I am sad to say this is the last week of blog posts as it was our last week on this study abroad. It was spent in the most impactful way with our tour of the Triennale in Milan and a visit to Omegna for the Alessi tour. When I look back on this past week, I find that I learned the most about the world in the visits we did and the way design can impact people through so many paths and visualizations.
The staircase of the Trienniale stands out to me as one of the most gut wrenching and daunting data visualizations I have ever seen. It was relevant, raw, and simple within its intricacies. The red ribbon falling from the ceiling representing the lives lost in war was moving and overwhelming all at once. In that moment I was given perspective to just how many people are affected by current events and I saw how everyone stopped to stare. This spoke volumes to the climate of the times and also to this work and how simple, yet impactful this design was.
Omegna was simply beautiful and it was so interesting seeing the inner tinkering of a powerhouse design company. The Alessi factory was bustling and showed the prototypes that led to the creation of household items we know and love today. It was interesting to take the time to use their trials and market items to tweak and improve them upon our wishes and definitely got me and my cohort to think outside the box and let our creative minds run. Omegna was a beautiful lake that I think is arguably more beautiful than Lake Como, and we had a wonderful visit.
I quite enjoyed the final visit of our study abroad with Campari as the graphics were stunning and the tour guide was knowledgeable and kind. It is interesting to see how everyday items can be marketed into any setting. The guide showed an example of Campari getting involved in political and global issues unrelated to the product that both allowed the name to be put out for recognition and to support causes the company felt passionate about. It is cool to see the ways in which companies inner workings translate to the world around us in what we recognize, connect and how we perceive it.
I had the most amazing experience this week and I loved diving into the creative side of my brain. I learned about history, many hidden and intricate details, and most importantly to look for the deeper meaning because as design has taught me, everything was intentional and has meaning and a purpose.
