Radical Thinker

Architect, artist and designer Gaetano Pesce's six decades of work span ambitious architecture projects, iconic furniture designs, and, most recently, the set for Bottega Veneta's Spring/Summer 2023 show

- FABIA DI DRUSCO

Gaetano Pesce was born in La Spezia in 1939, and began to exhibit his art at the age of 18. After studying architecture at the University of Venice, Pesce taught at the Institut d ’Architecture et d ’Etudes Urbaines in Strasbourg; Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh; the Domus Academy in Milan; the Polytechnic of Hong Kong; the Architectural School of São Paulo; and the Cooper Union in New York. His works are part of the permanent collections of some of the most famous museums in the world. Pesce began experimenting with polyurethane, foam, and resin early in his career, and it is these materials, with their bold colours, tactility, ability to respond to light, and artisanal finishes that have catalysed attention to Pesce’s work and fixed it within the collective imagination.

You moved to New York in 1980, after having lived in Venice, London, Helsinki, and Paris. What drew you to New York?