The design world has lost one of its most important and brilliant legends. Gaetano Pesce died last month at 84, leaving an enormous legacy behind. During his six-decade career, he held a special position in contemporary art and design; always remaining provocative, surprising, and interesting. He was an architect by training, but devoted his life and career to design, creating innovative furniture and objects that were at times eccentric, at times radical, and always colorful. They may appear to be playful and whimsical at first, but if you know how to read them, you’ll find that they are filled with social, political, and contemporary narratives. Participating: Marc Benda and Sara di Gangi.
Gaetano believed that design should be utilized as a means to express ideas and stories. He belonged to a generation of Italian radicals who sought to move design from its conventional functional role into a means of storytelling, and in this respect, he pioneered contemporary design of the 21st century. Perhaps his most celebrated piece of furniture is Donna, an armchair shaped like a female body attached to a sphere by a wire. It is a feminist statement portraying women as prisoners in 1960s society, at the height of the women’s rights movement.
This podcast episode of Spring 2024 can be found on Youtube (in video), and on Spotify and Apple Podcasts (in audio).
