We all enjoyed the opening of Alessi: Ethical and Radical this past weekend at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (on view through April 10, 2011 in the Collab Gallery/Perelman Building), and last night Alberto joined us at Cooper-Hewitt for a scintillating presentation of the company’s work over the decades, reiterating the Alessi ethos that Design is a new form of contemporary art and poetry.
A memorable calculation from Alberto: functional value + style value = poetic value=the raison d’etre of objects. The encyclopedic breadth of the designers with whom Alessi has worked is truly impressive, as is Alberto’s tenet to set ‘no limits for designers’, evident from Richard Sapper’s ‘singing’ tea kettle to Mendini’s playful corckscrews to the Bouroullec Brothers’ recent Ovale Collection.
Alberto Alessi playing the valves from Sapper’s kettle.
Linda Tischler, Fast Company, and Alberto Alessi
Alberto Alessi as the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Installation view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Fabulous footwear worn by Beth Dickstein
