Lightness was the leitmotif of the sixth edition, a new event that from 15 to 22 September 2024 has accompanied visitors on a diffuse journey, to discover exhibitions and site-specific installations, to explore the theme from different points of view. 7 locations, over 20000 square metres of exhibition space, 60 artists and designers from all over the world, 9 media partners, more than 100 national and international journalists, over 8000 visitors, 15 guided tours with more than 200 participants.
The Villa del Grumello, in the heart of the Chilometro della Conoscenza, has been one of the key places of the festival with Lightness in progress, a collective exhibition that brings together designers, artists, publishers, modern and contemporary design galleries, and historical archives creating a conceptual journey around the theme of lightness. The exhibition itinerary followed the different rooms of the villa with a selection of unpublished projects, collections of works, objects and furnishing accessories, coming from different realities, united by lightness in form and material.
The projects on show: Impressions by Andrea Branzi curated by Clio Calvi Rudy Volpi / Lithos; Mario Trimarchi with the project "Close to the Edge, unique pieces of marble and glass"; Eredi Marelli with a Selection of works by Angelo Mangiarotti, Enrico Rava, Paolo Buffa; Calle dei Cavalli Gallery with Mauro Accardi/Silvia Buccheri, Cara\Davide, Vincent Mazenauer, Francesco Maria Messina, Enrico Bianchettin, Isato Prugger e Barbieri Magalini for Matteo Pala; Dalmoto with the project Sister moon chair; Fine Art by Di Mano in Mano with a selection of crystals from the Spinzi collection, among others, by Pietro Chiesa, Laura Santillana, Renato Toso, Vinicio Vianello, Toni Zuccheri; Archivio design Ico Parisi with the project “Immagini per un’industria”, 1968-1970.
The dock of Villa del Grumello has become the starting point for an ideal journey to discover places representative of the rich architectural heritage that overlooks the shores of the Lario with the installation Paesaggi d’acqua. Un museo a cielo aperto sulle sponde del Lario, curated by Niccolò Nessi and Stefano Larotonda.
New for this edition was the opening of Chilometro della Conoscenza, in collaborazione with Associazione Villa del Grumello and Fondazione Antonio Ratti, which hosted the new Contemporary Design Selection. Located close to the centre of the city of Como, the Chilometro della Conoscenza (Kilometre of Knowledge) brings together, through centuries-old parks totalling 15 hectares, different architectures including greenhouses, chapels, lemon houses and docks. As in a diffuse kunsthalle, the installations of the projects selected by Giovanna Massoni have found their place, creating a diffuse exhibition route, surrounded by greenery and overlooking the shores of Lake Como.
Participants in the sixth edition: 9+1 (JP), Alice Pilastre (FR / BE) + Mathilde Tinturier (CH) + Andy Farrow (UK/BE), Anton Burdakov (UA/UK/DE), Atelier Nuanda (IT), Atelier Serruys (BE), Atelier Versi Linien (FR/IT), Biancodichina (IT), Caterina Frongia (IT), curaa studio (IT), Dora Stanczel (FR) + pietre trovanti (IT), ENEI (CH/AR/ES), Guto Davies (UK), Hana Hillerová (CZ), Ilaria Marelli (IT), Inessa Hansch (BE/FR), Jean-François D’Or (BE), Jonathan Bocca (IT), JOYH (AT), Marie-José D’Aprile (CH/IT), Marike Andeweg (NL), Marino Secco (IT), Marta Lavinia Carboni (IT), Millim Studio (IT), Paulina Herrera Letelier (CL/IT), Philippine Aprile Mandillon (FR), RAAD Studio (ES), Sarah Carestia (BE), Sjang Niederwieser (NL), Studio Gunther Pfeffer (DE), Studiointervallo (IT), Studio Yellowdot (HK/TR), Szostak Atelier (PL), Temperanza by Ilaria Bianchi x Spazio Giallo (IT), Ye Sul E. Cho (KR/UK/CAN)
For the second consecutive year, Lake Como Design Festival has opened the doors of San Pietro in Atrio to the public, a deconsecrated church dating back to 1200, a collective exhibition in collaboration with Lithos, a Como publishing house specializing in art prints and books. For the occasion Mario Botta, Michele De Lucchi, DWA Design Studio, Nathalie Du Pasquier, Francesco Faccin, Valerio Gaeti, Naessi Studio, Lucia Pescador, Franco Raggi, Mario Trimarchi interpret the theme of lightness through the ancient techniques of engraving.
