These presentations familiarize the students with a range of some of the legendary Italian designers and design factories. Some of these we will visit or interview and some we previously visited in year one of the study or hope to in the future. This is a more focused and detailed study of Italian Design History after our overview of the field from 1890-2000 in Presentation 3. In this set, the students learn about the work and theory, the product, approaches and innovations of Andrea Branzi, Cassina, and Achille Castiglione, who’s studios we will visit in 2005; Kartell, Enzo Mari, and Da Driade, whom we visited in 2004, and Piaggio Vespa, Alessandro Mendini, Gae Aulenti, Cini Boeri, Michele de Lucchi, Gaetano Pesce, Artemide, Flos, and Vico Magistretti whom we have not yet visited. As well as familiarizing the group with this small but representative group of Italy’s great designers, the students were asked to build a folder of images and links for further research not to be shown but attached to the ItaliaDesign project site and if the designer or firm has a studio or showrooms, to get this mapped onto a common place and specific to the directions provided.

Andrea Branzi

Cassina

Enzo Mari

Alessandro Mendini

Piaggio Vespa

Achille Castiglioni

Gae Aulenti + Cini Boeri

Michele de Lucchi

Artemide + Flos

Gaetano Pesce