About Us
MariaGalerias designs and offers curated collections of unique artifacts and lifestyle products inspired by Classicism and Ancient Rome.
Elegantia et Sapientia
Our customers are modern enthusiasts who appreciate timeless elegance and historical wisdom.
People who seek meaning and personalised touches in their everyday lives.
Contents
Introduction
MariaGalerias is more than an e-commerce site; it is a curator of artifacts inspired by ancient Rome.
Working in tandem with the ancient Roman history site MariaMilani, MariaGalerias offers a range of products, from antique prints to ancient coins, homeware to apparel; all intricately sharing the echos of Roman antiquity.
The distinctive element lies in the homeware collections, where individuals can personalize products with antique letters, creating a unique bond between ancient values and modern lifestyles. Embracing a New Humanism philosophy,
MariaGalerias places the individual at the forefront: Democratizing brand identity and fostering a community that appreciates intellectual depth, ethical choices, and timeless beauty in every curated piece.
Our Belief – New Humanism
The world is changing rapidly, with environmental threats and the changes of a new Industrial Revolution. But we are also entering a new age of Humanism, where universal order and the positioning of humankind and individuals within it is being questioned and reassessed. Our individual and group beliefs, our inbuilt biases are being tested, and every news item is asking us to pitch one value against another.
In this time of great uncertainty, we must rely on timeless thought and values that have withstood time and transformed with each historical epoch.
Ever since the Classical age and ancient Rome, each historical epoch has been accompanied by a shift in the relative values and universal position of mankind and of individuals versus their environment, versus the immediate social strata and indeed versus “the Gods”.
It is also about information: Each major historical period has been associated with shifts in access to information and a consequential shift in social structures.
- * Ancient Rome was perhaps the first period in western culture to mass produce and commercialise thought. The writing of books, novels and thought could be achieved at scale albeit with the aid of handwritten copies by armies of scribes: There was the advent of bookshops, libraries throughout the empire and access to learning for most areas of society.
- * The Renaissance was concurrent with Gutenberg and the printing press.
- * The 19th century and Industrial Revolution brought new means of making paper and advanced mechanisation of printing allowing the spread of knowledge at greater and cheaper scale to millions of people. The spread of mechanisation and the revolution itself would have been impossible without the spread of knowledge.
In the 21st Century the advent of AI is creating not only a new sentient entity against which we compare ourselves, but also a new step in the information evolutionary cycle whereby information is not only made more accessible but also self-organized.
We live in a new environment within which society is reshaping itself and individuals reassessing self meaning and measure. A new Humanism.
Personae:
The MariaMilani brand is about individuals who care about Humanism, about learning the value of actions and of art because they too carry meaning irrespective of the common anxiety for wealth.
We care about discovering and using the past to help with the challenges of the future. We gain value from the beauty of a thought or a fleeting moment. We can have personal meaning in this world because there is meaning in the tiny actions and objects around us.
Through these twinkling stars of meaning, we find this renewed humanism, a timeless place for ourselves, a meaning to our lives and relationship with those around us grounded on timeless notions that can withstand the increasingly rapid change around us.
We collect, salvage, design and create everyday objects that bring a link to that timeless history. Anchor points between the shifting sands of everyday life and the permanence through time of classical thought.
Some designs make use of individual letterpress Initials drawn from antique books of the Renaissance, 15th and 16th century, others from the age of reason (18th century) or the later 19th Century Industrial Revolution.
The use of the letters is in itself a call to today’s humanism. Not only a means of recalling our own name or that of a loved one but also to flip the custom of the past century: great fashion houses creating their logos around their own lettering so that we might carry them to show them off as a symbol of wealth. We now carry the letters as our own individual brand – as a symbol of our own centrality and importance. The wealth of our own thought and individuality anchored to timeless humanism.
7 Core Values
1. Educational:
Intellectual Exploration: MariaGalerias embraces an educational ethos, providing you with insights into ancient history, art, and culture. The brand aims to contribute to intellectual growth and understanding, fostering a continuous learning experience for its community.
2. Human-Centric:
Connection to New Humanism: At the core of MariaGalerias is a celebration of human-centric values—empathy, ethical decision-making, and the retention of personal values in the face of technological advancements. The brand reflects the principles of New Humanism, where the individual is central to the narrative.
3. Cultural Preservation:
Connection to Ancient Rome: MariaGalerias values and preserves the cultural richness of ancient Rome. The brand’s products serve as modern interpretations that honor classical thought, fostering a continuous dialogue between the past and the present.
4. Community Building:
Shared Journey: New Humanism encourages community building and shared experiences. MariaGalerias fosters a community of like-minded individuals who appreciate intellectual exploration, artistic elegance, and the harmonious blend of historical values and modernity.
5. Timeless Beauty:
Ancient Rome as Inspiration: The timeless beauty of ancient Rome serves as a wellspring of inspiration for MariaGalerias. The brand’s products, adorned with antique letters, offer customers a connection to the enduring elegance and cultural significance of classical Rome.
6. Quality and Longevity:
Philosophy of New Humanism: MariaGalerias emphasizes quality craftsmanship and longevity in its products, aligning with the New Humanism philosophy that values enduring and meaningful contributions over fleeting trends.
7. Sustainability & Environmental Stewardship
MariaGalerias prioritizes sustainable practices, emphasizing the importance of mindful sourcing and ethical consumption, enhancing the value of antique or second hand items with a story of their own whilst reducing our reliance on mass production. The brand’s commitment to environmental stewardship aligns with the New Humanism value of responsible engagement with the natural world.
Art and Design influences
Color Palette:
Roman Color Palette: Infuse the website with a color palette inspired by ancient Roman frescos. Rich earth tones, blues, and reds can be combined to create a harmonious blend that reflects the opulence and sophistication of Roman art. In real terms this ambition is a difficult one to achieve as modern computers will show modern flat colours of great purity, with little depth to them as a single very precise “hex code”, whilst ancient colours were of lesser purity and with a broader colour frequency spectrum.
Style:
Abstract and Figurative Elements: Embrace the Roman approach of combining abstract color planes with figurative elements.
Graphics and visuals on the website can incorporate both abstract patterns and figurative representations, creating a layered and visually captivating aesthetic.
Dimension:
Layered Design: Use layered design elements to evoke the feeling of multiple spacial dimensions.
Parallax scrolling, overlapping images, and subtle animations can create a sense of depth and immersion, enhancing the overall artistic experience.
By integrating these design principles inspired by ancient Roman architecture and art, the MariaGalerias website provides customers with a truly unique and immersive journey, paralleling the sophistication and fluidity of Roman villas and the greatness of the Classical age.
“Non scholae, sed vitae discimus.”
“We learn not for school, but for life”
(Seneca the Younger)