Patrizia Donà CLOSE UP

A successor in the family tradition of glass-making, originating from the island of Murano in Venice, Patrizia has long been immersed in the world of artisanal design. Patrizia's father, a born Venetian from Murano, worked as a craftsman in Zagreb, where he moved for love of Patrizia's mother. His metal work was much appreciated and people used to say he had mani d'oro (golden hands). So Patrizia grew up surrounded by lavorazioni artigianali, artisanal work, in an atmosphere where striving for perfection and continuous improvement came to her naturally.

Later in life, Patrizia Donà graduated from the University of Zagreb, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of Art History and Ethnology. Soon after, she moved to Rotterdam where she studied Fashion Design at the Willem de Kooning Academy. She graduated Cum Laude in 2006 whereby her final collection “Souvenirs d’Enfance – La Manufacture des Automates” was nominated for Drempelprijs Academy Award. Among her first working experiences was the one for A.F. Vandervorst in Antwerpen, for whom she also worked as a stylist at fashion shows in Paris.

In 2012, Patrizia started her own label Laboratio Donà (later renamed Donà), which soon gained attention and appraisal for the “Hommage a Remington” bags, inspired by a famous typewriter.

The highlight of "Hommage a Remington" collection were the typewriter keys, firstly re-applied from the original Remington typewriters, and later, according to Donà's design, constructed and manufactured by a metal craftsmen company. Since 2013 Donà has her own production of typewriter keys.

So "Hommage a Remington" collection naturally led to three spectacular lines of QWERTY COLLECTION: Qwerty Elemental, Qwerty Limited and Qwerty Unique.

Patrizia collaborates with various workshops to help realise her designs, including highly skilled leatherworkers who use traditional tanning and finishing techniques. The end result is a truly artisanal product, recognized for its original, timeless design and excellence in manufacturing.