A look at the impact of many great Italian Interior Designers

Italian Interior Designers have always had their impact on the trends that were seen worldwide. This country was home to some of the most incredible Interior and Product Designers, Italy and Italian Design always coming up with several strong and powerful examples of luxury and quality design works.

In this article, seen as Milan Design Week is pretty much here we’ve decided to have a tip to both the past and the present in order to have a look at the true impact of some of these amazing creative minds

Journey to the Past

Alessandro Mendini

A look at the impact of many great Italian Interior DesignersFamed for designs that include the iconic Proust Armchair, Mendini was one of those Legends who were at the front row of the radical design of the Italian Modernity movement that started in the 1960s. He produced some of the most stunning projects, but at the backstage, he also helped Italy’s Editorial/ Media business to grow to incredible new heights with his incredible inside knowledge of Design!

Gio Ponti

Alongside with Mendini, Gio Ponti was also part of the Modernity Movement of the Italian Design! This two Italian design icons helped elevate the Design Industry in this country and in Milano, and they both had a powerful contribution in the progressive transformation of this cultural hub into the top Design Capital of the country and into one of the Design Capitals of Europe!

Piero Fornasetti and Gio Ponti

These two names have and had a passion for Murano Glass and other Italian Classic Design Techniques, such as Wood Craving and Porcelain Work, which is why we couldn’t afford to miss them on this list!

Piero Fornasetti was one of the top Artists of Italy and, when he died in 1988, his legacy was kept alive by his studio that, till today, is kept in business by a dedicated team of professionals that bring to life in new design projects and pieces the life and work of this Italian master.

Other impactful names

With their powerful and unique style, Ponti and Mendini will always be remembered as the Founding Fathers of Modern Italian Design, but they must share this status for all eternity with other great design icons, namely Achille Castiglioni, Gae Aulenti, Joe Colombo, Franco Albini, Mario Bellini, Luigi Caccia Dominioni, Enzo Mari, Carlo Mollino, Carlo Scarpa or Marco Zanuso! As you can see, Italy’s Design History is rich in Design Influences and Amazing Creators, and that’s why this is one of the Top Design Markets in the World.

The faces of present Italian design

Antonio Citterio

One of the top names of today’s Italian Design is Antonio Citterio. Like all the design legends that inspired his youth, Citterio started his career in Milano and like his hero, Gio Ponti, Citterio started his Academic and Professional life as an Architect. From 1987 to 1996, Citterio worked in association with Terry Dwan in several amazing buildings in Europe and Japan, but after many years spent designing buildings, Citterio also decided to follow the footsteps of Ponti and became a prominent Furniture and Industrial Designers!

In the capacity of Product Designer, Citterio helped shape the World and Style of some Top Italian Brands of Today, namely Vitra, Ansorg, Arclinea, Axor-Hansgrohe, B&B Italia, Flexform, Flos, Hermès, Iittala, Kartell, Maxalto, Sanitec (Geberit Group) or Technogym! All of them showcase in their most popular Collections of all time at least one piece designed by Citterio and those pieces bear his amazing trademark style that boosts Italian Modernity and a more Contemporary Vibe!

You can also check out: Salone del Mobile is approaching: here are some things to know

Rossana Orlandi

One of the more irreverent names of both the Art & the Design scene is Rossana Orlandi. This Lady of Italian Design is amazing and the perfect example of how the worlds of Interior Design, Art and Craftsmanship can come together under one single roof. That’s precisely what Orlandi tried to do when she opened the Gallery Rossana Orlandi in 2002 in a former tie Factory in the Magenta neighbor.

Galleria Rossana Orlandi has been forecasting along the years new and upcoming designers and establishing the premise as one of the most revered platforms for avant-garde Design and Lifestyle. Started her activity focusing on the rising Dutch design wave with designers such Piet Hein Eek, Maarten Baas and Nacho Carbonell the research has moved widely around the world creating a catalogue which reflects the most innovative scenes from Europe to Asia to America, but always with a strong focus on the Italian Inspirations!

