“Biesse On Tour Italy Edition”: a traveling itinerary to places that are icons of Italian design and craftsmanship, through materials and their endless interpretations.
A programme of meetings inspired by boundless multi-materiality, designed to show customers how to exploit the potential of any material. Founded upon Italian design culture - or in other words, the capacity to "interpret" materials and technologies in order to foster product innovation.
An opportunity to reflect on the challenges in the world of design and on the living environments of the future, thanks to the involvement of special guests, whose contributions will enhance the value of Made in Italy culture, highlighting its qualities, “know-how”, practical and aesthetic function and finally, its human, emotional side.
“The involvement of various different speakers means that these meetings are an opportunity to maintain an ongoing dialogue, as well as offering new ways to interpret the world of design and planning, in order to serve an increasingly attentive customer base. Leading figures both from the design industry and the world of academia accompany us on this journey, inspired by “insightful curiosity”, the constant desire for discovery, which is transformed into the intuition that is inherent in Italian design.” declares Laura Alesi, Marketing Manager Italy Market.
Key themes at the meetings include the challenges and opportunities within the design world in the near future, the need for dialogue and networking between key players in the supply chain, and last but not least, sustainability as an absolute priority. Rethinking processes, designing and manufacturing in a sustainable manner, limiting waste and using natural materials where possible: today, these considerations have gone beyond being a mere trend, becoming an absolute necessity.
“We have selected,” adds Laura Alesi, “unique and iconic locations that evoke the distinctive nature of our Bel Paese, such as Milan, the world capital of design, the marble quarries of Carrara, an open-air museum, and Venice, the beating heart of glass design. These magical places share a long history, but at the same time, are always evolving and changing, stimulating our imaginations. Indeed, our vision is precisely this: to stimulate the imagination with a view to improving people's daily lives.”
The first stop on this journey into design and multi-materiality excellence took place on 7 May, at the ADI Museum in Milan, one of the biggest museums in Europe dedicated to design. The perfect place to take a deep dive into the history of Italian design through the most ingenious, original and celebrated Made in Italy products, recipients of the Compasso d'Oro award; objects that have left their mark on Italy's cultural, social, industrial and economic history, whilst also gaining international renown.
Biesse On Tour, sponsored by AIPi, aims to explore themes surrounding design - beginning with the past in order to gain a better understanding of the present, as well as imagining a future where there is a greater focus on reuse and on environmental sustainability - through the stories and experience of our exceptional guests.
The event kicked off with a welcome from Luciano Galimberti, President of the ADI Industrial Designers Association, Cinzia Pagni, President of the ADI Lombardy, who sponsored the event, and Ascanio Zocchi, from the Index Living Design Commission.
This was then followed by a discussion on the theme of the challenges and opportunities in the world of design, through the study of and research into materials, with Marinella Ferrara, head of MADEC, from the Centro di Ricerca sulla Cultura del Design dei Materiali (Centre for Research into Material Design Culture) at the Design Department of the Polytechnic University of Milan, and Giampiero Bosoni, Full Professor of Interior Architecture and History of Design at the Design Department of the Polytechnic University of Milan, former president of AIS/Design Association of Design Historians. Contributions were also provided by well-known entrepreneurs including Michele Gasperini, of Tonelli Design.