In 1992, Francesco Illy had the idea of asking a group of artists to express their creativity on the surface of the coffee cup designed by Matteo Thun for illy.
This marked the birth of the illy Art Collection, which transformed an object of everyday use into a white canvas on which, over the years, more than 100 artists of international fame, from great maestros to young talents, have tested their skill.
Twenty-five years later, the leading names in contemporary art continue to find inspiration in the white surface of the illy cup, turning the act of drinking an espresso into an experience which involves the senses and the mind.
Together, we have created a unique collection of objects of art for everyday use, a small, white porcelain canvas of the coffee cups which are entrusted to the hands of an artist.
Robert Wilson has designed at the Magazzini del Sale in Venice: “the dish ran away with the spoon everything you can think of is true”, an installation inspired by the collections of coffee cups, in which images, lights and sounds mark a pathway which winds its way through various landscapes inhabited by objects and sculptures. The illy Art Collection cups live in this theatre-like landscape which Robert Wilson has composed through contrast and juxtaposition, creating a rhythm of audiovisual images and experiences.
We celebrate illy Art Collection with a new cup.
Designed by the artist Robert Wilson for the 25 years of the collection of artist’s cups.
illy and Wilson also realized a decorated can to celebrate 25 year of the illy Art Collection. A real collector’s item.
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