Dimore Studio

Also related to the world of Luxury Interior Design we can find another major name of the current Design Industry in Italy. We are of course talking about the Dimore Studio, another heavy hitter studio based in Milano that’s quickly becoming an International Trend Setter. Head Designers Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran both invested in their individual experience and founded in 2003 this now prestigious studio on the hopes that this institution could become a beacon for Italian Design!

And that’s precisely what this studio has become. With a focus on Design Art and Fashion, the Dimore Studio have collaborated in the past few years of some of the great names of Italian craftsmanship like Ceramica Bardelli, but their list of clients/ partnerships also includes some top names of Italian Luxury, like Fendi. In fact, Dimore Studio was responsible for the redesign of some of the most iconic Fendi Shops in Italy and they work closely with this brand in their Design Projects in Italy.

Karim Rashid

We couldn’t pass the opportunity of mentioning another great name of Italian Design, but like the other Two Giants mentioned earlier, this one is native of Italy but his influence is well present in the Italian Design Industry. That’s right, Karim Rashid design impresses because of the quantity (over 3000 pieces produced, 300 prizes and presence in 40 countries), diversity (furniture design, spaces, product, new technology, lighting, packaging, fashion, identity, surfaces and not only) and modernity and it’s this versatility that led him to focus in Italy, as well as France in Canada.

Rashied studied in Italy and that’s why is style is influenced by the Italian Style of Design. Even though we can trace his origins to French Design, it was in Italy that Rashid learns all of the skills and absorbed all the influences that allow him to become that top Interior and Product Designer that he is today.

You may also like: Hot on Pinterest right now: have a look at some inspiring fireplaces

Patricia Urquiola

Top collaborator of Kartell and a regular presence at the prestigious Salone del Mobile event, Urquiola is one of today’s faces of French Design, but it’s also impossible to disassociate her name with the Italian Design Industry. In fact, Urquiola is one of the patrons of Italian Craftsmanship, in fact, in 2018 she was the Guest of Honor of Homo Faber, a top Craftsmanship Event in Venice where she presented a strong showcase of her Colorful Style mixed with the Craftsmanship Values of Italy, namely the love of this country for Hand Made and Elaborate products in Wood and Glass!

With stunning projects around the world, including Italy, Urquiola always manages to bring to her Italian Designs and Creations those inspirations that are at the core of her education and that helped her become one of the top designers in the world. From her award-winning project at Hotel Il Sereno in Lake Como to more residential Projects in Central Italy, Urquiola provides each Italian project the passion and the style that characterizes but always adapted to the Italian Culture.

Ludovica and Roberto Palomba

Ludovica and Roberto Palomba are also Top Names of today’s Italian Design! They are the two founders of the Palomba Serafini Associati, a powerful design studio based in Milan, Italy, that was created in 1994. For the past years, they have been collaborating with the most prestigious design brands from all over the world, namely Poltrona Frau, and the majority of their products designed since 1994 is still in production, making them some of the most long-standing design studios in production in Italy!

The Italian Influence in Europe

There are many brands that have taken influence from the Italian way! Like for example the late Zaha Hadid that clearly got some inspiration from the modern architectural lines created by Gio Ponti in Italy! Her design brand mimics the same style and we can perfectly envision any Zaha Hadid piece in a modern Italian villa!

Another great example of Italian impact in a European name is with Portuguese brand Boca do Lobo which is known for combining craftsmanship techniques, values, and inspirations with some luxury and opulent style. The Fortuna Dining Tale is the perfect example of a product that definitely has the combination of the best of Portuguese and Italian arts and crafts.

♦♦

Did you like our post about the influence of some of the greatest Italian Interior Designers? Let us know in the comments!

♦♦

Then subscribe to our newsletter in order to keep up with other inspirational topics!

Follow us on Social Media: Facebook | Pinterest | Twitter | Instagram

No Comments Yet

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.