Local Icons. Urban landscapes north/south

Eight cities and a journey from the North to the South of the world, through new urban landscapes.
With LOCAL ICONS. Urban landscapes north/south (3-26 February 2017), an exhibition curated by Giulio Cappellini and Domitilla Dardi, the authors Form Us With Love, Great Things to People, Gustavo Martini, Steven Haulenbeek, Marc Thorpe, Liliana Ovalle, Birsel + Seck e Ilkka Suppanen interpret eight cities, in an ideal dialogue between the world’s northern and southern regions.
 
At MAXXI from 3 to 26 February 2017, LOCAL ICONS. Urban Landscapes north/south is the third and final stop in a journey in search of images defining places of remembrance specific to a culture, in order to re-examine them in light of new projects. After having captured Rome’s soul in 2015 and comparing the cultural essence of eastern and western metropolises in 2016, this creative reinterpretation project of local icons now shines a light on northern and southern cities of the world.
 
The dialogue between such different perspectives from these two parts of the world link a wide variety of urban environments that are reinterpreted in unique and profound ways by the authors as citizens and not only designers. The result is a story merging the ideal and real life through visual and physical materials; an intensely personal (and not touristy) portrait of the cities based on observations and emotions.
 
Alcantara^® demonstrates its innate versatility once again, offering itself to the designer as an expressive medium that transcends the limits of objects or interiors to address a new unexplored dimension for the material: the wide horizons of the environment and the urban landscape.
 
The metaphoric journey by the eight authors participating in the event travels through Stockholm, Santiago del Chile, Rio de Janeiro, Chicago, New York, Mexico City, Dakar and Helsinki, revealing their authentic faces, one that—aside from monuments and buildings—is revealed in a landscape composed of natural and artificial elements, inhabited and formed by a community through its way of life.
 
The authors’ eyes reveal lightness and joie de vivre expressed in a soccer game on Ipanema Beach in Rio; colour and heat on the artistically painted clothing of a family in Dakar; exuberant and dreamlike nature in an enchanting Helsinki; and New York taking a break in the green island of Central Park.
And while some typical objects do incarnate the Swedish lifestyle in Stockholm, historic memory and popular culture combine in the story of Mexico City; the origin of the new urban era of Chicago is revealed between myth and reality, while Santiago del Chile’s story restores a natural scenario to its inhabitants that had been hidden by pollution in the contradictions of the urban space.
 
Alcantara and MAXXI renew a partnership established in 2011 to explore the unlimited potential and infinite languages of materials; shared and continuing research and experimentation fed by a dialogue with creativity that identifies possible areas of cultural innovation between a company and an institution.
 
 
 
 
Andrea Boragno, President and CEO of Alcantara S.p.A., states: “We’re pleased to renew our partnership with MAXXI, an alliance that is expressed year after year in projects that enhance the extreme multi-functionality of a unique medium that has become an integral part of the creative process of artists and designers around the world. For them, Alcantara^® represents a source of inspiration and a way to fully express their creativity, returned to Alcantara through new ideas and tailor-made solutions. Today, the global design community fully understands the potential of Alcantara^® and its ability to constantly reinvent itself. This mutual contamination of ideas is one of the keystones of Alcantara’s competitive strategy.”
 
Giovanna Melandri, President of Fondazione MAXXI: “Research and experimentation are key words in this long-established partnership, which is being renewed for the seventh year and of which I’m particularly proud. We have found an attentive, respectful and innovative partner in Alcantara, a leading company that truly understands the value of the power of cultural content in productive processes. Working with them continues to be a real pleasure. This agreement is a true reflection of an innovative alliance and cooperation between public and private entities based on sharing projects, which is part of MAXXI’s DNA”.
 
Margherita Guccione, Director of MAXXI Architettura: During these years, we and Alcantara have given many designers from around the world—both renowned designers and young talents—an opportunity to express themselves, displaying their works and prototypes at the museum. Supporting youth, in particular, is one of MAXXI’s missions, and the Alcantara MAXXI Project is a fine example of this.”

Founded in 1972, Alcantara represents one of the leading Made in Italy brands. Registered trademark of Alcantara S.p.A and the result of unique and proprietary technology, Alcantara^® is a highly innovative material offering an unparalleled combination of sensory, aesthetic, and functional qualities. Thanks to its extraordinary versatility, Alcantara^® is the chosen material for leading brands in numerous specialist fields: fashion and accessories, the automotive industry, interior design, home décor and consumer-electronics. These characteristics, together with a serious and proven commitment to the use of sustainable materials, allow Alcantara to express and define contemporary lifestyle: the lifestyles of those who love to enjoy everyday products to the full whilst respecting the environment. Having analyzed, reduced and offset all CO₂ emissions linked to the company, in 2009 Alcantara^® was certified “Carbon Neutral". To document the company’s journey in this field, Alcantara conducts and publishes an annual Sustainability Report, certified by the international service corporation Deloitte and available for consultation on the company website. Headquartered in Milan, Alcantara also have production facilities and a research department in Nera Montoro in the heart of Italy’s Umbria region (Terni).

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