2 September 2009

A new year, rich in trade fairs and events. From Macef in Milan to Maison & Objet in Paris, with stopovers at exclusive previews that will in each case be purposely staged to showcase special projects worldwide – like the latest installation created by the Campana Brothers for the display window at Alessi Soho in New York. Alessi continues its wonderful adventure in design for the home, and does it with the style and delightfulness that has always been the hallmark of the Italian company.
To respond to the crisis that exists in many sectors of the world economy, Alessi is continuing its work as a laboratory of the applied arts, the role of which is to achieve an ongoing mediation between the most advanced and most effervescent expressions of international creativity in the field of product design and the desires and dreams of the consumer public. And Alessi does this, in this new scenario, by focusing on a series of new designers, old and young, well-known and unknown. Some have been “discovered” while working on important projects like “Tea & Coffee Towers”, while others are new designers unveiling their opera prima, their first work. Six names destined for great success, just like those whom Alessi fans have grown to know and admire. The many new objects that we’ll soon see on the market are functional, colourful, elegant and sophisticated. In a single word, they are Alessi in its current, well-known subdivisions: Alessi, A di Alessi and Officina Alessi, three brands that identify collections to be interpreted as variants of a single corporate identity. In the words of Alberto Alessi: “Not brands bearing identities in and of themselves; rather, they should be seen as elements constituting the Alessi identity. Each of them expresses some of the aspects of the multiform and encyclopaedic catalogue of our company.”
Innovative designs for true connoisseurs, from functional centrepieces inspired by ancient legends to objects in which the industrial experience of an Italian design factory is expertly blended with a more exquisitely artisan experience, as can be seen in the new collection of cheese knives made by Berti cutlers in Scarperia, Tuscany. Playful objects for young, tongue-in-cheek tables; practical containers in varied formats, form and function go hand in hand. Renowned design masters can unleash their creativity in a design company deeply and proudly rooted in Italy. The range of products on offer is once again huge and with uniform quality. Here are just a few of the new projects:

Alessi
From under the flagship banner of Alessi comes a project inspired by a love for a land rich in history: Sicily. Mario Trimarchi has created a family of objects that centre around an abstract and immobile atmosphere of a magical place: “La Stanza dello Scirocco” (“The Sirocco Room”). This is a project that requires imagination and the urge for discovery. Arrhythmic geometries compose forms that contain yet at the same time liberate their contents.
Interesting, up-to-the-minute and of great import is the design by Giovanni Alessi Anghini working with Fabio Fassone and Lorenzo Piccione di Pianogrillo. “Cum grano salis” (Latin for “with a grain of salt”) is the name of the project in which the salt cellar is reinterpreted to reflect modern styles of dining, where even a grain of salt can inspire important and informed gastronomic discussion. Over and above its symbolic value, this project has created an object that aspires to a central place on the table and a more widely-recognised importance. It is almost a minor table sculpture, one that rediscovers an aroma that is essential and natural.
 
A di Alessi
One project that is both “gentle” and altruistic is “Breakfast Stories”, and it has been chosen as the symbol to represent the partnership between Alessi and the AIBI (Amici di Bambini) association. Designed by Miriam Mirri, the breakfast cup entertains with the adventures of “Niki”, a little character to accompany children and grownups at breakfast or break-time.
And for Christmas, A di Alessi has an embarrassment of choice on offer with light-hearted useful gift ideas that are sure to be welcomed.
The successful collaboration with the National Palace Museum of Taiwan is also continuing, and the Banana Family designed by the indefatigable Stefano Giovannoni has grown to include new members.
 
Officina Alessi
The Officina brand, which has always been the top of the range for Alessi products, offers a concept that makes its great ambition clear right from the name: “La Via Lattea” (“The Milky Way”). The fruit of collaboration between Andrea Berti cutlery works in Scarperia, Tuscany and designers Anna and Gian Franco Gasparini, this ambitious project presents 4 cheese knives, each with a specific design for its intended use. The wallet, in heavy cotton fabric, comes with a small booklet, a guide to cutting and tasting the 35 Italian PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and some excellent European cheeses. Alberto Alessi described “La Via Lattea” collection as “a voyage of exploration into the world of cheeses and how to cut them properly, to a level of completeness that has never before been achieved to my knowledge.”

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find Alessi also at
Abitare il tempo - Verona
september 17 - 21
pad 7 stand E18/F21
All the News and la Cucina Alessi.
With the stand designed by Alessandro Mendini.