Manuel & Vanessa Vivian

Manuel and Vanessa Vivian are a father-and-daughter design partnership whose work brings together culture, craftsmanship and experimentation. Manuel Vivian is a designer of long experience and a natural guardian of Italy’s finest artistic and manufacturing traditions. An expert in artisan production processes, he sets no limits on experimentation, and his designs have shaped Axolight’s identity over many years. Some of the brand’s most important historical collections are his creations, including Bell, Skin, Skirt, Spillray, Fairy, Aura, Clavius, Virtus, Polia and Framework.

His pieces combine technical skill with a strong decorative sensibility. Skirt has generous, softly flared pendant forms, while Spillray clusters delicate glass elements into chandeliers that give off a pure, refined light. Across his work, materials and making processes are explored for their full expressive potential.

Vanessa Vivian has followed in her father’s footsteps with a confident voice of her own. She is the creative mind behind the Layers and Plumage collections, designs with the maturity of a far more experienced designer. Layers is a modular family of sculptural pendants built from combinations of geometric shapes. Plumage is a bold, feathered design in soft fabric, available in a range of colours, that adds movement and lightness to a space and also helps to absorb sound. Together, father and daughter carry a remarkable family legacy forward while keeping Italian craftsmanship at the heart of contemporary lighting.

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