Elena Salmistraro

Elena Salmistraro is an Italian product designer and artist who lives and works in Milan. She studied at the Brera Art School and graduated in 2003 in Fashion Design from the Politecnico di Milano, followed by a second degree in Industrial Design in 2008. In 2009, she founded her own studio with architect Angelo Stoli, working on projects ranging from architecture to design, art, fashion, illustration, and visual arts in general. Her work is strongly contemporary and draws inspiration from illustration and street art, fashion, and nature in general. Her creations are the result of the combination of art and serial design, with a language strongly characterized by the use of three-dimensional textures and vibrant colors full of energy. One of the priorities of her work is the meticulous study of harmony between forms, which is reflected in the expressiveness of the objects, the animism, and the poetry of the stories. For Elena, emotion is a fundamental function of the object. Elena collaborates with some of the most important Italian and international companies such as Alessi, Apple, Bosa, Cappellini, CC-Tapis, Ceramica Flaminia, Cinelli, Driade, De Castelli, Disney, Florim, Huawei, Ikea, Marella, Microsoft, Moooi Carpets, Natuzzi, Nike, Tai Ping, Technogym, Timberland, and Vitra. In addition, she collaborates with prestigious art and design galleries such as Rossana Orlandi, Antonio Colombo Gallery, Dilmos, Camp Design Gallery, Duson Gallery, SecondoMe, My Own Gallery and Puntacontérie. One of her most iconic projects is the Primates vase, designed in 2017 for Bosa Ceramiche, representing a contemporary primitivism. In 2017, she received the "Salone del Mobile Milano Award" as "Best Emerging Designer" for her ability to introduce her expressive imagination into dialogue with large-scale serial production, enriching it with new ideas for reflection. Since 2017, Elena has also been a Global Ambassador for Italian Design on "Italian Design Day". In 2019, AD Italia, Germany, and France included her among the 100 most important figures in the world of design, and in 2021 Marie Claire Maison included her among the 50 prominent personalities in the art and design scene. In 2022, she was awarded the prestigious "Frame Design Award" as "Best Designer" by the international architecture and design magazine - Frame. Elena has won numerous national and international awards such as the Good Design Awards, Frame Awards, Salone Del Mobile Milano Award, ADI-Ceramic&Bathroom Award, Archiproducts Awards, Big See awards, Icon Award, ADI Design Index Selection, and has received several mentions such as EDIDA Japan and European Product Design Award. Her works have been exhibited at major Italian and international trade fairs and in some of the most important museums, such as the Triennale Design Museum, the Guggenheim in Venice, the ADI Design Museum, the Pinacoteca di Brera, the Porto Design Biennale, the Mad Museum in Singapore, the Design Museum - Centro Cultural la Moneda-Santiago de Chile, The Lookout - V&A Waterfront - Cape Town, the Museo del Merletto of Cantù, the Museo del Vetro of Altare, the MAC Museum of Contemporary Art in Lissone and the Museo delle Ceramiche of Faenza. She participates in various initiatives and talks, including the TEDx of Padova in 2022. In 2023, Forbes Italy included her among the 100 successful women of the year, and in the same year she was named designer of the year for the Frankfurt Ambiente Fair. She is active in the world of teaching at the Istituto Marangoni in Milan, the Abadir University in Catania, and the Politecnico di Milano.