From 29 to 31 October 2021, it's time for EDIT Napoli 2021, one of our favourite event dedicated to independent designers and design authors. It is hosted in charming and fascinating exhibition spaces such as the Monumental Complex of San Domenico Maggiore, in the heart of Naples, Istituto Caselli – Royal Factory of Capodimonte, the evocative Archivio di Stato di Napoli and in other some quintessential, symbolic hotspots of Neapolitan culture.
Over 80 exhibitors, including independent designers, design authors, creators and manufacturers, responded enthusiastically to the curatorial call by the creators of the fair, Domitilla Dardi and Emilia Petruccelli.
Historic places and exceptional locations around the city will also host installations and exhibitions by Lidewij Edelkoort, Daniel Kruger for Galleria Antonella Villanova, La Manufacture, Stephanie Moussallem for House of Today, Federico Pepe curated by Federica Sala, while the prototypes of the Hybrida collection born of the collaboration between the architect-designer Patricia Urquiola and the Caselli Institute – Royal Factory of Capodimonte for MADE IN EDIT, will be the protagonists of an exhibition and a solidarity auction in collaboration with Christie's.
The exhibitors of EDIT Napoli 2021 will showcase to a professional and non-professional public, products and projects that promote quality over quantity, territoriality over globalization, and those that make a transparent supply chain one of their strengths.
Among these, 30 are the emerging names that will form part of the Seminario – the section of the fair dedicated to designers under 30 and brands with less than three years of activity, which will be set up in a temporary loft inside the Complex designed by the architect Giuliano Andrea Dell'Uva.
“The gaze of this 2021 edition turns beyond the border, with particular attention to the Mediterranean. Many collaborations have been formed with international brands and designers, such as those with France, Lebanon and the Netherlands, as well as those with the growing number of young designers that will animate our Seminario” – affirms Domitilla Dardi, curator of the fair.
The spectrum of Italian and international brands includes Atelier Malak, Forma&Cemento, Golden Editions, Lithea, Milla Novo, Stamuli, The Art and Design Group, Zieta Studio.
Following their debut in the Seminario section, Basis Rho, Eleit.it, Finemateria and Very Simple Kitchen return as exhibitors, while many other new emerging names from all over Europe will populate the loft: from the Italians Atelier Ferraro, ccontinua + mamt, Caterina Frongia to French Julia Chiaramonti to Danish Alexander Kirkeby to Atelier Pendhapa and numerous Dutch designers selected through the Young Dutch Titans call launched in collaboration with the Embassy and Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Italy.
“In this third edition, the relationship with the city and the symbolic places of its history is consolidated by connecting them to important international institutions and realities of the design and project culture” – says Emilia Petruccelli, director of the fair.
Among the special projects, the French duo Canel Averna (recent winners of the Design Parade at Villa Noailles in Hyéres) will create a spectacular installation-sign with natural movement. Moreover, inside the cloister of San Domenico Maggiore, visitors will encounter a kiosk designed by Kiki&Joost – Kiki van Eijk and Joost van Bleiswijk.
In October, a commission of experts composed of the Italian designers Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin – Formafantasma, the French interior and furniture designer Dorothée Meilichzon, the creators of Sight Unseen from New York, Monica Khemsurov and Jill Singer, and the web director of ELLE Decor Italy – Alessandro Valenti, will choose the best unreleased works of 2021.
Museo Filangieri Courtesy: EDIT Napoli (left) | Chest'è. Federico Pepe Image credit: Le Dictateur Studio (right)
The winners will be chosen for their ability to embody the values promoted by EDIT Napoli 2021: intelligent design, deep respect for cultural heritage and well-balanced price.
The fair will also showcase Hybrida, the collection of ceramic and porcelain centerpieces, created for MADE IN EDIT and born of the unprecedented collaboration between the architect-designer Patricia Urquiola and the Istituto Caselli – Royal Factory of Capodimonte. The prototypes of the collection will be at the center of an installation and sold at a solidarity auction in collaboration with Christie's that will be held at the Institute. The proceeds will be donated towards the restoration of the school's didactic internal garden.
Lastly, Sicilian brand Orografie returns to EDIT Napoli 2021 with a new laboratory dedicated to storytelling, which will feature young copywriters and illustrators, and with the products created by the emerging designers who won last year's workshop, the duo Maria Giovanna Barbi and Fabio Brunone, Linda Salvatori and Livia Stacchini.
Photography: Rene-van-der-Hulst | Lidewij Edelkoort and Charlotte Grün
The evocative Archivio di Stato di Napoli will host an exhibition dedicated to the library of Dutch graphic artist, Anthon Beeke. His legacy of works on graphic design, typography and eroticism guides the visitor to explore his mind through his books: not just the story of his important work through his unique collection, but a narration of a personal and professional relationship spanning three decades, curated by Lidewij Edelkoort, one of the world's most influential trend forecasters, and Charlotte Grün.
From the dialog with the Galleria Antonella Villanova – a space dedicated to the mixture of contemporary jewelry, art and architecture – springs the solo exhibition by Daniel Kruger, curated by Marco Bazzini. It will be hosted in the rooms of the Museo del Tesoro di San Gennaro and dedicated to the collection of Amulets pendants and the ceramics of the Dinner Service Maria Callas by the South African goldsmith artist.
The Made in Cloister Foundation will welcome into its spaces – House of Today, a Beirut based non-profit organization that identifies, showcases and connects emerging Lebanese designers to create a relationship with design experts, regionally and globally. Interior and furniture designer Stéphanie Moussallem will present five distinct lamps featuring coral and bone work, religious symbolism, multi-hued glass and intricate woodwork.
Fondazione Made in Cloister | Photography: Danilo Donzelli
The Museo Civico Gaetano Filangieri will be the setting for Federico Pepe‘s monographic exhibition “Chest'è” curated by Federica Sala – an immersion in the iconic universe of the artist under the banner of contamination and hybridization: paintings, sculptures, furniture and carpets that find their common roots in the alphabet of Pepe's gestures.
The collections of the French brand La Manufacture and the pieces designed by Emma Boomkamp, Todd Bracher, Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance, le FRONT, Luca Nichetto, Nendo, Neri & Hu, Patrick Norguet, Marc Thorpe, Michael Young will occupy the delightful rooms of the Teatro di San Carlo with an ad-hoc installation.
Lastly, part of the programme, the presentation-installation of Infine parte del programma, la presentazione-installazione of Hybrida by Patricia Urquiola in collaboration with l'Istituto Caselli – Real Fabbrica di Capodimonte at the institute headquarter itself.
Cover image: Luciano Romano
