The Best of Luxury Design & Craftsmanship Summit 2019

Are you ready for the best of design and craftsmanship? Organized by the Covet Foundation, the Luxury Design & Craftsmanship Summit 2019 presented you with a new perspective and the most innovative practices of the luxury and design industries. Come and find out some of the highlights.

The opening ceremony of the event started with a speech by Amândio Pereira. During his speech, he not only took that moment to thank the Makers & Craftsmen for their contribution to the World of Craftsmanship. “We should work on the preservation of the crafts so that future generations can enjoy them. This Summit is part of that preservation mission”.

There were many individual interventions during the event. One of the main talks was given by Michelangelo Foundation, as well as the Doppia Firma Event, a top craftsmanship event, whose latest edition had the participation of three Portuguese partnerships. According to Nicole Segundo, representative of the Michelangelo Foundation:

“We want to keep the Traditions alive so future generations can enjoy them. Michelangelo supports the connection between design and craftsmanship so that we can promote the growth of creativity and craftsmanship worldwide”

The first one was focused on the dialogue between design and artisanal excellence and counted with the presence of Christian Haas (a German designer who’s been living and building a solid career in Porto for years), and Emmanuel Babled (a French Designer who works in Babled Design Studio, located in Lisbon). They ended up concluding and agreeing that Portuguese craftsmanship is rich in history and culture – art should definitely be preserved.

The second presentation that closed day 1 had the intervention of João Barros (CEO and Creative Director at PullCast), Rui Pinto (Master Jewellery Artisan at PullCast), Conceição Amaral, the current CEO of FRESS (Fundação Espírito Santo), Joaquim Paulo from Creative Hub and Vitor Querido, an artisan of the culture project. Among the main topics discussed was the importance of preservation and promotion of the classical craftsmanship behind the conception of the jewellery pieces. However, an urgent topic mentioned was the fact that these Crafts and the Design behind them also need an endgame, or more specifically a buyer or even an investor.

On the second day, Carlos Coelho definitely captured the attention of many participants in what can be defined as an amazing Masterclass regarding communication in the current days. Not only did he mentioned the basis of marketing and the essence of communication, but he also underlined the fact that the success of a certain company revolves heavily around competition and communication.

Of course, among the many highlights of the event, the main four panels deserved to be pointed out. The main topics behind them were focused on diverse themes such as the future of craftsmanship, the importance of fusing design with artisanal techniques, and even topics regarding the branding and marketing behind these pieces.

During day 2, the topics turned more towards marketing/branding, as well as the importance of a distinctive factor in the conception of these pieces. On the topic of Marketing of excellence, the participants heard an enlightening intervention from Miguel Costa, the current General Manager of Bentley and Lamborghini in Portugal, Rita Sambado, Ricardo Conceição, Manager at Atelier des Createurs, and Ana Maria Vasconcelos, who is the General Manager from Belcinto, the Vice Presidente of APICCAPS and again with the presence of Carlos Coelho in the panel.

All the participants had good examples of success stories, as well as distinct perspectives with one thing in common: the value of craftsmanship which was definitely an element that was part of each of their own success stories.

Each speaker showed several examples of their art in design or the art of business that they are involved with. During the conference’s Q&A, they took the moment to speak about their distinct backgrounds and their arts or businesses, along with some interesting perspectives regarding the development of design in the modern age, especially regarding a “distinctive factor” that every designer needs in order to stand out nowadays.

Last, but definitely not least we can’t forget to mention the artisans who were present during both days of the event, each showcasing their art. Among the main arts presented we were able to find ceramics, porcelain painting, silver chiselling, chiselling, filigree, metalworking, jewellery, woodworking, bobbin lace, embedding, wadding, weaving, shoemaking, embroidery from Madeira and torno.

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