Michele De Lucchi

Michele De Lucchi was born in Ferrara in 1951.

STUDIES
He graduated in architecture in Florence.

CAREER
As soon as he graduated he became an assistant at the Design course held by Adolfo Natalini at the University of Architecture of the Tuscan city.
It is in this post-graduate period that he comes into contact with the protagonists of Italian radical architecture: the Florentines (Lapo Binazzi, Adolfo Natalini, Gianni Pettena), but also the Milanese (Andrea Branzi, Alessandro Mendini)at a time when exchanges between the two groups are intense and fertile.
In these years De Lucchi is approaching, for example, the Global Tools, Studio Alchimia, Centrokappa, as well as co-founding the Cavartgroup, with which he organizes a series of memorable performances and installations within the trachyte quarries of the Euganean Hills.
In this early part of the ’70s the Florentine De Lucchi, like the other radicals, is the spokesman of a cultural project also rebellious, interested in questioning the production methods of the work, rather than to design and build objects and buildings.
In 1979in Milan meets Ettore Sottsass, who will follow in the group Memphis.
In 1980he started an independent activity. It is, however, the relationship with Sottsass that introduced him to the most important environments of Italian industrial design: in the following decade he collaborated with Olivetti, for which he designed the furniture branded Synthesisand then became head of the Design office of the parent company, He will be in charge until 2002 and will sign the project of numerous computers and office items, an area in which over the years he will also lend his projects to Compaq, Philips, Siemens and Vitra.
The end of the eighties is a golden moment for the career of De Lucchi.
In 1989he won the design of the Deutsche Bank subsidiaries and was awarded the “Compasso D’Oro” for the first time. He was awarded the prize for the Tolomeolamp, designed in 1987 for Artemide. A year before he will work for the furniture company Malobbia in Thiene in the design of home furnishings. In the following years he returned to design in Germany, for example designing the interiors of the Deutsche Bahn ticket offices; and for the banks, working for example for the Banco Portugues do Atlantico and for the Italian Post Office.
Its main area, however, remains the design of office interiors: in addition to Olivetti, De Lucchi works for Enel, Piaggio, Telecom Italia, Hera and, returning to the world of banks, for Intesa Sanpaolo, who also commissioned credit cards and the installation of the Gallerie d’Italia in Piazza della Scala.
In the meantime, in 1990, he founded Produzione Privata, a brand dedicated to the production of objects without a commission and then he worked on exhibitions – for example at the Scuderie del Quirinale – and on rethinking museum spaces and libraries: takes care of the Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome, the restoration of the Design Museum at the Triennale in Milan, the libraries of San Giorgio in Poggiale (Bologna) and Lodi and the Fondazione Cini in Venice.
In 2001he won the Compasso d’oro again: this time he was awarded the Artjet 10 printer by Olivetti, a company that De Lucchi left the following year.
In 2002 he began teaching: first at the IUAV in Venice, where in 2004he became a full professor, and then, from 2008, at the Politecnico di Milano.
Since 2005, he also began an intense activity in Georgia: first taking care of the redevelopment of the Rykhe district in Tbilisi, then working on the projects of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Bridge of Peace in the Georgian capital and the Palace of Justice and the Medea hotel in Batumi. Following this work and his contribution to the Caucasian country, President Saakashvili was awarded honorary Georgian citizenship.
In 2009, he returned to the Neues Museum in Berlin.
In2015-2017he undertook the renovation of the former Agip service station in Piazzale Accursio, Milan.
Since December 2017, Michele De Lucchi is the new director of the magazine Domus,thus inaugurating a new cycle that will see the management of the famous magazine of architecture and design, ten important Italian architects for a period of ten years, Each of which is entrusted with the direction of ten issues until 2028 to celebrate the 100 years of activity of the magazine. The link of the architect from Ferrara to the magazine founded by Gio Ponti in 1928, dates back to university times: now under his guidance Domus will focus on different disciplines alongside design, architecture and contemporary art also anthropology, economics and philosophy, through an investigation of the meaning and value of things in addition to the relationship between ‘man and object’.

AWARDS
Numerous the international acknowledgments.

1987
SNAI-Oscar des Architectures d’Interieur (France), table lamp Tolomeo, Artemide
Haus Industrieform (Germany), table lamp Tolomeo, Artemide
1988
Deutsche-Auswahl, Design Center Stuttgart (Germany), Ptolemy lamp family, Artemis
Netherlands Industrial Design Foundation Award (Netherlands), roll-fix Kleberoller, Pelikan
Good Design Award (Japan), sunglasses, Charmant
1989
Compasso D’Oro, ADI (Italy), family of lamps Tolomeo, Artemide
Design Plus (Germany), Kleberoller roll-fix, Pelikan
1990
SMAU Industrial Design Award (Italy), automatic bank terminal CD 6300, Olivetti-Siab
1991
Office Design Eimu (Italy), desk accessories Segmenti, Kartell
1992
Design Innovationen, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), Sigira lamp, Classicon
1993
Design Preis Schweiz (Switzerland), Sigira lamp, Classicon
1994
IF Award for good Industrial Design (Germany), laptop Philos 44, Olivetti
IF Award for good Industrial Design (Germany), multimedia kiosks MK Sys 6000, Olivetti
1995
SMAU Industrial Design Award (Italy), Envision computer box, Olivetti
Design Plus (Germany), salepepe Ginger and Fred, Rosenthal
Design Innovationen, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), self bank service MS 6050, Olivetti
1996
SMAU Industrial Design Award (Italy), PR 2 printer, Olivetti
IF Award for good Industrial Design (Germany), Ink Jet printer JP 170, Olivetti
IF Award for good Industrial Design (Germany), lamp Tolomeo pinza, Artemide
1997
Design Innovationen, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), office furniture system Sistemare, Mauser Office
Design Innovationen, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), interior of railway ticket offices (Reisezentrum Deutsche Bahn), Deutsche Bahn
IF Product Design Award-Best of Category (Germany), interior of railway ticket offices (Reisezentrum Deutsche Bahn), Deutsche Bahn
IF Product Design Award-Excellent Design (Germany), self-service ticket offices (Reisezentrum Deutsche Bahn), Deutsche Bahn
I.D. Annual Design Review (USA), workshop Domestic Chips, Olivetti
I.D. Annual Design Review (USA), Eidos/ Pegaso office furniture system, Olivetti Synthesis
I.D. Annual Design Review (USA), Acquatinta lamp, Private production
2000
Design Plus Light+Building (Germany), Dioscuri lamps, Artemis
Innovationspreis, Architektur und Office (Germany), office chair Attivo 480, Mauser Office
Innovationspreis, Architektur und Office (Germany), office furniture system Sistemare, Mauser Office

