Farewell to Gaetano Pesce. His UP series earned him the Compasso d'oro for his career.

Designer and architect Gaetano Pesce (La Spezia, 1939 - New York, 2024) has passed away at the age of 84, in New York City, where he had lived since 1980. “It is with regret that we announce the passing of visionary creator Gaetano Pesce,” reads the official Instagram page. “Over the course of sixty years Gaetano revolutionized the world of art, design, architecture and the liminal spaces between these categories. His originality and courage no one else had. Although especially in the last year he faced health-related problems, Gaetano remained positive, playful, and always curious. He is survived by his children, family and all those who adored him. His uniqueness, creativity and special message live on through his art. Hello Gaetano!”

Born in La Spezia, Liguria, in 1939, Gaetano Pesce studied architecture at the University of Venice between 1958 and 1963 and participated in Group N. He taught architecture at the Institut d’Architecture et d’Etudes Urbaines in Strasbourg for twenty-eight years, at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, at the Domus Academy in Milan, at the Polytechnic in Hong Kong, and at Cooper Union in New York City, where he has lived since 1980, after living in Venice, London, Helsinki and Paris.

Pesce’s art can be found in more than thirty permanent collections of the world’s most important museums, such as MoMa in New York and San Francisco, the Metropolitan Museum in New York, the Vitra Museum in Germany, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Pompidou Center, and the Musèe des Arts Décoratifs of the Louvre in Paris; his works have been exhibited in galleries around the world.

Famous among his creations is the Up armchair. Designed in 1969, the Up Series became from its birth one of the iconic objects of design thanks to its shapes with unmistakable anthropomorphic references: indeed, it recalls a wide and welcoming maternal womb. With an additional element, a sphere that acts as a pouf attached to the body of the armchair. The image of comfort and convenience is overlaid with the more figurative image of the woman with the ball and chain.

His award-winning designs include the prestigious Chrysler Award for Innovation and Design in 1993, the Architektur and Wohnen Designer of the Year in 2006 and the Lawrence J. Israel Prize from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York in 2009, and the prestigious Compasso d’Oro Career Award in 2022 for the UP series.

“I express sincere condolences for the passing of Gaetano Pesce, a great Italian who, with talent, vision and passion, exalted the name of Made in Italy in the world. Designer, architect and sculptor, his art was expressed through many languages, mastered with wisdom and skill, always capturing the essence of what he represented,” said Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano.

Photo by Gabriele Zanon.

Farewell to Gaetano Pesce. His UP series earned him the Compasso d'oro for his career.

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