Inspiration for textile craftsmanship

The patrician palace Ca’ Pisani Rubelli, home to the Rubelli Foundation, was formerly the house of the founder of the Rubelli family business which started in 1889 with the acquisition of an 18th century Venetian weaving mill. The Foundation houses and promotes the Rubelli Historical Archive, an extraordinary collection of textiles and works on paper which has been built up over the course of more than 100 years of the company’s activity in addition to its outstanding collection of ancient textiles. Passing through the display the visitor discovers the Art of Venetian and International handcrafted fabrics which represents the esprit of Rubelli. A voyage which starts in Venice with the ancient tradition of silk textiles produced by master weavers since the Middle Ages, from Renaissance pile-on-pile red velvets to the ciselé velvets (the famous Venetian Soprarizzo velvet); the latter produced by Rubelli, right from the start, on jacquard handlooms that are still active in Cucciago. The path continues across international borders with precious fabrics and cloths from Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, taking us into Rubelli’s world, where History, craftsmanship and man’s age-old know-how intertwine and inspire today’s designers and artisans.