Design Innovationen, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), office chair Attivo 480, Mauser Office
Design Innovationen, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), Roter Punkt für höhe Designqualität, lamps Dioscuri, Artemide
IF Product Design Award (Germany), office chair Attivo 480, Mauser Office
IF Product Design Award (Germany), fax machine Jet Lab 600, Olivetti
2001
Compasso D’Oro, ADI (Italy), Artjet 10 printer, Olivetti
Designpreis des Landes Nordrhein Westfalen-Ehrenpreis für Productdesign (Germany), outdoor lighting Palms, Artemide
IF Product Design Award (Germany), decentralized Tolomeo lamp, Artemide
IF Product Design Award (Germany), outdoor lighting Palme, Artemide
2002
Reddot Design Award, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), lamps Logico, Artemide
Designpreis der Bundesrepublik (Germany), outdoor lighting Palme Artemide
2003
Gold medal for Italian architecture, Triennale (Italy), Finalist Gold medal for private commissioning, concept and philosophy of Poste Italiane
Reddot Design Award, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), floor lamp Tolomeo mega, Artemide
2004
Design Plus Light+Building (Germany), Castor lamps, Artemide
Design Plus Light+Building (Germany), hanging lamp Logico mini, Artemide
Reddot Design Award, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), Castor lamps, Artemide
2005
IF Design Award (Germany), office system MDL, Unifor
The Abitare il Tempo Award (Italy)
2008
Compasso d’Oro – Selezione, ADI (Italy), office system Layout, Alias
IF Product Design Award – Best of Category (Germany), access bridge to the Triennale Design Museum, Milan
2009
Reddot Design Award, Best of the Best (Germany), Noto lamp, Artemide
Good Design Award (USA), Noto lamp, Artemide
Good Design Award (USA), Soffione lamp, Artemide
US Award (Italy), 2 Prize wood@work, interior design of the Library of S. Giorgio in Poggiale, Bologna
2010
Innovation Awards Award, Quirinale (Italy) wooden floor collection Natural Genius Medoc, Listone Giordano
EDIDA, Elle Decoration International Design Awards (Italy), parquet Medoc®, Listone Giordano
2011
US Award (Italy), 1- prize Interior design, Superflash banking subsidiary Intesa Sanpaolo, Milan (Italy)
Compasso d’Oro – Selezione, ADI (Italy), parquet Medoc®, Listone Giordano
IF Product Design Award (Germany), Led Net line lamp, Artemide
US Award (Italy), 2 Interior design prize, Triennale Design Museum offices, Milan
2012
Grandesignetico International Award (Italy), acoustic panel Mitesco, Caimi Brevetti
Gold medallion in Italian architecture, Triennale (Italy), Nuova Manica Lunga, Fondazione Cini. Honorable mention in the conversion and restoration category Honorable mention in the conversion and restoration category
Federico Bernagozzi Prize, Municipality of Portomaggiore (Ferrara, Italy)
2015
Wallpaper* Design Award (United Kingdom), best building site for Padiglione Zero
Architektur und Wohnen (Germany), A&W Designer des Jahres
2016
GOOD Design Awards, (USA), Pulcina Coffee Maker, Alessi
MAPIC Awards (Italy), Il Centro Mall, Arese
2017
Wallpaper* Design Awards (USA), Best garden Party, Tolomeo Outdoor lamp lamp lamp, Artemide
Special Prize, Jury recommendation, Wood Architecture Competition, Pavilion Zero, (Italy)

RECOGNITION
1997Design Team of the Year 1997, Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany)
2000 Official of the Italian Republic, for merits in the field of design and architecture
2006 Honorary Doctorate, Kingston University, for its contribution to the “quality of life” (UK)
2009 Golden Fleece Order (Georgia)
2010 Presidential Order of Excellency (Georgia))
2012 Premio Federico Bernagozzi, Municipality of Portomaggiore (Ferrara, Italy)Ferrara, Italy)

Michele De Lucchi

Products made for Vistosi

Vega

Vega

Vega

Vega

Vega

Vega

Vega

Vega

Discover more designers

Studio Debonademeo

Tier

Vistosi

Aurora | Bissona | Candela | Corner | Dafne | Dress | Lepanto | Lio | Lucciola | Mia | Moris | Munega | Naranza | Naxos | Nessa | Oro | Ovalina | Saba | Sogno

Vico Magistretti

Alega

Romani Saccani Architetti Associati

24Pearls | Cloth | Cristallina | Diadema | Novecento | Puppet | Puppet Ring