The devil is in the haircut…

Named “Un diavolo per capello” after an Italian expression that means being irritated or angry (literally “A devil for every hair”), this popular hair stylist in the town of Camucia in the central Italian province of Arezzo is a youthful and fashionable location with a refined, essential ambience reminiscent of an art gallery.
The approximately 100 square metre interior created by Studio Svetti Architetture, a practice originally founded in Florence which now also has a branch in London, won an honourable mention in the 2020 edition of the Ceramics and Design competition. At first glance, the most striking aspect of the project is the intense dialogue it establishes between space and material, an approach that has created a location with all the functions of a hairdressing salon while completely overturning the design concept traditionally associated with this kind of business. The layout rejects all concession to conventionality and instead opts for a modern theatrical space that combines astonishing visuals with an innovative concept of a workspace. “The challenge was to break away from the formal monotony of a traditional hairdressing salon and instead create a space that would be both functional and unconventional,” says Emanuele Svetti. “A cross between an art gallery and a modern metropolitan fashion boutique, it is a white space with an astonishing giant cube standing at its centre, a kind of meteorite that has crashed to earth. This remarkable object takes centre stage, serving as a distinctive design element and at the same time the heart of the salon itself.” Organised around this iconic element, which stands behind the reception desk and also serves as a partition screening customers seated in the hair wash area, the salon itself is characterised by rigorous geometric patterns and cool black and white tones that contrast effectively with the warm yellow colour of the cube. In this geometric layout, tiles from NovaBell’s Imperial series have been used to create a neutral rectangular grid pattern that serves as a backdrop to the entire salon. “Ceramic tiles are a well-established field of Italian manufacturing excellence and helped us both in the aesthetic and formal aspects of the project and in terms of performance,” says architect Svetti. “NovaBell porcelain stoneware provided the technical qualities we needed in terms of resistance to wear and acids, as well as the advantage of a surface that is easy to sanitise, one of the key requests made by hair stylist Sonia Ciambelli during the brainstorming phase.” The cube geometry and the grid background are also found in the furnishings, including the Chair One seats by Konstantin Grcic for Magis: the overall effect conveys a sense of glamour along with substantive design and skilful execution.
Last but not least, the salon is equipped with a domotic system that controls and optimises energy and water consumption, as well as a state-of-the-art heat pump and soapy water treatment system that far exceeds legal requirements and guarantees low-impact waste water disposal.