DESIGN:Women in Italian Design
On the occasion of the XXI International Exposition, Triennale Design Museum presents “W. Women in Italian Design”. The exhibition is targeted at analysing the role of women examines Italian design in the light of one its most delicate, most problematic aspects, but also one of the most exciting and appealing, which is that of gender.
By Dimitris Lempesis
Photo: Triennale Design Museum Archive
Historically, women were put aside from culture and from design too. The exhibition “W. Women in Italian Design” shows how women took gradually back their space on the stage, across 100 years, presenting 600 works by 350 women designers. The idea that gender is no longer just a biological and natural fact, but rather a cultural issue opens up interesting perspectives for what design after design might be. But to address the question of gender in design in an objective and balanced manner, we first need to examine the great removal of the female gender perpetrated during the twentieth century. The modernity of the 20thCentury pushed women’s design skills to the side-lines, where it has been virtually ignored by design historians and theorists. The 21st Century is increasingly showing a new-found intensity in these design skills. Women create, design, experiment, risk and challenge. The chronological approach tells this story in a lively, dynamic manner, using the metaphor of a river that runs the whole length of the 20th Century. This exhibition includes names like: Cini Boeri, Gae Aulenti, Paola Navone and Rossana Orlandi. The itinerary takes visitors passed typewriters covered in knitting, ultra-ergonomic chairs, giant doilies, iconic and sculptural pieces; this illustrates female perception, a quest for innovation, an interest in craftsmanship and design precision. There’s also a direct reference to be made between man and woman, which comes across in the different approach the two genders have to design. Furthermore, this exhibition can be seen as redemption for all those women designers born in the twentieth century and ignored by historians and critics until almost a century later.
Info: Curator: Silvana Annicchiarico, Exhibition design: Margherita Palli, Graphic design: Irene Bacchi, Palazzo della Triennale, Viale Alemagna , Milan, Duration: 2/4/16-19/2/17, Days & Hours: Tue-Sun 10:30-20:30, www.triennale.org
