MANUELA FEDERICA
"In my walks through the different neighborhoods
of New York, I have been fortunate to meet people from so many different cultures from around the world in one place. The connection between cultures and eras seems to me to be part of the beauty of the human experience that we can all share over time"
(manuela federica)
BIOGRAPHY
Manuela Federica is known for her designs and own stylistic language that have a particular harmony in their expressiveness.
Within her company iSHONi Design, the Swiss creative director and art director creates and produces individual corporate accessories for various clients, as well as for national and international luxury brands.
"Art can touch souls and transmit infinite areas
of knowledge that transcends time
in many dimensions"
(manuela federica)
Manuela Federica has been fascinated by creating harmonies and balan-ces between shapes and colours since the early childhood.
Design and Inspiration have always been a very important part of her life.
Born in 1964, Manuela Federica grew up in an environment full of art and culture.
Early contacts with people like Hadj Moussa Ag Akhamouk, the late Amenokal of the Kel Ahaggar who lived with the family in 1968 to write a book with her parents, showed her that it is "harmony and the good that connects people".
Manuela Federica was 6 years old, when her parents separated and she grew up with her father in Thun (Switzerland) in a cultural environment that from generation to generation had friendly contacts with artists, authors and scientists. Early on, she developed a certain admiration for the lives of people that was based on a deep passion for what seemed so important to them. She sensed that such dedication could lead to a true meaning of life.
In 1981 - Manuela Federica was 16 years old - her mother Federica de Cesco (Swiss author) received in her home at the lake of Geneva Parisian Dominican priest Raymond Leopold Bruckberger to whom she showed drawings that Manuela had offered her at one of their rare, but often inspirative encounters. Raymond Bruckberger decided to present these ornamental and floral designs to Leïla Menchari, the famous creative director and decorator of HERMES in Paris. Leïla Menchari has been so impressed that sent two letters to Manuela Federica praising the subtle balance of her designs and encouraging her to pursue her art: "Continue to be enthusiastic about beauty despite external challenges, because that is what remains and what nourishes your quest for beauty". (Leïla Menchari in a letter to Manuela Federica in 1996)
"At the end of the day we're all the same.
And it is the Good in each one of us and what connects us, that interests me"
(manuela federica)
Manuela Federica with Hadj Moussa Ag Akhamouk in 1970 (left), and with her mother Federica de Cesco (Swiss Author) and her Japanese stepfather
Manuela Federica attended art school and trained for five years as an art book designer with Ted Scapa (Benteli Verlag). She became a mother at 23, continued on her creative path as a single mother and founded her own company. Therewith, she turned her passion into her profession, which allowed her to take on responsibilities and at the same time provide her child with a happy and emotionally stable childhood. She lives near Geneva.
WORK
Manuela Federica founded her company iSHONi in 1996 under the slogan "iSHONi - The world, reflected in decorative design".
The word "iSHONi" meaningfully stands for the word "together" in Japanese, as it represents her attitude of letting the client directly participate to the creative process.
iSHONi designs and produces for various companies in Switzerland and abroad customer gifts that cover the range from everyday to exclusive. Her clients include small and medium sized companies from various professions, worldwide known jewellery and watch brands, luxury hotels, museums such as the Acropolis Museum in Athens, the most renowned porcelain manufacturers such as Rosenthal Porcelain and Hutschenreuther, multinational companies and department stores, international sports organisations, events and world championships, as well as the World Economic Forum. Custom designed silk accessories such as foulards, scarves, neckties, rugs, beach towel collections, high quality porcelain items and collections for design rugs for
mtm Munich have been her main segments for thirty years.
From 2008 to 2012, Manuela Federica lived in New York and designed exclusive rug- & carpet collections for ABC Carpet&Home New York that were published several times in American Design Magazines such as Interior Design Magazine, Hali Modern and Modern Carpets and Textiles Interiors. Her collections became known worldwide and have been regularly exhibited at the major carpet shows in Hannover (Domotex, Germany and Atlanta, USA).
Paul Chapman, Vice Chairmen & President ABC Carpet & Home New York states: “Her dedication to the Rug Design industry is bar none. Manuela Federica’s design work is known worldwide, and she holds the highest respect among her peers".
Thanks to her broad professional knowledge she is commissioned on a regular base for special projects with international distribution. Her years of experience in various execution techniques, as well as her ability to understand and visually translate client needs are crucial to her success. Her work has been published several times including in Paris Match (France), ELLE (Switzerland), Meyer's (Switzerland), Tsujiori (Japan), Freundin (Germany), Success! (Switzerland), Rug News (New York), Femina (Switzerland), Dentrocasa (Italy), Le Temps (Switzerland), Zhi Hu (China), Berner Zeitung (Switzerland), LDP Interior Textiles (New York), Galatea (Italie), Schweizer Familie (Switzerland), annabelle (Switzerland, Prestige Magazine (Hong Kong), Home Style (Taiwan), Society Marbella Magazine (Spain), Tableware International (England) and Home Deco (Germany).