The phenomenon of special editions and reissues has a strong impact on the contemporary design market, where companies relaunch historical icons in limited editions or series, or develop new projects in collaboration with creatives from different fields: From artists like Giulio Paolini, who created two limited editions for the Murano glassworks in 2021 on the occasion of Venini’s centenary, to influencers like Virgil Abloh (1980-2021, founder of luxury streetwear brand Off-White and later Louis Vuitton menswear creative director), who reinterpreted some historic pieces by Jean Prouvé in a limited edition with Vitra in 2019.
The added value of an edition, whether limited or open, lies in the combination of tradition and innovation, in the historical design reinterpreted in a modern key but unchanged in its essence: the Arco lamp by Flos was proposed in 2022, sixty years after its creation, in a limited edition with a crystal base instead of a marble one.
Rediscovering archival pieces, sometimes giving them new details, is a trend that started years ago and is still going strong: This year alone, Poltrona Frau created a special edition of Gio Ponti’s Dezza armchair, Oluce offered a mini version of Joe Colombo’s Spider lamp, Martinelli Luce presented Gae Aulenti’s historic Pipistrello in an unprecedented matt chalk white, and Cassina launched three new colors (available only for a limited time) for some pieces from the Le Corbusier®, Pierre Jeanneret® and Charlotte Perriand® Collection on the occasion of its 60th anniversary.
The phenomenon is not without its critics: “If a historical work by Gio Ponti will always be appreciated, a limited edition contemporary piece, in addition to costing more, may not retain its value over time”, says Rossella Colombari, founder of the eponymous Milan gallery specializing in twentieth-century art design; “the industry should focus more on research and innovation.
If editions became a strategy to raise prices, it would undermine the relationship of trust between the customer and the company. “The important thing is that these aren’t just commercial operations,” says Roberta Meloni, who in the early 2000s revived the historic Poltronova brand, today known for producing iconic pieces from its archive (notified by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage): from Archizoom Associati’s Superonda sofa to Ettore Sotsass’s Ultrafragola mirror and Massimo & Lella Vignelli’s Saratoga series, to name a few.
Poltronova presents the most experimental and daring repertoire of Made in Italy. With the exception of a few limited editions (in consultation with the author), their production is mostly mass-produced and drawn from the archive. “Re-editing a piece from the archive by putting it back into production means that we consider this project strong, ‘talking’. We discuss it with the authors or their heirs: we have to believe strongly in it. The goal is not to celebrate the author, but to bring back to the market furniture that will naturally go into homes, that will be contemporary precisely because of the important stories they carry.”
