The wonderful world of Alberto Meda

Tension and lightness: the story

Central to the development of the exhibition itinerary were both the experience of light and its immateriality and the world of composite materials, "which allowed me to understand and restore the physical and visual of the objects”, explains Alberto Meda.

“Physics in the sense that the experience of the project proceeds by material subtraction (reduction with technology). Visual in the sense that I have always tried to maintain a discreet approach, never shouting." Goal achieved.

“It is no coincidence that Meda is a point of reference for Jasper Morrison and many young designers. He who works with companies, in Italy and Europe, always in the same way, unique and contemporary, He who has signed and often signs together, with Irvine and Zanuso, strong> with Rizzatto and his son Francesco, is a standard bearer of industrial design and Made in Italy", and his story is a story of great partnerships, "cultivated with almost Leonardo-like dedication”, Marco Sammicheli outlines with esteem.

Like the one with RiccardoBlumer. In the exhibition there are in fact many moments dedicated to play in which the objects are called upon to entertain, each expressing their own technical characteristics: "only Blumer could transform the Physix armchair into a musical instrument”, says Meda amused.

In fact, it takes a lot of imagination to imagine making the office armchair designed in 2021 for Vitra emit harmonic sounds, "a sublime example of 'synchronous kineticism' strong>' that becomes a xylophone”, but that's how it happened.

“The idea of making materials resonate has always fascinated me,” confides the designer, retracing his intense fifty-year career, “design is the ability to enter into a relationship with matter: only if you learn to listen to it you are able to better understand and express its performances".

Alberto Meda, the example

Tension and lightness, therefore. But also revolution: "That of thought that rereads Meda's work and subverts clichés", which for too long have forced the Milanese designer into the role of project technician .

The fame he enjoys is tangible: he was in Kartell, in Alfa Romeo and with the Gaggia Brothers; he explored the product in all its forms and from different angles; he collaborated with workers and occupied hybrid spaces.

“From the material to the process, in his work there is the origin of the sustainable gesture”, says Sammicheli, citing an essay by Ezio Manzini in the catalogue, “even if Meda that he never uses the word 'sustainability',” the director points out, almost as if to underline that Meda's attention to the environment comes before all the rhetoric of greenwashing.