Nowadays it is common for brands and luxury houses to restore public landmarks or buying prestigious private properties. In the first case, these brands and luxury houses turn into modern patrons of the arts, even though their acts of corporate philanthropy often hide some great returns as they allow them to strengthen their commercial presence, but also to secure tax benefits. Buying private properties allows these companies instead to expand their real estate portfolios, something that may lead to ambitious architectural projects.
The latest acquisition of this kind took place right before Christmas, when Bernard Arnault, chairman and chief executive officer of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, bought (through a private negotiation) the 15th-century Casa degli Atellani and Leonardo Da Vinci's vineyard in Milan (the figures of the sale were not disclosed).
Located in Corso Magenta, the property is considered as an architectural jewel: Leonardo moved to Milan from Florence in 1482 and was commissioned "The Last Supper" in the refectory of Santa Maria delle Grazie by Ludovico Maria Sforza, also known as "il Moro" (the Moor), Duke of Milan, in 1495.
Three years later, Ludovico, who had donated the property to the Atellani, a family of courtesans loyal to him, granted Leonardo the ownership of a planted and cultivated vineyard of about 16 rows (around 8,000 square metres) in the field at the bottom of the garden of the Atellani house.
Leonardo left Milan when the King of France's troops took over the city in 1500. The vineyard was confiscated, but returned in the possession of Leonardo who left a part of it to a servant and another to his pupil, Gian Giacomo "il Salaì" Caprotti.
Acquired in 1919 by senator and entrepreneur Ettore Conti, the house was restored by his son-in-law, architect Piero Portaluppi, who also worked on a second restoration as the building was damaged by the bombing in 1943, during the Second World War. The house reopened to the public in 2015 to coincide with the Expo. In the meantime, researchers from the University of Milan excavated the residues of the original roots, identified the stock of the vineyard and replanted the Malvasia di Candia aromatica, an aromatic white grape, reproducing in this way in 2018 Leonardo's wine.
Besides, since it reopened, Casa degli Atellani, that also includes six for-rent (for short stays) apartments, hosted several private events, such as fashion shows and presentations by Dior and Swarovski.
The destination of the property post-acquisition is still to be discussed: at the moment Casa degli Atellani is open to the public for visits and, obviously, it is possible to book the apartments for short stays (LVMH also owns hospitality operators Cheval Blanc and Belmond, so maybe the apartment will pass under their management...), but maybe Arnault bought the property to use it as an exhibition space for his private art collection or as a location for events connected with the brands owned by LVMH (this could be an idea not only during the local Fashion Week, but also for the Design Week).
As Casa degli Atellani also includes a café and in 2013 the LVMH Group took a majority stake in storied Pasticceria Confetteria Cova Srl, owner of the Cova brand and of the Cova Montenapoleone Srl firm, maybe the café will be an outlet for Cova products.
Besides, according to the reports Arnault bought not just the house, but also the vineyard, and LVMH also owns several firms in the wines and spirits category (Ruinart, Dom Pérignon, Moët & Chandon and Veuve Clicquot), so, who knows, there may be plans to incorporate the vineyard production under one of these labels (even though it is possible that being the property considered a common asset of artistic and historical interest by the Italian Ministry of Cultural and Environmental Heritage, there may be some restrictions to some sections of the house and to the vineyard as well).
But this architectural landmark may reveal as inspiring also from a design point of view: Dolce & Gabbana’s 2018 High Fashion show was inspired by the period in which Leonardo lived in Milan, and, after Arnault acquired Casa degli Atellani, some of the fashion houses under the LVMH group (that controls fashion brands such as Dior, Louis Vuitton and Givenchy among others) may want to take inspiration from the property to create prints, embroideries and motifs inspired by the house.
Inspirations may come from the floral elements and arabesques from the Portrait Hall, the astrological symbols from the Zodiac Hall or Portaluppi's motto, "Faire sans dire", literally "To do without saying" meaning "doing things without wasting time/without boasting about them" or "facts not words". So, get architecturally acquainted with this property to spot references in future collections by brands and luxury houses part of the LVMH conglomerate.
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