The design universe of Aldo Rossi (1931-1997), one of the 20th century masters of architecture and the first Italian to win the Pritzker Prize (1990), is now on view at the Museo del Novecento in Milan. Produced in collaboration with Fondazione Aldo Rossi and curated by Chiara Spangaro, the exhibition “Aldo Rossi. Design 1960-1997” (28 April – 2 October 2022) contains over 350 items, including furniture and useful objects, prototypes and painted models, drawings and studies.
Museum chair by Aldo Rossi, 1984 – Courtesy Molteni Museum
The materials explore his activity as a designer but also provide a connecting thread to his output as an architect and a theorist. “A piece of furniture is a mixture of form, function, material and many beautiful things that are attributed to architecture. – Aldo Rossi wrote. – Furnishings are ‘objects of affection,’ or at least I believe they should be.”
Consiglio table & Museum chair by Unifor, 1991, design Aldo Rossi
From the outset, Rossi’s work was a reflection on the relationship between the architectural scale and the urban scale, the monument and the object, starting from the first pieces created in 1960 with the architect Leonardo Ferrari. Starting in 1979, he opened to the world of industrial production and fine craftsmanship, creating furnishings and useful objects with Alessi, Artemide, DesignTex, Bruno Longoni Atelier d’Arredamento, Molteni&C, Richard Ginori, UniFor, Rosenthal, Up&Up.
Un’altra estate by Aldo Rossi, 1979 – Courtesy Fondazione Aldo Rossi
Cabina dell’Elba by Aldo Rossi Courtesy Fondazione Aldo Rossi
His projects – many of which are still in production today – were developed by experimenting with forms and colors on all kinds of materials: metals, wood, marble, stone, ceramic and porcelain, crafted and industrial fabrics, plastics. All this is narrated in an exhibition itinerary that leads the viewer through an unexpected, spectacular story, suspended between classicism, irony and metaphysics.
Interno Milanese con persona che guarda Duomo con nebbia – Courtesy Molteni Museum
The set-up is by Morris Adjmi – MA Architects, a collaborator and then a partner of Rossi in New York; the catalogue (published by Silvana Editoriale, edited by Chiara Spangaro, with an essay by Domitilla Dardi) will be the first publication to bring together all the design pieces by Rossi.
Parigi by Unifor, 1989, design Aldo Rossi
“Aldo Rossi. Design 1960-1997” is an initiative supported by Alessi, Bruno Longoni Atelier d’Arredamento and Molteni&C|UniFor. The latter company was particularly tied to the architect in a relationship of lasting friendship. The technical sponsor for the exhibition is Up Group.
Teatro La Fenice, Sala Rossi
Carteggio by Molteni&C, 1987, design Aldo Rossi
