Italian Steel BT2 Table Lamps by Studio A.R.D.I.T.I for Sormani Nucleo, 1972, Set of 2

Italian design group Studio A.R.D.I.T.I. was founded in Florence in 1968 by Duccio Trassinelli (b. 1945). Members included Alessandro Mazzoni, Delle Stelle, Elisabetta Scheggi Merlini, and, for a short time, Gianni Gamberini.

The design collective staked their claim in the anti-design movement when they launched their publication “Manifesto Studio A.R.D.I.T.I.” during the International Conference on Environmental Structures chaired by Umberto Eco in 1970 in Rimini, Italy. Written as political satire, the manifesto advocated against the capitalist and consumerist tendencies that dominated the design industry in the postwar era.

Although less known than other radical design collectives of the postmodern era, such as Memphis and Alchimia, Studio A.R.D.I.T.I. developed a series of influential design objects during the 1970s that were informed by a new philosophy of use. Such designs include the Memoria Armchair for Cassina (1972), which features a hand-operated valve that releases air, allowing the chair to mold to the sitter's body. The armchair was exhibited the same year at the Eurodomus and awarded Design of the Month by Bolaffi Casa in 1973.

Studio A.R.D.I.T.I. was among the first to experiment with low-voltage lights, which they used to play with perceptions of surface and space. Notable lighting designs for Sormani include the Ponte Lamp (1971), the Prismar Lamp (1972), and the BT Series (1972), which comprises the double-paneled BT1 Wall Light, the square-based BT2 Table Lamp, and the BT4 Floor Lamp.

The group disbanded in 1977, and each member went on to pursue separate careers. Many of Studio A.R.D.I.T.I.’s designs are included in permanent museum collections around the world, such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Vitra Design Museum in Germany.

Pioneering Italian furniture manufacturer Sormani was founded in 1961 in Arosio by designer Luigi Sormani (1932-2017). The company was an early advocate for modernized production techniques—rejecting the slow, traditional craftsmanship and hardwoods that were so commonly used in the 1950s in favor of new materials like Rio Rosewood—imported first by Sormani—lacquered wood, and eventually plastic and aluminum in the 1960s and '70s.

Sormani debuted its first collection at the 1961 Milan Furniture Fair. This collection, known as Fleeting by Studio ABC, was one of the first modular systems of wardrobes. In 1966, Sormani began producing thermoformed items, such as armchair shells, accessories, and occasional pieces with the use of molds—a technology derived from the automobile industry that, at the time, was only being used for electrical household appliances. The Nike and Auriga armchairs by Richard Neagle are prime examples.The same year, Sormani became the first to experiment with extruded aluminum with the Ellisse Collection (1967) by Claudio Salocchi. During this time, Sormani also expanded into the US and Japanese markets, where they found instant success. In 1968, Sormani began a collaboration with architect-designer Gio Ponti, which resulted in a range of colorful, modular, multi-purpose storage units.

In the early 1970s, Sormani continued to pride itself on its dedicated search for and analysis of different opportunities offered by the newest materials. With the establishment of an engineering division in the early 1980s, Sormani carried out several turnkey projects, operating on all levels of residential and contract engineering and architecture, including complete restoration and interior decoration of hotels, offices, banks, government buildings, universities, and the like.  

Over the years, Sormani collaborated with many important Italian designers including Joe Colombo, Gio Ponti, Carlo De Carli, Claudio Salocchi, Cesare Casati, Emanuele Ponzio, Nani Prina, Antonello Mosca, Fabrizio Cocchia, Gianni Songia, De Pas, D’Urbino, & Lomazzi, Studio A.R.D.I.T.I., Studio ABC (Achilli, Brigidini, Canella), Richard Neagle, and Pierre Cardin, among others. Standout projects include the GS 195 Daybed by Gianni Songia (1963), the DC 154 Dresser by Carlo De Carli (1963), Joe Colombo’s Rotoliving Unit (1969) for MoMA’s 1972 exhibition Italy: The New Domestic Landscape, and the Ponte Floor Lamp by Studio A.R.D.I.T.I. and Gianni Gamberini (1971).

Sormani was awarded the Silver Printing-Press prize for its advertising campaign in 1970, the Torchio d’Argento for the best advertising campaign with ATA advertising agency, the Mercurio d’oro for best company (both in 1971), and the Delfino d’oro premio Città di Sanremo in 1972. Sormani’s work can be found in many famous museums around the world including New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto.

After Luigi Sormani was kidnapped in 1982, he directed the company to be more and more active in contract work abroad. Sormani officially stopped working in 2007. His last project was the restoration of a series of light fixtures, tables, and bookshelves that he had rediscovered in a company storage space after two decades. 

Sormani passed away in 2017, at the age of 84, in Seveso, Monza Brianza.

His daughter, Gloria, recently restored some of the most important pieces in the family's collection and reclassified the whole archive, which includes photos, video, and audio reels as well as original drawings from the designers.