Design Convivio. Milan

Installation.
Graphics.
Environmental Graphics.

Historical Library of the Politecnico di Milano. Milan / October 2023 / Politecnico di Milano

The Design Convivio installation, curated by Giampiero Bosoni together with Paola Bertola, is an integral part of the Philology project and provides a physical representation of the origins of the pathway taken by Politecnico di Milano to institutionalise design as a subject.
In the courtly setting of the Politecnico’s recently reopened Historical Library, the installation stages an imaginary dialogue between some of the trailblazers who played a key role in this journey. The figures chosen to represent the fundamental steps are (in chronological order) Gio Ponti, Franco Albini, Carlo De Carli, Marco Zanuso, Achille Castiglioni, Vittoriano Viganò, Alberto Rosselli and Raffaella Crespi, all graduates of the Politecnico and then full professors of the same University in foundational subjects for design culture, such as “Interior architecture, furniture and decoration” and then – an important progression that began in 1962/63 – “Artistic design for industry”.
The dialogues, edited together by the writer Gianni Biondillo and the actress and director Paola Albini, are inspired by original writings and quotes from the eight characters, selected by Giampiero Bosoni assisted by Marta Elisa Cecchi.
The set-up stages an imaginary convivial moment between the eight protagonists, who are seated around a large table laid with words, images and references to their projects. By interacting with the viewers, the characters – represented by original illustrations by Ico Migliore and interpreted by the voices of Gianni Biondillo, Paola Albini and other professional actors – are activated and take part in a game of call and response. Illuminated words, suspended at full height in the library, echo the dialogues of the protagonists, recalling their fundamental role in shaping not only iconic projects and objects in the history of design, but the very language of design and its meanings. These key words launched the cultural and scientific vision behind the creation of a new course of study, announced by Raffaella Crespi, the youngest of the eight protagonists and the only woman. It was she, together with Tomás Maldonado, who transferred to the Politecnico in 1984, who started the work of the commission “Contributions to the formation of the degree course in Industrial Design and Furniture” that year, initiating the institutionalisation of design at the Politecnico di Milano.