Alessandro M.

Born in Milan in 1931, Alessandro Mendini was one of the main innovators of Italian design in the 1980s. Internationally renowned architect, artist, designer, design manager and theorist, he edited leading magazines on the culture of design, spreading his calls for renewal. His long association with Alessi was culturally multifaceted: official historiographer, designer of iconic objects such as the Anna G. corkscrew, architect of the Alessi Museum, of extensions to the Omegna headquarters and of temporary exhibitions, he was the creator and coordinator of projects that have helped transform the company into one of the factories of renowned Italian Design.

Fulvia Mendini was born in 1966 in Milan, where she also lives and works. After studying illustration and graphics at the European Institute of Design, she worked at Atelier Mendini and co-operated with various companies. She then embarked on a personal artistic and decorative research journey, focussing primarily on the world of nature and portraiture. Her design language is influenced by the world of graphic design and the tradition of arts and crafts. Her works have been shown at the Grand Palais in Paris, the Triennale in Milan, the Biennale in Prague and in numerous galleries and have been included in the collections of the Byblos Art Hotel in Verona and the Stazioni dell’Arte Salvator Rosa and Mater Dei della Metropolitana di Napoli. Since 2019, she has been managing her father Alessandro Mendini’s archives and studio together with her sister Elisa. “This design brings together oak leaves and foliage in an ensemble that becomes a tree-like dress in shades of green and pink. I imagined Anna G. and Alessandro M. as fairy-tale characters living in the enchanted forest of William Shakespeare’s play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. In their leaf-covered dresses, they float in the meadows among the fairy flowers in a round of festive dances, in an endless search for secrets and hidden desires.” Fulvia Mendini