Donato D'Urbino (1935) and Paolo Lomazzi (1936) began working together in 1966 alongside Jonathan De Pas (1932-1991). Their areas of interest are industrial design, interior design, exhibition design, urban planning and architecture.

As exponents of pop design, they reached the peak of their career in the 1960s, when they designed the famous "Blow", an inflatable armchair. In the 1970s they were the authors of great Italian design icons such as The Joe Sofa (1970), the Duecavalli chair (1970) and the Sciangai coat hanger (1973).

In addition to design, they also developed theoretical work with the Association for Industrial Design (ADI) the Politecnico of Milan and the IUAV of Venice. They received The Compasso d'Oro award (Milan, 1979), among numerous other awards and their work is now in the permanent collections of many museums, including the MOMA in New York, the V&A in London, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Milan Triennale.

Making the ordinary extraordinary. Creating everyday objects that are interesting and desirable, where aesthetics, functionality and quality find their balance in a cultural and emotional dimension that charms and surprises.

Since 1921, the year in which the firm was established, most Alessi objects have been created via cold processing of the metals and, even today, are still made in Italy by highly skilled craftsmen at the factory in Crusinallo, Omegna.

In recent decades, Alessi has also included many other materials in its catalogue, such as wood, porcelain, glass, plastic, etc. Strict quality standards are applied to each of them, with constant mediation between the technological complexity of industrial production and the attention to details typical of craftsmanship.

Alessi is not a production industry in the traditional sense, but a sort of laboratory of industrial research into applied arts. Open to change and to international development, the company is also deeply rooted in tradition and in the cultural background of its territory: Alessi continues to be synonymous with artisan products made with the help of machinery.

Since its establishment, Alessi has gradually evolved, becoming a leading exponent of the “Factories of Italian design”, capable of mediating between the most interesting expressions of international creativity and the public, society and the market. Its mission is to translate these creative expressions into real objects capable of fulfilling dreams and satisfying the public’s desires.