PLEASE NOTE: THERE HAS BEEN A TIME CHANGE. THE WEBINAR WILL NOW TAKE PLACE AT 11:30AM.
On the occasion of the 6th edition of Italian Design Day, the Istituto Italiano di Cultura Toronto, in partnership with the George Brown School of Design and the Consulate General of Italy in Toronto, presents a virtual meeting between Italian designer Antonio Aricò and Canadian designer Patty Johnson.
The meeting is in conjunction with the exhibition 3CODESIGN | 3Rs: Reduce Recycle Reuse, also presented by the Istituto Italiano di Cultura in collaboration with the George Brown College of Design, under the patronage of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Consulate General of Italy in Toronto.
ITALIAN DESIGN DAY 2022
“Identity in Design as Sustainable Thinking”
Luigi Ferrara
Dean, Centre for Arts, Design & Information Technology
George Brown College
in conversation with
Antonio Aricò
and
Patty Johnson
OPENING REMARKS
Consul General of Italy Eugenio Sgrò
Wednesday, March 23 | 11:30AM EDT
Zoom Webinar | Free Event | Registration Required
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE RECORDING OF THIS WEBINAR
The webinar will highlight Aricò’s professional work as an example of balance between the practice of industrial design linked to industrialized Italy and the return to traditional manufacturing techniques typical of southern Italy. The theme of “identity” and “archetypes” is at the centre of his “sustainable” way of thinking about design in contemporary society. Aricò’s work harmonizes with Johnson’s design philosophy, which is based on the use of only local and traditional materials to produce eco-sustainable objects and furnishings in Canada, Africa and South America.
The conversation will be moderated by Prof. Luigi Ferrara, Dean of the Centre for Arts, Design and Information Technology at George Brown College. Opening remarks by the Consul General of Italy, Eugenio Sgrò.
ABOUT ANTONIO ARICÒ
Italian artist and designer. He is known as the forerunner of a unique approach that parallels crafts and self-production with industrial design. Antonio Aricò was born in 1983 in Reggio Calabria. It was amid this incredible natural southern Italian landscape that Aricò grew up. He closely studied the inspirational work of his grandfather, master carpenter Saverio Zaminga. Aricò went on to study a wide range of design disciplines all over the world. These include design studies related to fashion and products in Milan, jewelry in Scotland, philosophy in Australia, and furnishing in Andalusia. After working with several design studios in Milan, Aricò opened his very own studio in 2011. He then successfully collaborated with his grandfather for his first self-produced collection, Back Home. This collection premiered during Milan Design Week 2012 at Ventura Lambrate. Back Home showcased a unique approach that paralleled crafts and self-production with industrial design, a little-explored concept at the time. The collection was discussed by Dutch trend forecaster Li Edelkoort, defining this as a return to the origins. Aricò’s work is characterized by artisanal production techniques, combined with attention to detail and the use of high-quality materials. Aricò frequently collaborates with Italian craftspeople to create unique objects and collaborates with major Italian brands, including Barilla, Seletti, Alessi, Bitossi, EditaMateria, Altreforme, Noberasco and Texturae. In 2017 he was appointed artistic director at Bialetti. He has worked with international organizations, including the RMIT University of Melbourne and Designboom. Some of Aricò’s most iconic objects and collections include the Watering Kettle Cans designed for Seletti in 2011, the Calabrisella for Alessi for the Milan EXPO of 2015; the Still Alive desk set designed for Seletti in 2015 and the collection Una Stanza in collaboration with EditaMateria, presented in the tunnels of Ventura Centrale for Milano Design Week 2018. Aricò also designs and produces the prestigious awards of the Barilla World Pasta Championship, which were reissued as a special edition for the Bocuse d’Or; the Piazza Mercanti Prize and The Design Prize.
Aricò’s firm belief is that true unmistakable style can emerge from the combination of small, local handicrafts and the bold design styles of larger companies.
Aricò’s history and works have been presented at the Triennale in Milan, the Museum of Holon in Tel Aviv, the NGV in Melbourne, the Italian Embassy in Copenhagen, and in Rome’s Palazzo delle Esposizioni.
ABOUT PATTY JOHNSON
Patty Johnson is a designer and educator who is interested in the interchange between research, design, commerce and culture. Based in the US and Canada, she collaborates with start-ups, manufacturers, governments, and other designers to create unique design programs and product collections.
She has developed multi-year, government-funded programs in countries like Botswana, Guyana, Mexico as well as the Caribbean region including a long-term project in Haiti. Johnson also designs product lines for established manufacturers worldwide like Keilhauer, Nienkamper, David Design, and Mabeo.
In 2016, an exhibition of new work produced in collaboration with Wendell Castle’s Icon Furniture and master craftsmen in Rajasthan was featured at Rossana Orlandi Studio during Milan Design Week and then again at ICFF 2017. Her previous collections have received four ICFF Editors’ Awards.
She joined the faculty at the Rhode Island School of Design in 2016 and is an Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director in the Department of Furniture Design. She is currently working on a project with Peter Mabeo in Botswana that will debut in New York in May 2022.
Patty Johnson was educated at the University of Toronto, Toronto, and, received a Masters in Design from Central Saint Matins College of Art and Design, London. www.pattyjohnson.ca
ABOUT ITALIAN DESIGN DAY
Italian Design Day is the annual, theme-based event launched in 2017 by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, in collaboration and with the support of the Italian Ministry of Culture.
IDD offers an extensive program of promotional events created by the network of Embassies, Consulates, Italian Cultural Institutes and ICE Offices abroad and has established itself over the years as an effective instrument in supporting the promotion of design and the internationalization of a strategic industrial sector for Italian exports. Each year, to mark the occasion, 100 different testimonials become the narrators of Italian design and creativity throughout the rest of the world.