Biography of Pier Giacomo Castiglioni

Pier Giacomo Castiglioni is an Italian architect and designer. Designerwho lived and worked in his hometown of Milan until his death. To this day, Pier Giacomo Gastiglioni, like his brother Achille, is primarily associated with a stool that is reminiscent of a tractor seat. This very Mezzadro stool was created in the 1950s by chance. Castiglioni worked in the field of architecture and urban planning, curated exhibitions and made a name for himself primarily in interior design. His designs for furniture, lights and home accessories are design classics and are still produced today by manufacturers such as DePadova, Dino Gavina, Zanotti, Alessi, Stilnovo and Flos and are available from TAGWERC as licensed originals.

Castiglioni Architetti

Pier Giacomo Castiglioni was born in Monza on April 22, 1913. Pier Giacomo is the second son of the sculptor, painter and architect Giannino Castiglioni and his wife Livia Bolla. Achille Castiglioni graduated in architecture from the Polytechnic University of Milan in 1937 and pursued a career as an independent architect and urban planner. Together with his older brother Livio (1911-1979), Pier Giacomo founded an architectural practice in Milan on Corso di Porta Nuova in 1938, which their youngest brother Achille completed in 1944 as 'Castiglioni Architetti'. Pier Giacomo married Maria Coduri de Cartosio in 1942, on December 30 to be precise, and their daughter Giorgina was born the following year on Lake Como in Como. Giorgina Castiglioni would one day continue the family tradition, also studying at the Polytechnic University in Milan and working as an architect and industrial designer in Milan.

From architecture to industrial design

When Livio left the architecture firm in 1952 to work for the radio, Achille and Pier Giacomo carried on without him. Building commissions were rare in this post-war period, although the Castiglioni brothers, together with Luigi Fratino, were able to prevail against 16 other designs with their concept for the reconstruction of the Palazzo della Permanente. The building on Via Filippo Turati, designed by Luca Beltrami in 1881 in the neoclassical style, was extended by the Castiglioni brothers with a functionalist office tower and inaugurated in 1953. Three years later, the Chiesa di San Gabriele Arcangelo in Mater Dei followed, a Catholic parish church and one of the few architectural projects by the Castiglioni Architetti. Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni not only designed the building for the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Milan, but also designed parts of the interior. The Saliscendi pendant light is the result of intuition: a system of castors allows the luminaire to be moved up or down. As the position changes, so does the light intensity - both on the table and in the surroundings. The Saliscendi pendant light is now manufactured by Stilnovo and is available from TAGWERC.

Castiglioni's credo

The Castiglioni brothers recognize the signs of the times and switch to designing home accessories and interiors. A quote from Pier Giacomo Castiglioni describes his design maxim: "Design must be simple and logical. It should be the result of a process of reduction, elimination and simplification and be original, not the result of an effort." This quote shows Castiglioni's focus on functionality, simplicity and the needs of the user. The result is unconventional stools such as Sella and Mezzadro (both 1957), which transform everyday objects - a bicycle saddle and a tractor seat - into new and surprising shapes and increase their utility value for the general public. In Pier Giacomo Castiglioni's own words: " Designer must be able to think in terms of the whole, to see the relationship between the different parts and the whole and to coordinate them. Good design must be functional, otherwise it won't work. But the functional aspects have to be brought into a form that pleases people." For his studies and as inspiration, Pier Giacomo, together with his brother Achille, collects unusual everyday objects such as special tools and toys that have survived to this day. In the 'Studio Museo Achille Castiglioni', the museum dedicated to the work of the Milanese and run by the 'Fondazione Achille Castiglioni' foundation, the collection, which was later continued by Achille alone, fills entire wall cupboards.

