He was born in Novara in 1932 and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Milan. While still training in the 1950s, as an artist he held one-man and group shows at the leading galleries and modern art museums. In 1963 he acted as coordinator for Italy's Nuova Tendenza group and in 1965 he organized its exhibition at the Zagreb Biennial. He also took part in the Venice Biennale and the Milan Triennale on several occasions. Parallel to this activity, he started working as a designer. Initially, he designed on his own, but later he collaborated with numerous manufacturers in the fields of graphic design, product design and exhibition installations. One of the traits of Mari's work, internationally renowned as some of the best Italian design, is the unending quest for, and experimentation with, new product forms and meanings. Sometimes he even moved consciously outside the mainstream of traditional industrial design. In 1971 he participated critically in the MoMA show: "Italy: The New Domestic Landscape." His singular role in Italian design is also revealed by the many publications devoted to his work, including two monographs Funzione della ricerca estetica and Enzo Mari Designer. Moreover, he has played a part in major institutions, such as the Industrial Design Association (he was its president from 1976 to 1979). He has been awarded significant prizes, such as the Compasso d'Oro (1967 and 1979); also, his work has been acquired by several modern art museums (Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna, Rome; Moderna Museet, Stockholm; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Musée du Louvre, Paris; Kunstmuseum, Düsseldorf). More recently, Mari has branched out into other activities, and has begun to collaborate with public bodies in the design of street furniture (Milan City Council, the redesign of Piazza del Duomo). Another new facet of his career is teaching, through lectures and courses in Italy and abroad, like those at the Institute of Art History at the University of Parma and the Milan Polytechnic's School of Architecture. In 1983 he had an important one-man show at the Communication Study Center and Archives at the University of Parma, where 8500 of his drawings donated by him are stored. When he was invited to take part in the 1986 Venice Biennale on "Art and Science" he exhibited an "allegory" devised for the occasion. In 1988 he staged the show in San Marino called "Models of the Real" featuring all his output. Enzo Mari started working for Zanotta in 1981. The first project was the Tonietta chair, which won the Compasso d'Oro in 1987. Enzo Mari's creations for Zanotta: Secretaire desk 1972 Tonietta chair 1985 Trevi occasional table 1985 Minuetto coffee table 1985 Carmen armchair 1986 Tonio stool 1987 Ambo coffee tables 1987 Madia cabinet 1987 Acanto dining table 1990 Ginepro coffee table 1990 Museo hat rack and clothes stand 1991 Danubio armchair and sofas 1991 Marina chair 1991 Dongiovanni dining table 1991 Adone mirror 1992 Hobbit storage unit 1992 Daniele armchair and sofas 1992 Fonte 1992 Dublino armchair and sofas 1993 Pollice Verde flower box 1993 Wunderkammer and Novecento showcases 1993 Gera mirror 1994 Lubecca bookcase 1994 Brema bookcase 1994 Amburgo storage unit 1994 Treviri bookcase 1994 Dresda shelf 1994 Monaco bridge-like unit 1994 Aquisgrana console 1994 Fedro, Geremia, Corinna service trollies 1995 Clemente coffee table 1995 Ulm bookcase 1996 Bonn storage unit 1998

The Designs of Enzo Mari