On the evening of March 18th, as part of the celebrations for Italian Design Day 2024 promoted by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Italian Ambassador to the United States, Mariangela Zappia, together with the Vice President of the Industrial Design Association (ADI) and Design Ambassador, Antonella Andriani, inaugurated the exhibition “Compasso d’Oro alla Carriera,” which will be open to visitors of the Embassy in Washington until the end of April.
Ambassador Mariangela Zappia opened the event by recalling this year’s Design Day theme, “Manufacturing value – inclusivity, innovation, and sustainability,” which emphasizes the aesthetic value of industrial design objects and the quality of materials used, combining tradition, technology, and sustainability. She highlighted, “since the post-war period, Italian design has made a significant contribution to the success of Italian exports, thanks to the fruitful collaboration between designers and manufacturers,” and noted that “design has stimulated investments in creativity and contributed to the constant growth of the myth of Italian style.” The Ambassador emphasized the value of Italian design exports to the United States – over 3.5 billion dollars for furniture alone, one of the representative sectors of design.
The Compasso d’Oro, the oldest and most prestigious award in the world for the field of design, aims to promote the excellence of Made in Italy products. For this purpose, a segment of the award dedicated to Career excellence has been created, and its recipients are celebrated in this exhibition, curated by the ADI Design Museum in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute of Washington. Gio Ponti, Nanda Vigo, Vico Magistretti, and Antonia Campi are just a few of the designers who have made Made in Italy famous abroad thanks to the creation of iconic design pieces.
The exhibition, which displays photographs and design pieces, represents a dialogue between photography and design, two distinct but interconnected disciplines. In addition to offering a glimpse into the lives of influential figures in the Italian design landscape, the exhibition also provides a comprehensive perspective on the current state of Italian photography.
Italian design company Molteni&C has also contributed to the exhibition with two pieces that have made history in design: the D.154.2 armchair by Gio Ponti and the Naòs desk for UniFor.
Last night’s event follows the one held on March 15th at the Ambassador’s Residence, dedicated to Villa Firenze Contemporanea, and is part of the initiatives devised by the Italian consular and cultural network in the United States for Italian Design Day 2024.
