New York, New York, USA
Considered as the pioneer of the Radical Design movement, Italian design master Gaetano Pesce dies at the age of 84.
“Over the course of six decades Gaetano revolutionized the worlds of art, design, architecture and the liminal spaces between these categories. His originality and nerve are matched by none,” states Pesce’s studio.
Born in La Spezia, Italy (1939) Gaetano Pesce studied architecture and design, studying first at the University of Venice and later at the Venice Institute of Industrial Design.
Between 1958 and 1963, he participated in the design collective Gruppo N, where he became part of the Radical Design movement.
The movement revolted against 20th-century modernism, which rose in popularity alongside the era’s social and economic instability.
Pesce experimented with shapes, materials, and colors.
One of his most celebrated factory-made pieces, for example, is an armchair in the shape of a well-endowed fertility goddess connected to a spherical ottoman.
The piece not only featured surrealist form but also delved into the political realm by portraying the subjugation of women.
Pesce’s works, as he described himself, revolted against the use of right angles, presenting a counterargument to conventions and earning him the title of an “enemy of the grid.”
Some of his latest collaborations were the one with Cassina in 2022 and Bottega Veneta in 2023.
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