Ernesto gismondi

“We do not just produce lamps, we create the atmosphere,” says the head of ARTEMIDE

Passing the gallery

Materials prepared: Oksana Kashenko, Nikolay Fedyanin

Magazine: N (120) 2007

Head of the company ARTEMIDEЭрнесто Djizmondi (Ernesto Gismondi) is a true patriarch of Italian design. And the patriarch is very active. He travels a lot around the world and participates in sailing regattas on his yacht Edimetra VI

Company ARTEMIDEЭрнесто Djizmondi founded together with the architect Sergio Mazza (Sergio Mazza) almost 50 years ago, back in 1959. Prior to that, he designed aircraft and even rockets. However, his real passion was the lamp, or rather, the light, its various forms. “We are not just releasing lamps, we are creating an atmosphere. Over the past 40 years my position has not changed,” Эрнесто Djizmondi. Embodying this philosophy, he drew the best designers from around the world. New chapter in history ARTEMIDE started in 1972, when Briton Richard Sapper created the Tizio model.

"Tizio is a fantastic lamp. It is based on the idea of ​​counterweights. It looks fantastic, but the most interesting thing is that the lamp can be fixed in any position," - says Djizmondi. Another bestseller for ARTEMIDE became the lamp Tolomeo, which was designed in 1986 by the designer Michele de Lucca. “We still sell around two million Tolomeo lamps a year,” says the owner proudly ARTEMIDE.

In those years Эрнесто Djizmondi Not only attracted the best designers to cooperation, but also actively influenced the trends in design. Together with Ettore Sottsass (Ettore Sottsass) in the early 80s he founded the famous Memphis group, which set a goal to make the design not only functional, but also interesting and even fun. BUT Djizmondi believed that the design should also be affordable. "Memphis chairs are sold for $ 5,500, and the bed from Michael Graves is sold for a staggering $ 19,500. But the studio president Эрнесто Djizmondi It advocates that objects have straighter legs, that lamps give more light and cost less. An example of such a design is the Fust chair by Michele de Lucca, which costs $ 275, "wrote about Djizmondi in 1984, Time magazine.

At the interview, which takes place on the pier, where the yachts of the participants of the regatta Giraglia Rolex Cup 2007 stand, the patriarch of Italian design arrives on a moped. He is wearing light shorts and a simple T-shirt. "If I have a business meeting, I will wear a suit from BRIONI or CARACENI. This is a Milan studio in which costumes are sewn to order. And if I want to buy a dress for a woman, then I will go to CHANEL boutique. When buying a dress from CHANEL, it’s impossible to be mistaken with choice. People buy things from famous brands because sometimes these are really better quality things. But I don’t think that you need to go to branded things all the time, "the owner explains ARTEMIDE.

The conversation comes about belonging Djizmondi yacht Edimetra VI. This 65-foot sailboat was designed by the famous studio GERMAN FRERS and repeatedly became the winner of various regattas. For example, last year the Edimetra VI won the Giraglia Rolex Cup regatta, beating the Atalanta II yacht by PIRELLI’s top manager Carlo Puri Negri. "Carlo is my good friend, but at sea we become enemies," laughs Эрнесто Djizmondi. "Unfortunately, this year we won only the second place at the Giraglia Rolex Cup regatta, but nothing will be won back next year," the owner is sure ARTEMIDE.

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