Alberto Alessi: the godfather of Italian design

Poetry and art meet function in Alessi’s extensive range of consumer products. Alberto Alessi shares the story. Alberto Alessi, the president of Alessi Spa and widely regarded as the godfather of Italian design, talks about the history of the company and incorporating poetic elements into functional consumer products. Alessi is a research lab for designers as well as the mediators between an expression of creativity and the final customer’s dreams, says Alessi. Alessi talks about the phenomenon that is the Italian design factory. He tells of the challenge of producing sculptural art objects for the consumer market. For years it has been important to the Alessi brand to create a multi-sensorial experience with their products. Alessi talks about the poetic function in products and cautions designers against designing things that are too sophisticated. He also looks at the practices of Italian design factories and reminisces about working with Salvador Dali.