Alessi - Farfalla nutcracker

A project that in just a few strokes captures the deepest essence of the object and the gesture that accompanies it, the Farfalla (butterfly) nutcracker is an example of that process of painstaking elimination of the superfluous that has always accompanied Enzo Mari's research. Designed at the end of the 1990s and never realised, its production in 2021 pays tribute to one of the Masters of Italian design. A substantial design to rediscover a gesture as simple as it is essential, such as cracking nuts.

Enzo Mari

Enzo Mari was born in Novara in 1932. He developed his training with studies at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Milan. However, already in the 1950s he started an intense artistic activity, with exhibitions in galleries and museums of contemporary art. At the same time, he began his design activity in the field of personal formal research. Subsequently in collaboration with numerous industries, in the fields of graphics, publishing, industrial products and exhibition preparation. Characteristic of his work is the continuous research and experimentation of new forms and meanings of the product, in contrast with the traditional schemes of design. His unique position as an artist-designer is documented in publications dedicated to his work, as well as in interventions in important institutions dedicated to his work. The presidency at ADI from 1976 to 1979 is clear proof of the recognition of the artist. He won the Compasso d'Oro award three times, while his works and objects are present in the collections of various contemporary art museums. A large personal exhibition was dedicated to him in 1983 by the "Study Center and Archive of Communication" of the University of Parma, where the 8,500 drawings and drawings from his archive are kept, which he donated to the CSAC. Furthermore, his activity is also focused on research and planning for urban furnishings (Municipality of Milan, arrangement of the Piazza del Duomo). Teaching also characterizes his career, carried out with conferences and cycles of lessons in Italy and abroad, including courses held at the Institute of Art History of the University of Parma and at the Faculty of Architecture of the Politecnico di Milano.