'Made In Italy,' a marker of impeccable Italian design heritage presented at M7 Museum

Quality in design is considered Italy's cultural currency, and perhaps, also a soft power—now, it is congruently strengthening relations with the world's fastest-growing city, Doha in Qatar, through ICONE. Voices of Design Made in Italy. The design exhibition will focus on two main keywords of 'emotion and education,' and is curated by acclaimed Milanese gallerist Rossana Orlandi and constructed by architect Lucio Micheletti of Micheletti+Partners. Its display criteria will focus on Italy's design excellence and its celebrated aspects of quality, materials, innovation, and the sustainability of production chains. Promoted by the Embassy of Italy in the State of Qatar and hosted by Qatar Museums, it is also a token of the growing bilateral relations between the two nations. On view from September 20 - December 20, 2023, at the M7 Museum in Doha's Msheireb Downtown district, the endeavour is being hailed as the world's first sustainable downtown regeneration project.

Winner of the Compasso d'Oro 2022 award, proprietor of the internationally recognised Rosanna Orlandi art gallery in Milan, and considered an ambassador for 'good design,' Orlandi has ideated a layered showcase spotlighting the creative genius of the Italian manufacturing industry, with a signature exhibition by Micheletti.

Exhibited against a dark backdrop, the first section of ICONE. Voices of Design Made in Italy is set to treat displayed objects as the protagonists, with design being portrayed as an 'agent of innovation,' further establishing its theatrical stage accentuated with pioneering lighting design as well as digital and audio support. The second section will dive into the story-telling of Italian design heritage, as curated by Francesca Molteni.

The showcase will witness the participation of legacy art and design brand Moroso, which will facilitate designers' visions into reality by merging skilled craftsmanship with industrial production processes. Inspired by nature's textures to evoke a sensory experience, Pebble Rubble by Swedish designers Sofia Lagerkvist and Anna Lindgren of Front, is a seating set part of the exhibit. Created after scanning natural surfaces digitally, the designer set offers a range of chromatic gradations of the scanned data. The brand will also present 'Ruff,' a lounge chair designed by Patricia Urquiola, whose practice is a tryst with binary geometry. 'Balancing Boxes,' a coffee table also designed by Front for Italian brand Porro, is made of irregular but overlapping metal and wooden box frames and appears to be falling into a void. Porro will also be presenting 'Romby,' an armchair by GamFratesi at the three-month-long exhibit.

In tandem, Cassina, B&B Italia, Kartell, Poltrona Frau, and Molteni&C will display iconic seating designs. Cassina will show the 'Utrecht armchair' by Gerrit T. Rietveld, a Dutch architect whose experimental brainchild is on display—the chair design is dressed in white fabric with minimal explosions of colour, sharpening the appearance of its right angles. Poltrona Frau's 'Vanity Fair' is an emblem of Italian design, while Molteni&C pays homage to designer and architect Gio Ponti, both interventions promisingly expanding the visual vocabulary of armchairs. Molteni&C will also present 'Living Box' by Vincent Van Duysen, where architectural projects are reduced and transformed into household utility product designs such as cabinets.

ICONE. Voices of Design Made in Italy will also feature other architecturally inspired designs within presentations from brands such as Fornasetti, which will introduce 'Ribalta Musciarabia' inspired by Arabic architectural motifs, and designed by Piero Fornasetti. While Memphis is set to showcase 'Fremont,' a piece reminiscent of Japanese temples, Draga & Aurel will introduce the 'Rainbow Table' by Vasa Mihich, an American artist of Yugoslavian origins, as an ode to their upcycle-design practice.

The exhibition will also include innovational tableware: Designer Alessandro Ciffo and Sonia Pedrazzini collaborated to create the HELLAS XXII collection, suffused with an enchanting concept and Ciffo's relentless experimentation with the silicone medium. The hypermodern artefacts are a futuristic take on ancient Greek vases, produced as objects of 3D art and digital designs. Tableware also appears in the collection by Ginori 1735, a brand that reinvents its heritage through innovation. Represented by works of American artist Michele Oka Doner and curated by Frédéric Chamber, these mesmerising porcelain products are of renewed imagination and unrepeatable.

Design functionality is accentuated by Slalom with Idol, an ensemble of three, phono-absorbing sculptures by Isabella Del Grandi, where non-traditional geometries are balanced atop each other. Relatedly, 'Personal Line' is Technogym's design-forward, home fitness equipment that combines designer Antonio Citterio's award-winning style with Technogym's 30-year experience in sports, as the official supplier of the last eight Olympics.

One-of-a-kind collectors' items will also be showcased at ICONE. Voices of Design Made in Italy: Andrea Zambelli's Weight of Time brings to life his introspection on time's passage with three unique furniture designs, each holding symbolic value. Meanwhile, Artemide's lighting solutions marry technology with ancient wisdom, with their brand strategy sensitised towards human and responsible light. Ethimo's 'Hut' is an outdoor retreat described by Marco Lavit as a 'place for resting,' while Aurora showcases five exquisite pens, including the dazzling 'Diamond Pen,' as a testament to Italian luxury.

Other creative design brands displaying at ICONE. Voices of Design Made in Italy include Alessi, Bisazza, Annibale Colombo, Driade, Flos, FontanaArte, FROMM., Living Divani, Nemo Lighting, Persico, and Pomellato.

'ICONE. Voices of Design Made in Italy' is on view from September 20 - December 20, 2023, at Gallery 3 - M7 Qatar Creates Hub, in Doha, Qatar.