Elena Salmistraro

A product-designer and artist-illustrator, Elena Salmistraro represents the harmonious blend of art and design, going beyond functionalism to leave room for a poetic world, populated with items of affection, “fetishes” such as Primates: «For the first time, this design let me express my language with courage. This design is completely free from any market logic, yet it turned out to be a best seller. It is a bold design, which even today manages to transmit the same energy and strength to me as it did when I designed it». Elena’s output is multi-faceted, ranging from furnishings and accessories to interior design and objets d’art, while maintaining an original and recognisable narrative style. Her designs for Vitra, Cappellini, Moooi, Bosa and De Castelli (to name only a few), while belonging to various specific typologies, are linked together by a fil rouge: «What my designs share is the vision, a story and the attempt to represent what is contemporary. Today, an object has to tell a story, has to raise emotions, but it must also propose new methods of production, answer to something that is missing, and become a symbol of its contemporary context». Attention first of all to the communicative function of the object, and not just to its functionality tout court, is what guides the designer’s imagination, a sensitive interpreter too of other aspects of contemporary design: «What is crucial is a conscious return to the local, knowledge and revaluation of the local supply chain. Sustainability is not limited to the mere use of certified and guaranteed materials, but goes beyond this, looking at the entire production process, from production to disposal and recovery.»