Product Focus Alessi Focus
Celebrating irony
As they continue to mark 100 years by celebrating their founding values, Alessi introduce Irony as their seventh value – say hello to Bulbul, a design by Achille Castiglioni Irony is the seventh value celebrated by Alessi with the November launch of the Bulbul kettle. Designed by the great Achille Castiglioni in 1995, it has remained unpublished until now. Consisting of a large container with a polished 18/10 stainless steel lid and of the bottom, suitable for all hobs, “Bulbul” is a perfect kettle imagined in the rounded shape of a curling stone: from frozen water to evaporated water, a divertissement amplified by the name chosen by Castiglioni, “bul, bul”, meaning “it’s boiling, it’s boiling” which comes from the traditional dialect of Milan, where this unforgettable designer was born. “Achille often reminded me that I would ask him to design kitchen utensils that he was unaccustomed to using,” says Alberto Alessi. “For example, his kettle presents a new way of
“People often ask me why irony as a rhetorical notion is often to be found in our products. I do not really know how to answer precisely, for in actual fact, the use of this notion is very much linked to the characteristics of the various designers, and probably responds to the attempt we make not to take ourselves too seriously, to lighten up our daily lives.” Alberto Alessi
Did you know?
The kettle is named after the phrase “bul, bul”, meaning “it’s boiling, it’s boiling” which comes from the traditional dialect of Milan, where the designer was born. 34 TABLEWARE INTERNATIONAL
handling this object: almost as if to suggest an invitation to play by sliding it across the kitchen surface.” As a result of his indefatigable curiosity and flair for experimentation, “Bulbul” reveals Castiglioni’s extraordinary ability to transfer qualities and functions into a project from objects belonging to completely different spheres. A game of transfers that has often resulted in the equally famous ironic content in many of his works. “Bulbul” is dedicated to all the true connoisseurs of design, fans of Achille Castiglioni’s work and anyone who appreciates the ability of an object to make us think twice, transfiguring our domestic landscape with amusing irony.
The Alessi 100 Values Collection is the special centenary initiative that speaks about the founding values of the company’s design excellence. Twelve values, twelve months, twelve unpublished projects with deep-running roots. Objects that were never realized, research samples, new versions of signature classics.
