Carlotta de Bevilacqua
A major player in contemporary architecture and design, we take a look at the woman behind Artemide’s latest decorative offering on show in Milan.
Designer, entrepreneur and university lecturer, Carlotta de Bevilacqua is a major player in the world of contemporary architecture and design. Having graduated from Politecnico di Milano in architecture in 1983, today she has her own architecture and design office and is Artemide Vice President and General Manager for brand strategy and product innovation.
With a wide range of experience and appointed Art Director of Memphis and Alias from 1989 to 1993, she has expounded important research on lighting design and investigates aspects of light related to physiological and psychological well-being, by offering new qualitative standards in life.
From 1999 to 2001 Bevilacqua was a workshop lecturer and project leader of innovative products within the Strategic Design Master (Mip) program. In 2000 she acquired Danese, the leading company in Italian design during the 60/70’s and in a very short time revived the business, gaining new market shares and a new leadership. From 2001 to 2004, Bevilacqua was lecturer in the Design Master Program at Domus Academy in Milan and today frequently lectures at Bocconi University and Politecnico di Milano. More recently, in 2013 Bevilaqua became a member of the Board of Direction of Fondazione La Triennale di Milano.
Bevilacqua’s presence is very much appreciated at conventions and seminars with the aim to explore the changes in contemporary society, the new boundaries of the international markets and the evolving needs of the environment in terms of energetic sustainability.
For both Artemide and Danese she has designed new generation LED products, recognised with several patents, introducing constant new technological scenarios. One of her most recent designs – Incalmo, featured as part of this year’s Euroluce presentation. Incalmo refers to a glass-blowing technique refined in Murano, Venice during the 16th Century aimed at obtaining multiple areas of different colours on the same surface.
Incalmo, together with another of Bevilacqua’s creations – Incipit, operates in perfect harmony, as horizontal, alternating stripes of transparent, white or grey blown glass, transforming its decorative body into a screening element reaching the areas below its narrower angles and diffusing light into the space.
Incalmo is a metaphor for combining the evolving LED technological innovation with ancient craftsmanship skills deeply rooted in Artemide’s history.
