Handmade in Italy. I talk a lot about how rare this is when it comes to frame manufacturing now, whereas in the past it was the norm for Italian brands. You also know my love for brands that still endeavor to keep this tradition alive, but also realize it takes more than being handmade in Italy to create a quality product. It takes passion, openness to learning more, attention to detail, and strong desire to create something unique; it is not about bringing in frames made in the Far East, painting them in Italy and calling it Italian made. It’s about the whole process. Carbon layup, design, engineering and painting, all by hand.
This is exactly why I had to have DeAnima frames at PRW. I knew of Gianni Pegoretti’s work at San Patrignano, a residential center providing accommodation, structure, and education in a trade, designed to provide focus, skill, and a feeling of inclusion and worth to its troubled residents. Gianni was teaching frame building there since 2005 after parting ways with his brother Dario. It was here he made frames for many Italian brands while mentoring his star pupil Antonio. Back then it was steel and aluminum, but Gianni realized back in 2000 that carbon had a large part in the future of road bikes and wasted no time starting work with Trento University on the development of carbon tubesets.
“We decided to open a small workshop with the idea that people want to know who makes it, what the people making it believe in and what they are getting.”
After leaving San Patrignano he teamed up with Antonio and Matt Cazzaniga and DeAnima was born. It’s a three-man operation where every frame is made to order and painted by hand. No decals, no transfers. Gianni knows that his way of doing things is harder, but slapping his name on a blank, outsourced frame is not why he created DeAnima. He wanted to do things this way not for the nostalgia, but to make frames in a way that he could control the entire process. Yes, they do steel, but he prefers carbon as they can control the entire process. Carbon tubes are made in Venice, and he cuts and mitres each tube for the desired geometry, wrapping each joint. This allows full custom geometry whereas monocoque would not. Once the frame is finished the paint process begins. Again, no decals or transfers, everything is done meticulously by hand, and each work is a unique piece of art.
I could go on and on about DeAnima and how great they are to deal with, but in the end you know I am picky about what brands are represented at PRW, and when I add one, you know it’s for a good reason. I invite you to come by the shop and see a DeAnima in person, as the frames will speak for themselves. I’m excited to be one of a handful of dealers in North America and I know you will love what they have to offer.
Lastly, the name De Anima comes from a work by Aristotle that translates to “On The Soul.” I know you would have asked ☺.
Check out the gallery below, or visit them here and start dreaming. All our current stock of bikes and frames can be viewed here .
