A history of Italian design in the second half of the 20th century seen through the immense archive of the CSAC. An interweaving of methodological reflections and the stories behind the objects offer an itinerary that is an interpretation of the multiple ways in which the designer (as a bricoleur, craftsman, anthropologist, philosopher, scientist, technologist) tackles the themes of design, production, different languages and practices, confronting the policies of intervention on the territory and cultural heritage.
Sketches, drawings, photographs, prototypes and models by Bruno Munari, Achille Castiglioni, Enzo Mari, Alberto Rosselli, Mario Bellini, Roberto Sambonet, Roberto Menghi, Cini Boeri, Archizoom Associati, Ettore Sottsass and Alessandro Mendini help to understand and reconstruct design methods and processes. Thanks to the sheer immensity of the CSAC archive, it is possible to trace a path through the history of Italian design in the second half of the 20th century, raising questions on contemporary perspectives too, such as the relationship between memory and the future. CSAC is an archive of design and communication that was created in the same years in which the modern culture of Industrial Design entered a crisis, and for this very reason it summarises the parabola of Italian design, from the lesson of the masters to the turning point of the 1980s and 1990s.

Today discussion on Design hinges on four keywords: objects, processes, experiences and narratives, which are precisely the sections of the volume.

Objects. Design focused on the object, on its functional and symbolic dimension and at the same time on the object as a means of representing cultures.

Processes. The designer’s self-reflective moment centred on the analysis and definition of processes (in the fields of innovation, social commitment, reflection on emergencies or in the prefiguration of the future); the designer’s interpretation of industry or production processes.

Experiences. Design as a discipline oriented towards the analysis of interactions between people, or between people, objects and environments.

Narratives. Design as a discipline that is narrated, but also creates narratives through different media.