Morghen Studio
Morghen Studio is a Milan-based multidisciplinary design studio founded by Roberto Tarter and Rodolfo Viola. Working at the intersection of design, art, and craftsmanship, the studio creates collectible lighting, furniture, and sculptural installations distinguished by a rigorous exploration of materials, light, and form. Every piece is conceived, developed, and meticulously handcrafted in their Milan workshop, where traditional artisan techniques are reinterpreted through technical research and contemporary experimentation.
Rooted in an ongoing dialogue between materiality and emotion, MORGHEN’s work transforms brass, metal, fabric, and light into sculptural compositions that redefine the perception of space. Presented internationally through galleries, exhibitions, and site-specific commissions, the studio’s practice balances heritage craftsmanship with an experimental spirit, resulting in timeless works that blur the boundaries between functional design and contemporary art.
Interview
We were born in two different small North Italian cities (Trento – close to the Brenner border, and Biella – Piedmont), then we both moved to Milan and met in 2004.
Roberto: A picture of Fountain by Marcel Duchamp, which I saw in a newspaper when I was 7 or 8. It’s still one of my favourite artists.
Rodolfo: My grandmother was a painter; I remember clearly the amazing smell of the oil paint in her studio.
We studied Industrial Design at Politecnico di Milano, and then we had different experiences, ranging from architecture to design and art. After spending time abroad, we met again in Milano in 2015 and decided to start a project together.
Roberto: The chance to generate some emotions/feelings in people through design;
Rodolfo: It started very early. Since I was a kid, I used to create objects. It was getting older that I realized this was a way for me to express my thoughts and convey meaning.
We observe, study, and feel our context (place, people, professional or sociological communities) and try to do something connected with it.
A dualism between theory and manufacturing, with an eye on communication.
Sometimes we start from everyday materials and try to ennoble it by the process; sometimes we use and shape them with a personal will. Every project needs its own material to be successful.
We rely on techniques passed on by the artisan heritage (wood, metal) mixed with experimentation and contemporary materials (resin, composite, LED light).
Find a reason why you think that your work would have the right to become public, and don’t look at the market; everyone can do that. Look at your inner self instead; that’s unique.
It’s hard to say; probably some of our works are close to the ready-made movement, others to minimalism, others might be connected with the Arts and Crafts movement or some topics, such as symbolism, typical of the postmodern movement.
Ettore Sottsass, Achille Castiglioni, Gino Sarfatti, Carlo Mollino, Angelo Mangiarotti, Dieter Rams and many others.
Formafantasma, Sebastian Errazuriz, Michael Anastassiades, Studio Drift, Max Lamb, Martino Gamper, Nendo, Giopato & Coombes, Jacopo Foggini, Vincenzo De Cotiis and many others.
Olafur Eliasson, Cerith Wyn Evans, Atelier Van Lieshout, Beniamino Servino, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Bernd e Hilla Becher, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Keith Jarrett, and many others.
Roberto: « The substance of things hoped for » (Dante Alighieri, Divina Commedia).
Rodolfo: Meaning through technique.
We hope that this tragic situation (Covid19) will make us clearly understand that the old system (production, economic, political) cannot guarantee any kind of future. We’re looking forward to seeing a new world rise and have a good feeling about it.
“Find a reason why you think that your work would have the right to become public, and don’t look at the market; everyone can do that. Look at your inner self instead; that’s unique.”
The Questions
(The Proust Questionnaire is a set of questions answered by the French writer Marcel Proust.
Other historical figures who have answered confession albums are Oscar Wilde,
Karl Marx, Arthur Conan Doyle, Stéphane Mallarmé, Paul Cézanne…)
Roberto: Life
Rodolfo: Freedom
Roberto: The void
Rodolfo: Dying unfulfilled
Roberto: Manichaeism
Rodolfo: Introversion
Roberto: Inconsciousness
Rodolfo: Superficiality
Roberto: All the people who help other people’s lives
Rodolfo: José Mujica, former Uruguayan president
Roberto: My will
Rodolfo: I used to smell everything literally
Roberto: Ready for a New Renaissance
Rodolfo: Optimist and curious to see a new world after this great battle everyone is fighting
Roberto: Be exteriorly spectacular
Rodolfo: Creativity
Roberto: Wisdom
Rodolfo: Empathy
Roberto: Femininity
Rodolfo: Same, empathy; there is no difference in human being
Roberto: Will, choice, sense
Rodolfo: In my opinion
Roberto: Empathy, and many others
Rodolfo: Dancing
Roberto: My bad memory
Rodolfo: I wish I were more extroverted
Roberto: Morghen
Rodolfo: Morghen
Roberto: A horse
Rodolfo: Definitely a wolf
Roberto: In a small town, by the sea during summer, and on the mountain for winter
Rodolfo: A small house in the countryside surrounded by nature
Roberto: My Life
Rodolfo: My thoughts
Roberto: Suicide
Rodolfo: Materialism
Roberto: Staying in Nature
Rodolfo: Creating problems and solving problems
Roberto: Staying in Nature
Rodolfo: Creating problems and solving problems
Roberto: My will
Rodolfo: Stubborn
Roberto: Their Presence
Rodolfo: Loyalty and empathy
Roberto: Konstantinos Kavafis, John Fante, Italo Calvino, José Saramago, and many others
Rodolfo: Ernest Hemingway, Isaac Asimov, and Tiziano Terzani, among others
Roberto: Robin Hood
Rodolfo: Don Chisciotte
Roberto: No one particularly. Ulysses, for some reason (as many of us)
Rodolfo: I’ve always dreamt of being a great explorer like Marco Polo, Yuri Gagarin, and Neil Armstrong
Roberto: All the people who risk their lives for other people
Rodolfo: Anyone who has great honesty and empathy
Roberto: Giacomo, Maddalena
Rodolfo: Leone and Luce
Roberto: People’s ignorance (not the one linked to sociological and economic conditions)
Rodolfo: Aggression and violence
Roberto: I didn’t start before and did more
Rodolfo: I never had the chance to meet my grandfathers
Roberto: Fast, better while sleeping
Rodolfo: Fulfilled
Roberto: “Who has not given everything has given anything” (Helenio Herrera)
Rodolfo: “When I saw I was under attack from all sides, I knew I was on the right track” (Man Ray)
“Every project needs its own material to be successful.”
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