Dynamic sitting

Design as a means of solving problems - Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni are known for putting themselves in the user's shoes and adopting the user's perspective in their designs. The Sella stool, for example, is one of the first pieces of dynamic seating furniture that encourages the user to sit actively - long before dynamic seating furniture such as the Swopper, Sitness, fitness stool and the like. When the Castiglionis set up their exhibition 'Colori e forme nella casa d'oggi' (Colours and shapes in the home today) in 1957 at Villa Olmo in Como on Lake Como, it was a simple red tractor seat mounted on a frame, which was placed in front of a desk - as a visitor's chair, so to speak. What at the time appeared to be a kind of home accessory or quirky decorative object and met with little sympathy from visitors would go into series production at Zanotta twenty years later and go down in history as the 'essence of Castiglioni'.

Innovative luminaire design

The Castiglioni brothers' most creative period has undoubtedly begun and it is also the period in which some Italian interior manufacturers have their roots: Martinelli Luce (1950), Zanotta (1954), Flos (1962) - to name but a few. Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni are closely associated with Flos in particular, as their designs produced by Flos are the driving force behind the Italian company's reputation for innovative lighting design.

World's Fair in Montreal

Flos got off to a flying start in 1962 with Castiglion's Arco arc lamp. The floor lamp is pendant light at the same time. A hybrid whose expansive metal arch is held by a 60 kilogram block of marble from the Carrara quarries. The table lamp Taccia and the floor lamp Toio are dated to the same year. The latter consists of a car headlight enthroned on a steel rod and the Pitagora espresso machine for the renowned manufacturer of portafilter machines La Cimbali. The Castiglioni brothers also realized many designs in the field of interior architecture, including the interior design of the Italian pavilion at the 1967 World Expo in Montreal. This project focuses on the use of natural light and open space planning, which today - more than half a century later - is an integral part of any new building.

Milan - stronghold of design

Castiglioni's home city of Milan, the second largest city in Lombardy, is undoubtedly the center of design, where the 'Salone del Mobile Milano', the world trade fair for interior design, takes place. When the 'Associazione per il Disegno Industriale' (ADI), the association for industrial design, was founded in Milan in 1956, the Castiglioni brothers were among the founding members. Pier Giacomo was also involved in the development of the 'Snoopy' table lamp in 1967. The lamp has a simple and expressive shape that is reminiscent of the famous cartoon dog Snoopy and is therefore named after him. It had a major influence on the development of modern design and remains a charismatic classic to this day. Castiglioni is an advocate of the idea that design should be accessible and affordable for all, as good design improves the quality of life and thus society. and can help to improve society. These convictions inspire him to develop designs that are functional and optimized for production.

Lecturer for prospective architects

Pier Giacomo Castiglioni taught for four years (1964 to 1968) as a lecturer at the architecture faculty of the Polytechnic in Milan, passing on his design maxims to budding architects as part of his professorship.

Two heads on one body

In 1968, in the midst of his success, Achille Castiglioni received a shock: the early death of his brother Pier Giacomo was certainly one of the hardest blows to his life. Just as the Castiglioni Architetti company was really taking off, Pier Giacomo died. On November 27, 1968, a Wednesday, Pier Giacomo Castiglioni died suddenly and unexpectedly in Milan at the age of just 55. The exact cause of death is not known. "Like two heads on one body" is how the 'Corriere della Sera', Italy's highest-circulation daily newspaper, describes the relationship between the two brothers - not only in family terms, but above all in professional terms. Achille doesn't let on, just carries on and pretends that Pier Giacomo is still there, sitting by his side as he has done all those years before.

Designer of the 20th century

His visionary designs remain legendary to this day. Castiglioni received several international awards for his work during his career, including the Compasso d'Oro for his work in the field of lighting design. His designs are still produced today by renowned manufacturers and can be found in museums and private collections all over the world. These include the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, the Center Georges Pompidou in Paris and the Triennale Design Museum in Milan. He is considered one of the most important Designer of the 20th century and his work has had a lasting influence on the world of design to this day.

Pier Giacomo Castiglioni at TAGWERC

TAGWERC offers you the Achille Castiglioni design classics collection. Online, at TAGWERC Design STORE, you can experience a curated selection of design objects by Pier Giacomo Castiglioni. For all Castiglioni objects not listed here, we will be happy to make you an individual offer.