ELEVATING THE COFFEE EXPERIENCE,
AS ONLY ILLY CAN.
More than 20 years ago, illy considered how an everyday object like a coffee cup could be rethought—elevated, in fact, to meld the sensory pleasures of coffee and art. This insight gave rise to the illy Art Collection: small works of art, taking ceramic cup as medium, transforming the simple pleasure of drinking an espresso into an experience that fully engages the senses and the mind.
Every illy Art Collection project starts with the same elegant canvas: the now iconic, white illy espresso cup introduced by renowned architect and designer Matteo Thun in 1990. Thun’s striking, round-handled design was a full meeting of form and function: a vessel made to optimize diffusion of aromas and retention of heat, while establishing an entirely original tactile and aesthetic experience.
Taking the Thun cup as muse, more than 70 of the world’s foremost artists have created collections of cups for illy—no two ever alike, and each a revelation. Jeff Koons, James Rosenquist, Julian Schnabel, Robert Rauschenberg, Michelangelo Pistoletto and Marina Abramovic are just some of the contemporary masters who have contributed to the collection, along with emerging talent from around the globe.
The illy Art Collection is available in sets of cups and companion saucers for espresso, cappuccino and brewed coffee, fashioned from premium-caliber ceramics. A range of complementary accessories—designer spoons, and more—complete the beautiful picture.
