Ciliegio Esterno

Ciliegio Esterno is an architecture and interior design studio with offices in Milan and Ventimiglia, working mainly between Italy and the French Côte d’Azur. The name comes from “Su un ciliegio esterno”, a song by Gianni Sergente about a man who sits in an outside cherry tree to be himself; the studio took that tree as an image of refuge, of a place one only imagines. Partners Chiara Castellana, in Milan, and Simoncristian Muscatello, in Ventimiglia, lead the design group.

The practice describes its work as tailored architecture: interiors built around the people who will live in them, furniture chosen and often drawn to measure, with lighting, fabrics and colours studied inside the same brief. A consolidated network of artisan workshops supports the projects, which range from houses to shops and, since 2017, to recording studios.