Who I am
I was born on December 6, 1969 in Borgo San Lorenzo, in the heart of Mugello, in Tuscany. Growing up in a farmhouse with the Medici coat of arms meant being immersed in a world rich in charm and history, a place that continually ignited the imagination of a child. The rooms, so numerous and diverse that even today I have trouble remembering them all, were full of curiosity: a room entirely dedicated to the storage of fruit on the canes , barns, stables and granaries. And then there was him, the great fireplace, the heart of the house around which everything revolved. Among all the spaces, there was a place that I did not dare to explore alone: the cellar, divided on several levels below ground, which ended in a magnificent room with a brick vault, where they rested the oak barrels for wine. Even as a child I sensed that entering such a deep and dark environment evoked a different feeling.
It was my father who made my fantasy even more alive. During the summer nights, we would lie under the big sycamore tree and look at the stars, and he would tell me stories of brave people and adventurers. He told me about legendary heroes and epic journeys, like the return of Odysseus to Ithaca, a story that knew how to move him deeply. He had a special gift for conveying aspirations and ideals through his stories, inviting me to immerse myself not only in imaginary worlds but also within myself. He was a skilled soul-carrier, capable of vibrating deep chords and arousing intense emotions.
My mother was the mistress of the hearth, in every sense. She knew how to warm our body and heart. But the memories of those years are many and rich, too many for this brief presentation. Who knows if one day I will have the strength and ability to write them in a small text.
I address a thought of deep gratitude to my mother.
His presence in my life has been a gift that I have learned to understand and appreciate more and more over the years. He left me free to explore life in my own way, supporting me with patience and respecting my choices even when they meant letting go into the unknown. I realized with time that his love was an example of generosity to share, a force that has always guided me in my choices.
I started my biography by talking about my parents because I owe them a lot. Once I would have seen them as two ordinary people, parents like so many observing the human imperfection inherent in each of us, but with time and through a deep path of inner growth, I learned to recognize and appreciate their authentic value. This path has not only transformed me, but it has allowed me to rediscover and value them with new eyes, making me aware of the richness of the teachings that they left me.
"Never die the one who lives in your heart"
In the 1990s, I felt the need to explore beyond the known boundaries and see how people lived and were created elsewhere. So I often travelled to northern Europe, where I discovered the elegant and sober Gustavian and Provencal styles. In Sweden and France, I was fascinated by these ways of living, which combine warmth with discretion, made of soft colors and aged finishes.
It seemed natural to me to bring that delicate grace in my Tuscany, in a dialogue between rustic and refinement I would dare to call it a poetry of spaces. And so, slowly, I found my voice.
Here opens a curious chapter of my life. In 1995, I met two Franciscan hermit nuns who lived in solitude and introduced me to meditation and inner listening. They did not talk to me about religion, but what every human being yearns for: reconnecting with the Divine, with that infinite spark that lives in us. One day, Sister Emanuela - as if she were a character in Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables - told me that a teacher of great wisdom would come to Italy. He put a sum of money in my hands to attend a seminar with him. The number was important, and I could not afford it at that time, but thanks to that gift, I managed to live a nine-day retreat that freed my soul, introducing me to a dimension greater than what I knew. It was so that
In 1997 I met Claudio Naranjo, a psychotherapist and Chilean life teacher, who showed me a new way: that of the Enneagram, a project he called SAT ("Seekers After Truth" - Truth Seekers). Through him, I began to explore my inner world and see art as a tool of profound knowledge. For me, art became a means of transformation, a language to explore and understand myself. Over time, I understood that each brush can be a reflection, an act that not only transforms the work, but also who creates it.
In 2004, driven by these two passions - art and spirituality - I opened my shop. Here I developed the "Ancient Patina Technique," a method that combines natural pigments and glues to give furniture a lived character, as if they breathe time. Every layer of color, every nuance is for me a journey in memory, a way to bring back the past and transform it.
My shop has become a true refuge for those who seek something deeper than mere outward beauty. In my courses, I teach to treat every gesture as a breath, to find in every detail a moment of quietness and introspection.
I believe that art is a thin thread that reconnects us with our past and, at the same time, keeps us anchored to the present, allowing us to rediscover who we are. At the bottom, each work is an act of rebirth, a thread that unites memories, history and our being here today.
Thank you for reading me. After all, we are not very different...
Dario Biagioni ®️