Michele De Lucchi

The Michele De Lucchi Story

Michele De Lucchi is something of a design rebel. A prominent figure in radical/anti-design movements like Cavart, Alchimia and Memphis in the 1970s and 1980s, De Lucchi worked alongside another rebel, Ettore Sottsass. Sottsass became a kind of mentor, encouraging De Lucchi to experiment with color, materials and unexplored themes. During this period, De Lucchi created his most popular product to date, the Tolomeo task lamp for Artemide.

From this stunning success, De Lucchi continued his product design and architectural work across a number of disciplines and for a variety of other clients, including Olivetti, Kartell, Vitra and Ameico.

Why We Love Michele De Lucchi

While unconcerned about mass opinion and marketability, Michele De Lucchi somehow continuously manages to satisfy in both areas. Coming from avant-garde design roots, De Lucchi has been able to harmonize artistic expression with mass production, all the while exploring new concepts of functionality. After the radical design movement tapered off, he founded Produzione Privata in 1990 to satisfy his continuing urge to design for change and the need to cultivate himself as an artist. To this day, De Lucchi continues to create for himself in this kind of “limited edition products laboratory.”

Noteworthy Lighting From De Lucchi

The various pieces De Lucchi has designed for Artemide are the ideal representative cross-section of his overall design style. From the sleek functionality of the Tolomeo collection of lamps flows the smooth, sculptural drape of the Logico collection and the geometric playfulness of the Soffione collection. The simple, spherical elegance of the Castore and Dioscuri lines bloom into the intricate, organic and energy efficient LED Net Circle collection. All testify to De Lucchi’s dedication to design flexibility, quality and individuality.

In His Own Words

"Design is truly a kind of witness to history. Design documents the spirit of the age. Today we are at a very exciting stage, because there is no specific style. To me that's great, because as soon as a style develops there's no longer any progress."

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