He is a master of timeless design. The creations of Antonio Citterio (Meda, 1950) are functional, with sober lines, but very technically studied and recognizable at first glance. That’s called style. This architect, a firm defender of durability, is also one of the most prolific and copied designers.
What is elegance?
Understand that quality is not something that is flaunted, but something that is perceived. When I think of elegance, I think of the quality of spaces and objects that stand the test of time.
Is simplicity more difficult than ostentation?
I design objects that are not intended to be a mere expression but rather arise as a response to real questions. My design is linked to behavior, to the way people interact with objects.
He is a faithful designer, he has spent decades with the best brands, what do they have about you and what do you have about them?
I consider clients more project partners than clients: I generally choose to work with people who share my vision and my language. I think this gives them great confidence. I started working with Flexform more than 40 years ago. It was 1979 and my office was still in Monza. I had graduated in Architecture from the Milan Polytechnic three years earlier. I shared the company’s strategies and determination to once again produce objects by rationalist architects such as Mario Asnago, Claudio Vender and Gabriele Mucchi, in what can be considered a tribute to the masters of the region.
When you design, what do you always keep in mind?
The common characteristic of Flexform products, for example, is that they are recognizable, for everyday use and always easy to use. In recent decades, we have attempted to add innovation to the original sartorial quality by integrating industrial processes, such as metal casting techniques. The company has invested heavily in research and development, with high-quality suppliers and first-class materials.
What’s the secret to staying cool?
Curiosity. I have already turned 70 years old, but from a certain point of view I am still a child, when I see something that interests me, I look at it and consider it. Not long ago, I was driving from Milan to Basel and saw a building off the highway that I had never noticed before. Although I was late for the appointment, I told myself: “If I don’t see him now, I won’t see him again.” Then I stopped. It gave me great satisfaction: it is important for me to see and understand.
Where to find stimuli?
Inspiration, for me, is linked to the role of the designer in society and his creativity, trying to provide a different point of view of society. Your creativity can be a vision of change. My language comes from a continuous exchange with the companies with which I collaborate: I firmly believe that a project develops in the relationship between people: it is within this relationship of trust where creativity can be freely expressed.
Have we finally integrated that design and architecture must be socially and ecologically responsible?
Sustainability must be a fundamental part of the production process. It is difficult to be completely sustainable, because not all materials used in the design can be 100% sustainable. But what is changing is the approach to materials and durability: now when I start designing something, I already think about its end of life. But the most important part falls on the chemical industries: the materials must not only be reusable, but they must also avoid the emission of harmful gases into the atmosphere during the production process.
Do you have any furniture at home that has accompanied you all your life?
The sofa that I have next to the desk where I work has been with me for 20 years and I don’t think I’m going to change it.
What should we take into account when choosing a sofa for our home?
The most important thing is to think about how people will use it and how they will behave with it.
Italy has the value of local production…
Being close to production has always been essential for me. Being born in Meda, in the heart of furniture manufacturing, and studying at the Art Institute, where I designed for four or five hours a day until graduating, were two fundamental factors for my career. Working with my father, who was an entrepreneurial craftsman, It allowed me to understand the fundamental characteristics of design and production from direct experience. Competition for quality is linked to territory: to the geographical proximity of the subjects, their stories and their creative capacities.
What role does craftsmanship play in your work?
For me, craftsmanship means going to factories where drawings are transformed into objects, where components are joined together and materials adhere to each other. In this sense, design and craftsmanship are linked. Only when you understand in detail how processes work can you truly design something in all its complexity.
In architecture he works in tandem with Patricia Viel. What about her and what about you in her projects? Or is there a total symbiosis?
We have been working together for decades: in 2000 we founded the ACPV Arquitectos Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel studio, which deals with architecture and interior projects. In recent years the studio has grown a lot and today we have more than 180 professionals. With Patricia we work directly on the projects and she is also in charge of managing the studio. When she arrived at her office in 1986, my activity focused mainly on design, but also thanks to her the studio has increasingly dealt with architecture. Patricia was and is so organized that I trusted her with a lot of work.
What projects are you working on now?
With the study we continue to work at all scales of intervention, from residential towers to tourist complexes and corporate campuses, from the Far East to Europe and America. The book Antonio Citterio Design was also recently published, where I recount more than five decades of my design projects. But I’m not going to stop!
A motto to guide you?
Never, ever, stop being curious.
