Art From the Earth

Art From the Earth

In interior design, two elements move people like no other: striking displays of color and beautiful products of nature. Sky blue, baby blue and midnight blue are examples of shades that catch our attention and possess the innate ability to calm any setting. Natural stone is the perfect material, the ultimate complement to any décor.Stone Tech International’s Stone Gallery at the International Design Center is a celebration of nature’s most precious stones, carved from the earth in exotic places such as India, Italy, Tanzania and Brazil.

Azul Macauba Quartzite in the company’s Naples Warehouse is characterized by streaks of sky blue. Steps away, inside the showroom, a single slab of solid blue stands on an easel, one of only a handful of slabs cut from the solid blue deposit found deep in the Azul Macauba quarry.

Herein lays the secret to Stone Tech International’s success. Owner Giovanni Briguglio travels the world searching for first quality, unique materials. In The Stone Gallery, ever-changing walls of exquisite slabs are awash with splashes of fiery red, turquoise, blue, and gold.

“Giovanni in Brazil is like a woman in a shopping mall,” says Diane Snyder, Stone Gallery director. “He wants the best of the best and he is constantly out searching for it.”

Giovanni’s passion for stone was sparked at the age of nine, when his father sat him on a stool in his shop in Italy, and Giovanni polished his first piece of marble. From that day forward, his knowledge, understanding and expertise grew.

Started in West Palm Beach in 1993 by Giovanni and his wife Josephine Briguglio, this family business is growing. Stone Tech’s second location on Railhead Boulevard in Naples boasts a 23,000 square foot warehouse and one of the largest selections of first quality slabs in the region, if not the state. The Stone Gallery in the International Design Center, their third location, is literally an artistic experience.

Stone Tech International, a wholesale distributor, complements the work of any stone fabricator by providing an incredibly large and varied selection of first quality slabs, including Marble, Granite, Travertine, Limestone, Quartzite, Onyx and Labradorite.

“Sometimes, people think that granite only comes in eight colors,” explains Domenic, Naples general manager and son of Giovanni and Josephine. “It’s a shame, because they miss seeing the incredible variety that Mother Nature has given us.” Stone Tech’s Naples warehouse, just off Old 41 south of Bonita Beach Road, stocks hundreds of colors and thousands of slabs.

There is nothing standard about the natural stone at Stone Tech International. In recognition of the difference that superior quality makes, more and more designers and builders send their clients to Stone Tech International exclusively. Designer Lana Knapp of Collins & DuPont Interiors says she “prefers to use Stone Tech because they have the most exotic stones in the area. New granites arrive on a regular basis, so I always have a lot to choose from. They don’t carry the run-of-the- mill stones, so I can always count on finding something unusual that no one else in this area will have.”

When designing a home, floors and countertops set the stage for everything that surrounds them. The basic, common granites have been such a hot surface for so many years, that homeowners are looking for something more. That “more” is the incredible spectrum of color and range of movement in “Juparana” granites, exotic quartzites and translucent onyxes.

“Every slab of stone is like a rare, original painting,” Giovanni Briguglio says. “When you search and search for the perfect piece, you must possess it and treasure it forever.” Giovanni knows what most of us overlook - you cannot order another one from the artist.

THE STONE GALLERY
239 498-6235 or 800 IDC-STONE

NAPLES SHOWROOM & WAREHOUSE
239 254-0488

WEST PALM BEACH SHOWROOM & WAREHOUSE
561 840-9669