Paola Navone

The colors and shapes of Paola Navone's world are daring, they're colorful, they respond to many and various currents, and they're never boring. Born in Turin, the architect and designer thinks in global terms. In the very best sense, she is a citizen of the world. Navone's work opens up for us a world full of life and warmth, a world which is intriguing yet still, for all its creative crackle, highly accessible. She's an architect of exteriors and interiors, a designer, curator, art director, and events organizer - crossing borders is what Paola Navone's life is all about. She does it continuously, in her travels and in her work. Her output bears the imprint of solid training and impressive professional experience, but also of her own personal experiences and a most particular passion for the craft traditions of various cultures and epochs. Paola Navone spent 21 years living in Africa and Asia, and the influences she absorbed keep shimmering through her designs. She graduated in architecture from Turin Polytechnic in 1973 and went to work in Milan alongside the Italian design avant-garde, with Alessandro Mendini, Ettore Sottsass Jr. and Andrea Branzi. Soon she was designing for the big names in Italian furniture, brands like Driade, Alessi and Zanotta. Her success was seen not least in taking the prestigious Osaka International Design Award in 1983. In 2000 the German magazine Architektur & Wohnen named her Designer of the Year. Together with Guido Cappelini she founded her own company, Mondo, in 1988. And since 1998 she has been artistic director of the Italian furniture house Gervasoni, while continuing to pursue her own projects. This richly illustrated book about Paola Navone shows impressively how her living and shopping landscapes are transformed into magical locations. It documents the vitality and originality of her exhibition projects, and presents the range of her designs for furniture, lighting, accessories, right down to her latest work for Reichenbach porcelain. Light years away from functional, minimalist design, this is an exciting stylistic mix of the orient and the occident, of strong colors and tender nuances, of materials left rough and materials worked with filigree precision. This book is an invitation to linger, revel, savor and dream. It is an invitation to live. Text in English, German, Spanish, French and Italian.