garage BENTIVOGLIO

A central figure in Scandinavian design in the second half of the 20th century, Ilmari Tapiovaara had a modest critical fortune in Italy. The Gold Medals received between 1951 and 1964 at the Milan Triennale were never followed by a monographic publication in Italian on his work, thus making him mostly unknown to the general public, except through a few sporadic appearances in trade magazines. \nThe numerous participations at the Triennale also correspond to the golden moment of Scandinavian design, which often presents itself as unitary on the international stage, in Milan as in Venice, where the three Nordic countries meet in the pavilion created by Sverre Fehn in 1958. \nThe Milanese collaboration is fruitful especially for Finland, which manages to establish itself through the use of organic forms that enhance the characteristics of the materials used. Companies such as Artek and Iittala play a fundamental role, which contribute to spreading Nordic taste around the world. \nTapiovaara's role in the Triennial Festival grew from year to year until 1957, where he was responsible for curating the exhibition. Of note is the presence of the Wilhelmina 32 chair among the furnishings of Giancarlo De Carlo's ENEL Colony built in Riccione in 1963. Professional luck in Italy then reached its peak in 1972, when, thanks to an international competition, he came into contact with the Montina company and created the model 820 chair, also known as Tapiolina. \nIt is precisely the Tapiolina that takes up the characteristic element of Pirkka, namely the seat designed starting from two distinct parts. Made in 1955, the Pirkka, both in the chair and stool versions, is assembled without the use of nails, screws or glue, but simply with pressure. Similar in the seat are other design pieces of the time, such as Jacob Müller's stool for Wohnhilfe in 1945, or the Clover by Marcel Gascoin in 1950, which, however, do not achieve the elegance of Pirkka, due to the presence of carpentry elements during assembly. \nIn more recent times, Knut and Marianne Hagberg have re-proposed their own version of the two-part seat in IKEA's PUZZEL children's furniture from 1987. Last but not least, the series that Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec created for the University of Copenhagen with the Hay company in 2012, also citing another great design classic, the Butterfly stool by Sori Yanagi from 1954. \ngarage BENTIVOGLIO therefore chooses from the Palazzo Bentivoglio collection a central but still little investigated figure, such as that of Ilmari Tapiovaara, trying to intrigue passers-by through Pirkka, an object that imposes itself, but discreetly, for its simplicity.