Push Button House
A home for the holidays
illy’s innovative Push Button House, designed by noted artist/architect Adam Kalkin, was on display at New York City’s Time Warner Center from November 29 – December 29, 2007. Originally unveiled at the 52nd Venice Biennale in June, 2007, the illy Push Button House is a fully functional and sustainable home built within an industrial shipping container. At the push of a button, the shipping container transforms into a five-room home with kitchen, dining room, bedroom, living room and library.
Special Events
From December 8 through December 16, master barista Giorgio Milos from illy’s Università del Caffè in Trieste hosted “Entertaining Coffee”, a demonstration of illy’s signature espresso drinks and holiday cocktails. In addition, Push Button House guests enjoyed complimentary illy beverages and a selection of sweet and savory treats provided by Bouchon Bakery on Monday evenings.
Cup of Kindness
After touring the illy Push Button House, visitors had the opportunity to make a donation at the Cup of Kindness holiday tree, “planted” nearby. Cup of Kindness is illy’s annual charity drive to benefit Share Our Strength, an organization dedicated to eradicating childhood hunger. 100% of proceeds from the drive were earmarked for the illy school in Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee and a source of illy’s premium coffee beans. Visitors who donated received one of several gifts, including a signed and numbered limited edition coffee cup designed by English artist Rufus Willis, as a token of appreciation.
Hyper Espresso System Preview
At the Push Button House, illy previewed its innovative Francis Francis X7 Hyper Espresso System, a revolution in espresso preparation utilizing patented capsules developed and produced exclusively by illy. This ground-breaking two-phase extraction technology creates an extraordinarily smooth, full-bodied and intensely aromatic coffee with superior and longer-lasting crema. The Hyper Espresso System will be available for the home in April, 2008.