Wrapped in a contemplative atmosphere, the prints of the works dialogue with the original plates, while a sound environment, inspired by the lyricism of the manual gesture of engraving, dialogues with the artistic heritage of the historic church that hosts the exhibition. The exhibition has been accompanied by a catalog opened by a critical text by Maria Cristina Didero.
Among the new spaces for the 2024 edition, Spazio Natta hosts 8 Days of Lightness, a project created by Erlands and Bai Bai, a harmonious duo that connects their philosophies of life in the art of glass, meditation, and design. Collaborating with designers, engineers, and trainers, Erlands and Bai Bai develop a meditative space infused with daily movement rituals that reveal profound sensory experiences. During the festival, Erlands has demonstrated the transformative impact of these objects, embodying his physical and mental experience towards a higher level of harmonious and sustainable well-being.
At Palazzo del Broletto, The Form of Lightness exhibition brought to the stage 28 chairs created between 1924 and 2024 with different techniques and materials and coming from different currents and countries. On display, among others, projects by: Mario Botta, Cini Boeri, Marcel Breuer, Paolo Buffa, Joe Colombo, Francesco Faccin, Eileen Gray, Piero Lissoni, Vico Magistretti, Alberto Meda, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Jasper Morrison, Verner Panton, Gio Ponti, Aldo Rossi, Giuseppe Terragni.
A site-specific installation allowed the visitor to walk between the different seats and delve into their eras, styles, and production techniques. The pieces come from various private collections, from companies such as Alias, Bonacina, ClassiCon, Cools Collection, Fiam, Gebrüder Thonet Vienna, Kartell, Matteo Grassi, Porro, Tolix, UniFor, from galleries such as Giustini Stagetti, Maniera, Rossana Orlandi and from archives as Giuseppe Terragni Archive and Eredi Marelli.
For the second consecutive year, the Swiss gallery Grieder Contemporary collaborates with Lake Como Design Festival by presenting a project by the acclaimed German artist Jorinde Voigt. The artist is renowned for her large-scale drawings that integrate text and collage to create dynamic compositions, capturing elements such as sound, movement, time, and perception in a unified visual scheme. At Borgovico 33, Jorinde Voigt will present her Betrachtung/Contemplation series (2019-2021) for the first time in Como with 7 mobiles made of intricate brass wires and chains, ethereal structures that seem to float in space inspired by the proportions of the Fibonacci series.
Not far from the center of Como and Villa del Grumello, Villa Anna in Cernobbio hosted a special project produced by the Swiss gallery Grieder Contemporary. Inside the early 20th century structure was the exhibition Weight of Illumination, a collection of works of art that highlight the double meaning of "light" - as brightness and weightlessness - with wit, humor, surrealism, and unexpected twists.
The exhibition was accompanied by a curated selection of period furniture that frames and counterpoints the Art Nouveau architecture of the villa and the contemporary works of art on display that embody weightlessness in both form and concept. Visitors met lightweight objects that seem to defy gravity, photographs that capture fleeting moments of brightness, and installations that playfully challenge the perception of space and size.
This dynamic combination of art and setting created an immersive experience, inviting visitors to explore the multifaceted nature of light and its profound impact on our understanding of the world. Among the pieces on display, works by Monica Bonvicini, Cristian Andersen, Melli Ink, Alicja Kwade, Jonas Lipps, Dieter Meier, Kerim Seiler.
Every afternoon of the festival, the Serra del Grumello hosted a series of meetings where designers, architects, writers and entrepreneurs met to explore the theme of this sixth edition from different points of view: from the contemporary formal research of international designers to the daring experiments of Como's rationalism, passing through a series of reflections on the relationship between matter, light and transparency. Lightness in emerging contemporary design was the theme of a series of panels curated by Paolo Ferrarini. A selection of 15 designers of the Contemporary Design Selection, from various European and non-European countries, were invited to narrate their vision and work. Paolo Casicci and Giovanna Massoni also took the audience on a light-hearted journey through the words of guests such as Jan Boelen, Davide Groppi, Lorenzo Palmeri and Olivier Lacrouts.