LESLIE ROSS, Studio co-owner
Leslie Ross grew up in Oakland, California, where she first met future-designer, David Gulassa, in grade school. They collaborated on many projects in their early twenties while Leslie studied architecture at UC Berkeley after completing a two-year carpentry apprenticeship program.
Leslie left the Bay Area to continue her architecture studies at Rhode Island School of Design in Providence and Cooper Union in New York City, prior to graduating from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn with her Bachelor of Architecture. For over a decade, Leslie provided design and project management services for David’s renowned custom furnishings design/fabrication shop in Seattle, Gulassa & Company, Inc. In 2008, Leslie took the lead as designer and project manager at PAOLO CROATTO METALWORKS. |
PAOLO CROATTO, Studio co-owner
Born in Venezuela to Italian parents, Paolo Croatto studied construction technology, construction management and engineering at the Istituto Tecnico G.G. Marinoni in Udine, Italy prior to apprenticing with his uncle, a master construction mechanic.
Upon moving to the United States, Paolo worked with renowned blacksmith Michael Bondi in Oakland CA before leaving for Seattle to work with David Gulassa. Paolo worked directly with David on many custom projects and was the foreman of the retail fixture production line at Gulassa & Company. Having launched PAOLO CROATTO METALWORKS in 2003, more than a dozen years later, Paolo’s eponymous company is known for its elegant design solutions, expert craftsmanship and beautiful finishes. |