Creating vignettes and scenes is part of Girardi’s signature style. His firm was founded in 2009, and specializes in the design of luxury hotels, restaurants, and private residences. From the D.O.M. Hotel to the Notorious nightclub in Rome, the restyling of the renowned Il Riccio restaurant, or to his next project in Milan, each creation embodies a unique vision that blends timeless elegance and innovation. Girardi creates atmospheres that tell the stories and histories of each place, while staying true to the authentic soul of each destination.

In ever-evolving ways and different contexts he tries to “capture an environment while integrating a home into it.” His projects turn to motifs from classic architecture, which to him are solid as ancient stone. Different objects, design elements, and fragments of different eras are woven together into the eclectic chaos. The result is disordered enough to feel full of life while staying upright. His process is a pleasurable tale to follow, where materials speak, shapes intertwine, and colors tell stories of light and the sea. Though he is now a cosmopolitan citizen of the world—he lived 10 years in Miami—his heart is always drawn back toward his homeland of Naples, to which references in his work are common. Think of the energy of Vesuvius and the magic of narrow alleys in southern Italy.

At the center of Antonio Girardi’s own home, for example, is the Green Room. It’s undoubtably the beating heart of the project, where sunlight is filtered through green glass. The room is a poetic force, where tree roots seem to have made their way through the home, bringing with them a timeless freshness. Green makes its way into every corner of the apartment: it’s in the walls, in the fabrics, and in the lights. But it is not only color that tells a story here. The house is a stage of light and shadow, of reflections that intertwine with memory, of details that evoke ancient stories. Every corner of the home is designed to tie beauty to the essence of life.

A green arched doorway connects the living room to the Green Room, creating a refined chromatic thread that runs throughout the home. The walls, embellished with moldings and stucco, enhance the elegance of the whole, while a vintage fan on the ceiling adds a colonial touch.

Bonacina’s Nastro armchairs, with fabrics by Manuel Canovas, are gracefully arranged and seem to be waiting for someone to sit down and launch into a conversation reflecting on life. Sandro Petti’s table of glass, plexiglass, and brass, looks back to the 1970s, when the world was changing at a frenzied pace.