Ein an ice bucket that appears to be made from frozen ice cubes. This was his first product. It was made from resin, a hardened resin that can be molded into any liquid form. Gaetano Pesce used this material again and again in tables, wall clocks and, not least, in his famous colorful vases that look like they were poorly made, with cracks, cracks and threads that seem to tie them together and hold them together . Pesce was more of an artist than a designer, but in fact, like all the great Italian designers of his time, he was an architect.
Gaetano Pesce came from a war and post-war generation that questioned everything, that grew up with industrial design, but did not want to let industry (and the market) dictate what a product should look like. For Pesce, the object itself and how it affects people were important; function was of secondary importance to him. This was radical, and so Pesce became one of the founders of the new Radical Design movement.
The red gummy bear-shaped chair is too thick.
Gaetano Pesce was born in La Spezia in 1939 and studied architecture in Venice in the late 1950s and early 1960s. He then began working with entrepreneur Cesare Cassina, who had already defeated Gio Ponti and Vico Magistretti. Cassina gave Pesce complete freedom, and in 1969 they came up with the seat that would instantly make him famous: the Up. The voluminous polyurethane foam chair took its shape only when it was released from the vacuum and packaging. The bright red object, reminiscent of an overweight gummy bear, has become a pop culture icon. And also the women’s movement: because the reclining chair took the form of a votive statue of the goddess of fertility. Pesce called this the “concept of creation,” a symbol of a time when women were not free to develop politically and socially.
Pesce’s design had to be individual, even if it would eventually be mass produced. “For my part, I believe that death makes us all the same and that to be alive is to be different, and since each of us has the right to be so, then the objects surrounding us in the short period of our existence should allow us to also enjoy this privilege.”
Gaetano Pesce has just invited people to his exhibition “Nice to see you” at the Ambrosiana, which was due to open on April 15 on the occasion of the Milan Furniture Fair. It has now been announced that the great experimental designer died on Wednesday in New York at the age of 84.
Source: Frantfurter Allgemeine
I’ve been working in the entertainment industry for over 7 years, starting out as a reporter and then moving on to being a media buyer and producer. I now work as an author at the World Herald News, where I cover all things entertainment. I’m passionate about finding the latest news and trends in this field, and I love writing stories that help my readers get a better understanding of what’s going on.
