Maurizio Riva: “I am a carpenter who wants to improve the world”
Discovering the soul of Riva 1920
He isn’t a life mentor, but he daily spreads important messages through his work.
Passionate and meticulous, Maurizio Riva takes care of his products from the first to the last stage of manufacture. Born in 1954, the president of the Riva 1920, puts his soul into every inch of his company, where he himself makes sure that everything works and is in place.
We meet him at Riva Center in Cantù, in the province of Como, surrounded by the scent of wood and “order”, which is a key word for him.
The Riva Center
Showroom
The showroom covers 1,200 smq Among the most striking pieces is the “Draft Horse: Peace and Hope,” more than three meters tall and made for Expo in 2015.
In addition to solid wood pieces from the Riva 1920 collections, you can admire the so-called “Workers’ Bicycles”, a private collection, purchased by Maurizio Riva himself, dating back to the early 1900s.
Pangea Lab
The Pangea Lab is located on the top floor of the Riva Center. Designed as a multifunctional space, this is where the Company organizes his training events and conferences.
Inside, you can see the Pangea Table designed by Michele de Lucchi for Expo 2015.
The table is inspired by the continent Pangea, which originally included all the land surface.
Also located along the walls is a xylotheque, which contains about 900 different woods from around the world.
Wood Museum
The Wood Museum houses a collection of machines and tools that is unique in Europe. The pieces on display are, in fact, more than 5,000.
Standing out above them all, is the Antico table with an iron base designed by Renzo Piano.
This table is 12 m long and is made of 48000-year-old Kauri wood from New Zealand.
Leaving his building, we feel that this special carpenter and his story left a mark on us too. We come back home, after visiting the entire Showroom, the Production Units, the exclusive Wood Museum and sitting at the Pangea Table, created for Expo 2015.
We bring with us the honor of having walked among millennial woods and the awareness that, whatever happens, we’ll get up just like the spinning top.
Thanks to Cinzia Porro, Marketing and Communication Manager at Riva 1920.
