Manta Stone Design is a Portuguese design brand of Gárgula Gótica. Working with Portuguese stone for over 25 years, the brand specialises in marble furniture pieces. 'We blur the boundaries between sculptures and furniture. Stone is so interesting to work with and ideas never run out. It never gets boring,' explains Oly Meffert, Design and Innovation Officer of Manta. We interview him to know more about the brands recent participation at Maison&Objet in Paris and some of the challenges of working with marble and stone.
Marble pieces inspired by volcanoes
Manta was founded in 2017 and originally came out with the Melting Collection, consisting of marble furniture pieces that resemble flowing magma. 'We're a team of international masters from countries like England, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, and I'm from Germany. I love working with stone, because I know the pieces I make will outlast me. My inspiration for the Flowing Collection were submarine volcanoes. The movements of the pieces are inspired by by the instantaneous cooling of molten rock under water and its resulting twists.'
Challenges in the pandemic
However, COVID-19 put the brand's plans on hold. 'It was a difficult period for our brand, delaying the completion of some of our pieces,' Oly says. 'We start each piece using Pele de Tigre, a Portuguese marble,' Oly says, adding that the company has a deep appreciation for Portuguese marble, which comes in a variety of colours, from white, to pink to green and black. 'The most well known type of marble is probably Carrara from Italy, which is great for sculptures or figurines, but I prefer the Portuguese marble, as it is more interesting for pieces outside and has more movement and action inside the stone. It's harder so it's also more difficult to work with. Especially the Verde Serpa, a green marble which is one of my favourites, is a pain in the ass to work with,' Oly jokes. 'It can add up to a month if we make pieces in this stone. So the production times are often long.'
The pandemic posed significant challenges for Manta, as production slowed and some key pieces for exhibitions couldn't be completed on time. 'Our work takes time, with each collection requiring six months to finalise,' Oly explains. However, the brand is now back on track, with a successful launch of the Flowing Collection.
Back at Maison&Objet
Following the pandemic, Manta returned to the Maison&Objet fair in Paris with the Flowing Collection, featuring twisted, organic shapes, biomorphic forms and sinuous lines. 'This collection is a limited edition, with five pieces so far, each limited to six creations. The dining table was the most popular piece. Everyone asked, how do you do this? They thought it couldn't be made of stone. But, we said, try to lift it and you'll know it's stone,' Oly jokes. The table is the largest piece in the collection, weighing an impressive 470 kilograms. 'The way we achieve this is by making all the pieces by hand, and finishing it by hand. Its one thing to make the form out of the stone, but it's another thing to finish it.'
When asked about the visitor turnout at the fair, Oly reflects, 'This year was the 30th anniversary of Maison&Objet, and while the organisation was great, I expected a bit more. The number of visitors varied by day, due to the paralympic games that took place at the same time. While I've seen it busier in previous years, we still had a very successful fair. We had a nice place in the signature hall and we got a lot of interest from different galleries and designers. The pieces of the collection are already nearly sold out.'
Next year the company will return to the fair. 'We like to go to the January edition for Maison&Objet because there are a lot of interior designers and architects. But it's so cold compared to Portugal!' he laughs. Despite the colder weather, Oly is excited for the upcoming event and the future of Manta. 'The process of finishing the stones by hand has not changed since the finishing of the pyramids in Egypt. Our designs are timeless. Next January we're excited to showcase these and more pieces again.'
More information:
Manta Stone Design
+351 966 423 047
[email protected]
www.manta-stonedesign.com
Gárgula Gótica
+351 244 767 122
[email protected]
www.gargulagotica.pt