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Mar11, 2007 - Mar18, 2007 |
Following Futurist footsteps
Designs of Massimo Iosa Ghini feature curves, dynamic shapes
By Mark Curtis
Originally Published: 2007-02-25
When a nation excels in a field for a notable period of time, its people invariably assume such excellence is the natural course of things. When fortunes take a downturn, questions are raised. So it is with Italian design which, blessed with a golden age in the 1950s and 60s, must continually compete against a legendary past.
Citterio and Meda have followed greats such as Castiglioni and Magistretti, but it seems today that many Italian manufacturers go outside the country to commission design projects. The current generation of Italian designers in early to mid-career can hardly be called a lost generation, however; one standout among today's 40-something Italian designers is Bologna's Massimo Iosa Ghini.
Iosa Ghini began to establish himself as a unique talent in the mid-1980s, when he co-founded a design approach named Boldisimo, inspired not by the legendary mid-century Italian modernists, but rather the early 20th century Futurist arts movement in Italy. Like the Futurists, Iosa Ghini's design forms celebrated fascinations for speed and technology. They're still defining interests in his work, captured mostly in the dynamic shapes and curving lines of his recent industrial designs. His clients include Italian manufacturers such as Cassina, Mandarina Duck, Moroso and Snaidero. Although he's collaborated with manufacturers outside Italy, the architect and designer says "when you plan a product, the Italian system is still the most flexible in the world. There's an element of completely unique and immediate quality."
Iosa Ghini has also applied his preoccupation with speed and movement to architecture, which he sees as a natural progression in his work. "First you design small things because you can control and understand them. When you feel ready, you make them bigger each time and, at the end, you can even control a building."
He's designed showrooms for Ferrari in Italy, as well as an Italian luxury car showroom in suburban Miami. Also planned for south Florida is perhaps Iosa Ghini's most ambitious project to date - a Miami condo tower reminiscent of the innovative work of Sir Norman Foster with a dash of Zaha Hadid added for good measure.The Italian architect and designer's previous work includes the main subway station in Hannover, Germany, built as part of the city's Expo 2000 celebrations.
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