what surrounds us. Think about it, sometimes the excess of stress empties our spirit instead of filling it with quality. It is a bit like today’s life: the more bombed we are, the more incapable we are of discerning information because we don’t have time anymore. Or maybe it’s an alibi that we tell each other.

Michele loves to travel, and I love to travel with him. Sometimes we point to cities, sometimes to nature, which is as important to me as the air I breathe. This week we gave ourselves two days in the mountains, in the Courmayeur area – inspired by a report on the latest issue of A.D. – because there can be no photo, however well done, that can return the truth of a visited place. This also applies to the world of design, if you think about it.

In our work we are inundated with magazines, we follow many collections and brands on social media, and we roam everywhere to be updated on the latest news. But in the end we want to visit the companies, we prefer to participate in fairs, around the world, to physically touch the pieces. And traveling is a bit the same thing, it is physically touching the world. And it’s beautiful, because the inspirations we can draw, even in our work, are many. You can smell a place you visit, you can listen to its noises and silences, you can carefully follow the words of people met by chance. It happened again this time.

The journey to reach the destination is already a holiday: we dedicate precious time to observing the landscape, especially Michele who does not drive! We are silent, at times we talk, fantasizing about what we will see and do, once we arrive. It is the moment of waiting that will become a memory, it is the moment to live life now.

We arrive in Entreves, above Courmayeur, and get out of the car. The air is fresh and clean, a smell of freshly mown grass takes hold of our nostrils. The geraniums, in the brighter colors of the fire, show off velvet petals, and the gentians violently ruin our senses, with a blue tending towards purple. All this is good for the soul and each image can generate an idea, a creation, an unexpected thought. I know, because Michele and I look each other in the eyes, and it’s a look I know well.

In the splendid Auberge de La Maison hotel there is wood everywhere, we like it. We go up to the room, open the windows and admire Mont Blanc, a mythical colossus capable of captivating the mere pronunciation of its name. We study every detail of furniture and colors, we observe the fabrics used, we look at the towels, and how the bathroom products are positioned. But the first thing we do is the study of light and sockets, a small professional deformation. It seems to us that everything works. We just have to think about the spa and dinner. We put on our bathrobes, go down the stairs surrounded by ancient paintings and enter the world of well-being. A bientot.