Pietro A. Chiarini: Rediscovering a Passion in Laos

When I first came to Laos, it was for academic research, a master’s thesis with the National University of Laos and several NGOs, exploring UXO issues and the delicate relations between Laos and the United States. (I will share more about that in a future piece, as I know many readers here have expressed curiosity about that part of my journey.)

Yet, life had other plans. Very soon, I found myself returning to a lifelong passion: the art of interiors, beauty, and craft. Since childhood, I had been fascinated by the world of design. My uncle’s gallery in Italy became my first school. a place filled with antique porcelain, art de la table, and exquisite objets d’art, each whispering stories of elegance and history.

In Laos, this sensibility found new meaning. Here, I discovered a land where ancient craftsmanship and modern imagination coexist, where the legacy of Lane Xang and the faded charm of colonial Indochina shape a uniquely poetic aesthetic. Wandering through timeworn French villas, visiting artisans’ workshops, and exploring the craft markets of Southeast Asia, I realised my eye had always been drawn to Asia, perhaps foreshadowed by the chinoiserie pieces that once captivated me as a boy.

My years as Creative Director at Caruso Creations refined that instinct into discipline, teaching me how vision becomes form, and form becomes story. Today, through Grand Laos, I wish to continue that journey: to share the quiet beauty of Laos, to celebrate the hands that shape it, and to offer spaces and objects that reflect both cultural depth and contemporary grace.

Many who have visited Laos understand its gentle allure. Through these pages, I hope to bring a fragment of that world to yours, a reminder that art, at its best, is not distant, but lived.