5 books on design not to be missed in February 2023

• He had golden hands by Prashanth Cattaneo, Rubettino Editore, 15 euros

Giuseppe Leo known as Peppino was a Calabrian entrepreneur who dedicated his entire and long life to the family wool mill, founded in Soveria Mannelli in 1870 and which grew to become, from at least 50 years old, one of the excellences of Italian textil design.

A few years after his death, the art and design project Had golden hands wanted by his son Emilio today recalls his figure starting from a painting by Pino Deodato, in which the little blue man, the small curved figure that recurs in the artist's works, becomes extremely similar to Peppino Leo in the ritual gestures of spinning and weaving.

Next to the painting, reproduced by Emilio Leo on a pillowcase, a book with the same title arrives in the bookstore, He had golden hands, signed by the scholar Prashanth Cattaneo (Rubbettino publisher).

A tribute book to the story of Giuseppe Leo which is also a precious object, with a handmade cover, bound with an ancient method, finished on the spine in crepe paper and printed on a special smooth paper.

• Stories of public quarters. Projects and experiments to enhance living, curated by Anna Delera and Elisabetta Ginelli, Mimesis, 35 euros.

The public housing districts, despite the dismantling of the Nineties and the more recent phenomena of gentrification, continue to be important places of representation and expression of an urban fabric.

This book edited by Anna Delera and Elisabetta Ginelli tells it well through about forty essays by authors mainly from the world of universities who go to compose a rich journey between places - sometimes fragile, other times great architectural quality - in which public housing has - literally - built pieces of Italian cities.

An excellent starting point for possible new experiments, also with the involvement of younger generations in training experiences, illustrated with numerous schemes and diagrams.

• Dream houses. Interior Design Cubes, by Chiara Savino, Ed. 24 Ore Cultura, 39.90 euros.

A fiery red cover, captivating graphics and 200 illustrations.

This is how Dream houses presents itself, a book that offers the eyes of all interior design enthusiasts a  selection of houses never seen before and with decidedly strong characters.

Ranging from unusual combinations of materials and colors to anthropomorphism up to organic shapes that take inspiration from the animal world, this book offers a roundup of surprising environments that undermine the concept itself of habitation to transform the house into a labyrinth or a non-place that seems to reflect very well the complexity of contemporary man.

• Architettura ludica, by Mario Gerosa, available only in the e-book version, published by Falsopiano, 2.99 euros

Forts, dollhouses, garages, paper castles or constructions with Lego bricks: alongside traditional architecture there is the parallel world of play architecture, created for children but also for board games or roles loved by adults.

The book by Mario Gerosa, a journalist specializing in architecture and design, is dedicated to this type of construction. He traces the origin, inspiration and cultural references of some of the most famous and loved by generations of players.

A world in which, explains the author, high and low culture coexist and which is subject to fashions and trends that seem in harmony with those of true architecture.

• Arrigo Arrighetti in Milan, various authors, series "Itineraries of modern architecture" published by the Foundation of the Order of Architects of the Province of Milan, 18 euros.

One hundred years after his birth, the Order of Architects of Milan celebrates his figure and role as civil servant of the city of Milan.

From the Church of San Giovanni Bono to the Sant'Ambrogio district, from the swimming pool in the Solari Park to the canopy of the tram station at the Bastions of Porta Volta, Arrighetti's work reveals the intention to provide solutions credible to daily needs: a school, a library, a church, a neighborhood.

Problems that Arrighetti solves with a cultured profession that looks to the great experiences of modern architecture to respondto the needs of society and not so much to define itself by a recognizable identity.