Founded in 1954, the prestigious Compasso d'Oro design award has been awarded this year to the Sfera collection of manhole covers and gratings, designed by Giulio Iacchetti and Matteo Ragni.
The jury says of the award: "The design of the Sfera collection of manhole covers and gratings stems from research looking at the stories hidden in the little tracks that can be found in public places - such as the tracks of birds in the park or the traces of a tyre pattern. The result is a set of abstract decorative motifs, which add an aesthetic and conceptual component to products that are normally considered to be secondary in terms of design."
Matteo Ragni and Giulio Iacchetti had been collaborating with the Italian foundry Montini since 2006 before launching Sfera. The innovative collection of cast iron manhole covers was launched in 2012.
La Triennale's recent exhibition No Name Design also honoured the design of ordinary items. Homebuildlife subscribers can find out more about this attitude shift in our macro trend, Everyday Utopias.
