Poster of the Italian Design Day 2024 Photo: Courtesy of Italian Embassy in China

Including a conference featuring renowned Italian architect Mario Cucinella, Italian Design Day 2024, a global artistic event, recently toured Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai, and Chongqing. 

The 2024 theme of the event was creative and sustainable Italian-designed products, and methods that are inclusive and can be shared with the global industry. 

The Beijing stop was marked by a thematic conference, with Mario Cucinella's walk-through of the design philosophy that lies behind the Italian Pavilion at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan serving as a highlight. 

The event was attended by Ambassador of Italy to China, Massimo Ambrosetti. The ambassador said that this year's expo was focused on the "manufacturing techniques" of Italian designs. It was dedicated to showing how Italian manufacturing defines a totality of "product quality, craftsmanship, technological innovation, and environmental sustainability." The ambassador also added that the Italian Embassy in China "strongly supports" the Italian Design Day 2024. 

The Shanghai event featured architect and urban planner Stefano Boeri who introduced how Italy's creative industry system supports the world's sustainable developments. In Chongqing, an urban renewal project directed by Pritzker award-winner Renzo Piano, was displayed to audiences. Piano is one of the world's most established architects, and was born in Italy. 

The Italian Design Day 2024 was jointly launched by several official departments and organizations including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy and the Italian Ministry of Culture.