Manteco, the Italian wool fabric manufacturer that specializes in producing high-quality circular textiles, has recently unveiled Casa Manteco, an immersive experience project and an exhibition hosted in the company’s headquarters near Prato.
They are hosting a multipurpose space devised to encourage connection and present the company’s identity and values that have guided it since it was founded by Enzo Anacleto Mantellassi in 1943.
The project was curated by FormaFantasma, a Milan-based design studio known for its attention to storytelling based upon detail and identity of the companies it collaborated with for prestigious enterprises, including, among others, Marni, Ferrari, Prada, Cassina, Bulgari, Flos, Salone del Mobile, Jil Sander, and Vitra Design Museum.
This exhibition is open for private visits upon appointment and discloses the company’s own production model and family history. “Casa evokes hospitality and a sense of belonging. It is a place where people feel recognized and part of something. The company has never been just a place of production but a space of human relationships and community, shaped by the contribution of clients and collaborators alike,” said Franco Mantellassi, son of Enzo Anacleto and president, Manteco.
Casa Manteco brings together a series of distinct spaces under one roof, each with its own language yet united by a shared vision.
At the heart of the project is the Galleria, a space that reinvents the traditional concept of a corporate museum and unfolds non-linear sections that allow for a free and fluid visit.
Historical photographs, interactive videos, and production tools become part of a layered and multifaceted narrative, illustrating how Prato’s textile tradition has evolved through Manteco’s know-how into a contemporary language based upon innovation and responsibility.
This narrative also embraces a dialogue with the wool tradition of the Casentino, a heritage from the 1300s preserved and continued by Manteco, as it acquired Casentino Lane, a nearby specialized spinning mill, in 2023.
The journey continues through the Sala Tessuti, an experiential showroom designed to explore the collections and encourage creative exchange.
The Archivio section houses Manteco’s entire heritage from 1943 to the present, serving as an endless source of inspiration for clients and the internal creative team. The Giardino offers a space for pause and connection, an oasis for gathering and exchange.
Visitors can then step into the Circularity Lab to explore each phase of the company’s path toward circular excellence, while Studio hosts Manteco’s most iconic textiles and is the area where they start creating future collections.
“This project is a narrative and research infrastructure. It is not a finished exhibition, but an open system that organizes materials, processes, and knowledge in a way that can be explored and reconfigured,” explained Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin of FormaFantasma.
“Casa Manteco reflects our approach to design: we often work with archives, production systems, and supply chains, aiming to make visible the relationships between material, labor, and cultural and ecological context,” they added.
Manteco produces 100% made-in-Tuscany fabrics through MSystem, a certified and fully traceable zero-mile sustainable supply chain. Since its early days, it has developed pioneering circular economy projects by recycling discarded high-quality textiles into its proprietary wool brands, MWool and ReviWool, to name a few product variants.
The company has also received numerous international recognitions and is a member of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, while it actively promotes the culture of sustainable fashion through Manteco Academy by collaborating with various fashion schools worldwide.