During his visit to Budapest, Michele De Lucchi gives a presentation in the Auditorium of the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest (1121 Budapest, Zugligeti út 9-25.) on 4th October (Friday) starting at 11:30. (The presentation is in English, participation is free of charge.)

Italian Star Designer at the Jubilee Budapest Design Week: Michele De Lucchi

9th September, Budapest … Organised between 27th September and 6th October, Budapest Design Week welcomes Italy as the festival's Guest of Honour. A highlight of the Italian programs is the visit and lecture of the architect and designer Michele De Lucchi, a defining figure of contemporary Italian design.

The work of the star designer guest remains influential that is also proven by one of his most widely known objects called the Tolomeo lamp – designed with Giancarlo Fassina –, which has been a bestselling piece since its 1987 creation. De Lucchi has worked for all important design furniture manufacturers in the last thirty years, while he can take pride in designing museum buildings as well: for example the renovation of Triennale di Milano, where the vast design furniture collection even contains a few pieces by De Lucchi himself.

During his visit to Budapest, Michele De Lucchi gives a presentation – in line with the focus of this year's Budapest Design Week – about the importance of combining design, craft and industry. His presentation is held in the Auditorium of the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest (1121 Budapest, Zugligeti út 9-25.) on 4th October (Friday) starting at 11:30. (The presentation is in English, participation is free of charge.)

The works of Michele De Lucchi are also featured in different programs during Budapest Design Week. Among others, in Triennale di Milano’s Maestri exhibition summarising the ouvre of 21 legendary Italian designers in the Museum of Applied Arts, as well as in the exhibition of Rio Lámpastúdió dedicated to De Lucchi's design classic, the world-famous Tolomeo lamp, and the ChiaroScuro exhibition organised by Budapest Design Week in Design Terminal.

Budapest Design Week welcomes a leading force of world design, Italy, as Guest of Honour in the framework of the Italian-Hungarian Cultural Season, and in cooperation with the Italian Embassy and ICE – Italian Trade Promotion Agency.

Budapest DESIGN week 2013: Crossovers

Budapest Design Week is entering its tenth year in 2013; the jubilee festival takes place between 27th September and 6th October. The Hungarian Intellectual Property Office is the patron of the festival, its leading professional partners are the Hungarian Design Council and Design Terminal, it is organised by HIPAvilon Nonprofit Ltd. In 2013 the festival focuses on the crossovers of contemporary design, or the intersections that design creates with architecture, fine arts, crafts or digital technologies. In recent years, contemporary design has been pushed by a range of significant external forces to redefine itself and explore new forms of expression.

The economic crisis has increased the demand for cheap products, modern technologies (for example 3D printing) enable practically anyone to become a designer, while professionals these days cannot disregard new aspects like social responsibility or recycling.

The economic, social and cultural changes of the past few years, as well as the transformation of the values seen in consumer societies have again pushed the technologies of craftsmanship in the limelight, which have so far been in sharp contrast with the traditional interpretation of design, the image of standardised industrial products.

Further information: designweek.hu