Cedar wood seats
Tempesta in Galera
2026
Tempesta is a collection born from the recovery of trees felled by extreme weather events, transforming loss into a resource and giving new value to materials that would otherwise be discarded.
Tempesta in Galera is the result of a collaboration between Monoferments, Monostudio’s independent research laboratory, Legance, and the Monza Correctional Facility. The project brings together design research, business, and social responsibility through the practice of design.
The initiative took shape within the walls of Monza Prison, crossing a physical and symbolic boundary often perceived as a separation between opposite worlds that, in reality, coexist within the human experience. Together with carpenters Alberto and Giuseppe Discacciati (DB Arredamenti), we developed a three-month educational workshop involving inmates in every stage of designing and crafting the stool.
The project stems from a desire to focus on designing behaviors before designing objects. The stool was conceived to be made using only a few tools and accessible skills, making the production process replicable even in contexts that are typically excluded from traditional design supply chains. The result is an open system capable of activating knowledge, relationships, and autonomy by building on the resources already available.
More than a training course, the workshop became a space for dialogue, collaboration, and mutual learning, where design served as a tool for human connection and personal growth. At the heart of the experience is reclaimed wood: a living, imperfect, and highly tactile material that demands time, care, and attentive craftsmanship.
The stool is distinguished by a yellow structural element shaped like a lightning bolt, paying tribute to Scarica Elettricaby Lapo Binazzi and the radical experience of Global Tools. Every piece is unique, preserving the marks of both the reclaimed material and the people who crafted it.
For us, Tempesta in Galera represents a form of design activism: an experiment that uses design as a tool for environmental, cultural, and social transformation, generating value through resource recovery, manual craftsmanship, and the sharing of knowledge.
Special thanks go to Cosima Buccoliero, Director of the Monza Correctional Facility, for her trust and support throughout the project; to Alberto and Giuseppe Discacciati (DB Arredamenti), whose generosity and dedication made the educational program possible; to Paolo Bacilieri, who created the exhibition poster together with the inmates through a collaborative workshop; and to Elisabetta Bongiorni for documenting the project through her photography.
Monoferments is Monostudio’s independent research laboratory dedicated to experimenting with natural, local, and reclaimed materials. Legance, an independent Italian law firm, supported this project by providing the materials and making its public presentation possible, contributing to an initiative that generates environmental, cultural, and social value.