Francesco Crippa

Woodcarver

©Francesco Crippa

From metal to wood

Francesco learned mostly from master artisans
His work ranges from classic to minimalist style
He aims at saving tradition by updating it

After a few years as a metalworker, Francesco Crippa fell in love with wood, a living matter. He learned the craft as an apprentice in many workshops in Brianza, north of Italy. In 2006 he started his own business as a woodcarver, both designing his unique pieces and making commissions. He also executes prototypes for interior designers, architects, furniture firms, and he restores antiques. While preserving the well-rooted tradition of ornamental woodcarving, Francesco’s work ranges from a classic style to modern, even minimalist shapes and innovative solutions. Through what he calls objects-symbols, he aims at communicating with the contemporary world.

Interview

©Francesco Crippa

©Francesco Crippa

How did you become a woodcarver?: I began as a metalworker, but I quit my job in a factory because I felt my material was wood. My grandfather was a woodcarver and he left me all his tools. Then I began to study especially in master artisans’ workshops and since then I never stopped.
How do you incoporate tradition and modernity?: I have a strong desire to save a long and great history. I’d like to preserve the tradition of woodcarving with all its incredible know-how and its artistic culture, by updating it, making it more contemporary and also gentle, not so heavy.
What is challenging in your craft today?: Woodcarvers have to face competition from 3D printers, which are unbeatable precision tools (vital for medical purposes), but of course they totally lack warmth. Unique pieces are more expensive and it’s crucial that people can understand the difference.
Why buy a handcrafted piece like yours?: When you buy an object handmade by an artisan, you buy his time, his sweat and all the doubts and questions he puts into the process of making. You buy his unique story as a human being, his particular vision of the world in a specific time, his feelings.

Francesco Crippa is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2006