84 Petra Ryberg visited president Luca Testori at the Testori family villa in Italy to learn about the business’s heritage and seek inspiration for the patterns of some of the new fabrics (right) The power of trust Giacomo Villa of Testori Textiles and designer Petra Ryberg tell Alex Smith about the development of their latest collection of sustainable fabrics Established in 1904 and now owned by the fifth generation of the family, Testori Textiles first began working with interior design Petra Ryberg during her time as head of design at P&O Cruises Australia, when it created custom fabrics for the cruise line’s ships. “Trust and relationships can be very powerful for driving success, especially in a huge industry like cruise,” says Giacomo Villa, chief operating officer and head of sales at Testori. Several years later, and with Ryberg now at the head of her own firm Design Studio Berg+, the partnership has entered a new chapter with the creation of the Palazzo Collection. Designed by Ryberg and produced by Testori, the collection of International Maritime Organization-certified fabrics can be used for various applications onboard passenger vessels. According to Ryberg, inspiration for the patterns and colours came from Testori’s Italian heritage. “Testori’s story was one of my starting points in designing the collection,” she says. “We spent hours digging through archives and visiting historical villas throughout Italy to find references we could use in the design, examining everything from doors to windows or ceiling structures. That’s where all the patterns came from.” Both Ryberg and Testori were focused on creating environmentally sustainable fabrics, which are made with recycled INTERVIEW
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