November 8th 2024
at the Niccolini Theater in Florence
The celebration of the 18th Premio Nazionale delle Arti (Arts’ National Award), Design section, was held.
The Premio Nazionale delle Arti is an initiative promoted by the Ministry of University and Research that aims to enhance and promote creativity and innovation in the field of visual and applied arts. An annual Prize dedicated to students enrolled in the accredited institutions and courses of the AFAM system. The organisation of the 2024 edition has been entrusted to ISIA Firenze, which has identified Uncomfortable Earth: design in a hostile world as its theme, with the intention of emphasising the role of design with respect to contemporary transformations.
November 8th program
10.00 – 11.00 INSTITUTIONAL GREETINGS
- Rosa Maria Di Giorgi - ISIA Firenze and Conservatorio Cherubini di Firenze President
- Eugenio Giani - Tuscany Region President
- Dario Danti - University and Research Councillor of the City of Florence
- Barbara Tosti - Responsible for the Arts, Activities and Cultural Heritage sector Fondazione CR Firenze
- Senator Alessandra Gallone - Advisor to the Minister of Universities and Research
11.00 – 13.00 OPENING
- Francesco Fumelli - ISIA Firenze Director
- Giovanna Cassese - President of the CNAM (National Council of Higher Education in Art, Music, Dance, Design and Ministry)
- Giuseppe Furlanis - Chairman of the MUR’s Design Table
- Anty Pansera - Design historian and critic, chairman of the PNA 2024 Jury
13.00 – 14.00 LUNCH BREAK
14.00 – 16.00 CONFERENCE “UNCOMFORTABLE EARTH”
- Paolo Iabichino with Giulio Iacchetti in dialogue
- Moderator: Arianna Chieli
16.00 – 18.00 AWARDING
by the PNA 2024 Jury
- Anty Pansera - President of the PNA 2024 Jury
- Daniela Piscitelli, Andrea Balestri, Andrea Di Benedetto, Perla Gianni Falvo
- in collaboration with CR Florence Foundation
A seguire EXHIBITION INAUGURATION
- set up at the St. Apollonia Auditorium, Via San Gallo, 25
2024 edition’s theme
“Design is more than just beautiful or useful. It is a real tool for society.” Lilli Hollein, founder of Vienna Design Week and director of MAK
Uncomfortable Earth: design in a hostile world, is the title of the 2024 edition of the National Arts Award, Design section, which aims to emphasize the contribution of design to ongoing transformations. Design can bring criticism as much as proposals, it can challenge contemporary culture, and it is a concrete tool for designing present and future.
Institutions will present thesis and/or research projects inspired by the awareness that in recent decades the entire planet has entered a phase of decisive fibrillation on four areas, with respect to which Italian designers, and others, are called to new challenges. In particular:
- Climate pressure: the latest UN-IPCCC 2023 report holds humans directly responsible for global warming. From “water bombs” to summer heat, from blue crab to reduced crop yields, the new “climate” is an ongoing, multi-level challenge;
- International political instability: the world has never been at peace. Gone is the colonial era and that of bipolarity, but Ukraine, Israel and the Red Sea impact Italy in trade, tourism and capital flows;
- Low birthrate and aging population: the population pyramid in Western countries is almost reversed. Few children, many elderly, a trend that by 2050 will have completed its cycle;
- Artificial Intelligence: we have written about it, discussed it, made movies about it, and imagined dystopian scenarios. AI has arrived, it is capable of learning, it gives us advice, it helps us, but it is also the first “machine” that challenges knowledge jobs, including design itself, hitherto thought to be uniquely “human.”
“The future holds great promise alongside new obstacles. By weaving technology and sustainability into our design methodologies, we have the opportunity to forge a world that is not only more habitable but also fairer and more sustainable for future generations” Francesco Fumelli, ISIA Firenze Director