Getting to know Bergamo and Brescia through Design and their Compasso d'Oro: an exhibition

An exhibition and a series of lectures to learn about the history of Bergamo and Brescia, Italian Capitals of Culture 2023, through design. It is the project The Thinking Factories. Stories of Compassi d’Oro from Bergamo to Brescia, which includes an exhibition with all the Compassi d’Oro, in a special setting in Sala delle Capriate in the heart of Bergamo’s Città Alta, a Future of talk series, a printed editorial publication and an episodic podcast.

Design is synonymous with planning, research and innovation; it is product, it is furniture, it is manufacture, it is city, but above all it is history. Retracing the history of design through its protagonists means enhancing an entire sector, revealing its planning, its creative processes. It means getting to the heart of a transversal tale capable of revealing unprecedented pieces of contemporary life and business culture. Bergamo and Brescia, bordering territories that share characteristics and strengths of the creative and productive fabric, enter the panorama of Italian industrial design as protagonists of innovation, thanks to companies and products that have made history in the world of industry and everyday life.

If discovering the history of Bergamo and Brescia through design allows one to fully understand its industrial and design capital, the best and most objective way to do so according to The Thinking Factories is by reliving the Bergamo and Brescia excellences that have won over the years the Compasso d’Oro, the world’s oldest and most authoritative design award, conceived by Gio Ponti in 1954 with the aim of highlighting the value and quality of Italian design products then in their infancy. From the first edition to the present, as many as 32 products made by companies in the territories of Bergamo and Brescia (from the Arco lamp to the 24 Ore briefcase, from the Frida chair to the Sheraton storage unit) have won the Compasso d’Oro, confirming the innovative vocation of the heterogeneous manufacturing production of the two cities. To these 32 Compasso d’Oro is added a 33rd: the symbol of the Lombardy Region, designed by Bob Noorda, Roberto Sambonet, Pino Tovaglia and Bruno Munari.

The exhibition will be a sort of design “house,” painted ruby red with texts and icons in white and gold, to recall the colors of the Compasso d’Oro: it is set up in the Sala delle Capriate in Palazzo della Ragione, in the heart of Città Alta, from March 24 to June 4, 2023. The 32+1 winners of the Compasso, protagonists of the exhibition, are distributed along a freely developed path inside and outside this large patio “domus,” with sides now closed and now open, to offer curious viewpoints and unprecedented perspectives of their different aspects: from the design to the choice of production materials, from the design to the product, both “decomposed” and in its final version. The layout, designed and curated by Davide Pagliarini, includes interactive paths to intrigue visitors and enhance each product.

The project Le fabbriche pensanti is the brainchild of DimoreDesign, developed by Associazione Marketing +39 and MULTI, with curatorship by Davide Pagliarini and the patronage of ADI-Associazione per il Disegno Industriale, and with the support of ABB Top Partner of the project, Main Partner companies Brembo, Effearredi, Gruppo Azimut and Magnetti Building of the Grigolin Group, as well as Alias, Flos and Pedrali. The project was funded by the City of Bergamo through the Call for Contributions to Support Projects for Bergamo Brescia Italian Capital of Culture 2023. With contributions from CCIAA Bergamo, Confindustria Bergamo and Regione Lombardia.

Getting to know Bergamo and Brescia through Design and their Compasso d'Oro: an exhibition

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