A marble wine rack inspired by vineyards and Roman architecture.
For thousands of years, across the world and different cultures, people have made wine. By comparison, the manufacturing of wine racks and bottle holders is a relatively new thing. And creative designs are rare. Products that are imaginative, functional, and developed with a thoughtful core concept are even rarer. Which is exactly what makes Barrique so special. Created by award-winning Italian designer, architect and artist Elda Bellone, this marble wine rack has a multilayered design that brings together different concepts and motifs. The name itself references the barrique, a traditional wine barrel usually made from oak wood. Here, the minimal design is sculptural and highlights the beauty of solid marble.
Using Rain Forest Green marble, the designer created a parallel between the colors of the solid stone and those of a vineyard. Shades of green and dark earthy hues or lighter streaks remind of the vines, branches and leaves of a vineyard growing on a hill soaked in sunshine, in the Italian countryside. At the same time, assembling the marble wine holder creates a series of openings that reference clusters of grapes. The nature-inspired design thus grows organically as more modules come together. Functionalism and rationalism also influenced the design.
Finally, the modular marble wine rack references the idea of architectural object that comes to life through the assembly of different elements. Elda Bellone took inspiration from Roman aqueducts to create Barrique, with arches and curves giving the design an architectural quality.
An ingenious, modular design.
Like any other architectural design, this modular marble wine rack requires assembly. “Barrique evokes a real construction on a small scale that then lends itself to domestic use as a bottle holder. The form becomes open and always new, as assembling the pieces in a different way one can obtain new compositions, which can be added to and multiplied indefinitely,” says Elda Bellone. Small brass pins connect two modules together to create a larger unit. Adding more elements helps to build a more spectacular structure that further highlights the similarity with a grape bunch. The dynamic construction can grow endlessly, with only countertop or floor space restricting potential architectural creations.
Available at launch in green marble, Barrique features a natural finish that requires only minimal maintenance. The designer also aims to introduce new marble variations that follow the nature-inspired theme in the near future. You can find the Barrique marble wine holder exclusively in the Gessato Design Store. Photographs ©Gessato.
