From May 9 to June 7, 2026, the Marcello Morandini Foundation in Varese presents the exhibition A History of Ceramic Design, curated by Fabio Carnaghi, dedicated to reconstructing the path that connects the birth of the International Ceramic Design Prize to the evolution of the MIDeC Prize. The exhibition focuses on the relationship between historical experiences and contemporary experimentation, outlining a framework that restores the continuity of research that has developed over time around ceramic design as a design and cultural field.
The exhibition project began in 1998, the year in which Marcello Morandini, during his presidency of the Cerro Museum in Laveno Mombello, established a biennial award dedicated to ceramic design. The initiative helps to redefine Laveno’s role in the contemporary ceramics scene and to consolidate a reference context for design culture. This phase also defines the identity of MIDeC, Museo Internazionale del Design Ceramico, whose name and cultural setting are influenced by the vision promoted in those years.
The first core of the exhibition is dedicated to the protagonists of the first editions of the prize. In particular, figures such as Antonia Campi, honored in 1998, Ambrogio Pozzi, recognized in 2000, and Marcello Morandini himself, awarded the prize in 2003, are presented. The works, from private collections, are selected with the aim of restoring the variety of research and the centrality of the project in the work of the three authors, highlighting different approaches but united by a constant reflection on ceramics as a language of design.
The second section of the exhibition is dedicated instead to the four editions of the MIDeC Prize held between 2019 and 2025. This segment highlights the continuity of the initiative and its ability to update itself with respect to the transformations of the contemporary landscape. The works of Sandra Baruzzi, Eloisa Gobbo, Karin Putsch Grassi, Anna and Paola Marinuzzi, Mathias Och, Caterina Sbrana, Alice Reina, Arago Design and Arianna De Luca return an articulated picture of current research, in which ceramics is configured as a material of formal experimentation and technical investigation, as well as an expressive support.
Overall, the exhibition proposes a reading that combines historical dimension and contemporary perspective, highlighting the role of the prize as a cultural device capable of activating processes of research and comparison. The set of works and paths on display contributes to delineating a continuity that spans different generations of designers, keeping the relationship between matter, form and design central.
Alongside the main exhibition, the Foundation offers two additional temporary exhibitions. The first, entitled Interaction of Color, is dedicated to Josef Albers and features a room entirely devoted to his work on optical perception and color relationships. It will be on view until December 20, 2026, and focuses on analyzing the visual dynamics of color through a didactic and experimental approach.
The second exhibition, A Sculpture that Becomes an Elevator, on the other hand, presents a reconstruction of the design process related to the construction of the museum’s new monumental elevator, which is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026. The exhibition shows the different stages of development of the intervention and remains open to visitors until June 7, 2026, in parallel with the closing of the main exhibition.
Hours: Visiting Thursday, 3 to 6 p.m. and Friday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 to 6 p.m.
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| In Varese, the history of ceramic design and the MIDeC award on display at the Marcello Morandini Foundation |
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