Piero Lissoni on curiosity and making mistakes

It was the opening of DePadova’s first branded space in the UK—in London’s Chelsea—that brought me and Lissoni together for what I thought will be a conversation about furniture, architecture, his latest projects, and new collections.

Instead, our discussion quickly started to revolve around concepts such as humanism and failure. 

Lissoni quotes doubt, curiosity and passion as the key qualities of his practice. When asked about his most memorable projects he promptly responds that he doesn’t have any, as he is never happy with the final result. Instead, he’s driven by mistakes and the constant refinement of the architectural and design solutions. He likens himself to a wild animal, whose senses tell him immediately when a piece of work is aesthetically ‘dangerous’. That sensibility led him to design buildings such as The Middle House and Casa Fantini and objects for the likes of Alessi, Boffi, B&B, Flos, Kartell and Salvatori among others.

As our conversation nears the end, we touch on the subject of luxury and its meaning. Unfortunately, according to Lissoni, luxury has become vulgarised, associated with excessive wealth and flashy material possessions. Whilst for him – he’s a Milanese man after all – luxury is hidden in everyday qualities of life, good taste and his all-time favourite – curiosity.

Presented by Justyna Green

Production and music by James Green