Creativity and innovation, but also tradition, craftsmanship, Made in Italy, natural materials, primarily wood and all its variants.

Strong focus on hybrid objects, classic but reinterpreted in a contemporary way, they find new life in the trials of the recycling design. Strong focus on research and innovation of eco materials:
First prize at the Salone Satellite has been assigned to Raul Lauri, a Spanish designer, that, recovering coffee grounds and mixing it with other materials, has created the eco lamp Decafè. The resins of vegetable origin are mixed with inert natural end of life, but have been recycled to create a new material: Cristalplant biobased, with which they were made sinks and bathtubs. Mirrors, light bulbs and old bottles are recovered to produce ecomalte breathable and resistant to fire.

Interesting project “Barrique, la terza vita del legno” in which 30 architects and designers – including Mario Botta, Carlo Colombo, Angela Missoni – have invented a new way to use the old wooden barrels for storing wine and made by carpenters of San Patrignano.
Certainly no shortage of electronic and technological innovation, as the project developed by Panasonic Photosynthesis with Japanese architect Akihisa Hirata. The environmental impact of televisions is minimized because of their relationship with solar panels that reproduce the process of photosynthesis, capturing clean solar energy which is then stored in an accumulator of energy lithium batteries . To avoid unnecessary waste of energy, Whirlpool has produced a refrigerator equipped with smart sensors that constantly monitor and adjust temperature and humidity to preserve the best and the longer foods, or a dishwasher that adjusts water temperature and time according to dirt actual dishes.

Today more than ever, young designers from around the world show that, in exercising their inventive, a marked tendency to think about the potential of materials and objects “poor” and daily.
Strong presence of northern Europeans who are very strong with the recovery of wood, paper and industrial metal structures for the creation of tables made by assembly of colored pencils, collectible dolls full of graceful humor, style tables and chairs “Bauhaus eco-friendly”, chandeliers that link all the color, but also on the levity of the cellulose.
In furnishing the Controprogetto group has set up a very interesting space with some of their products. Real magicians carving and assembly of salvaged wood to create unique pieces of art: sideboards, chairs and armchairs, bookcases and garden furniture with a great personality.
As instead regards the apparel / accessories, really original the creations of Desybell: bags made of leather and reuse of materials (buttons, trimmings, seeds, bottle caps and so on and so forth). Very interesting also, at via Savona, the Ortofabbrica by Angelo Grassi: a fusion of proposals on eco design, architecture, art and craft and fashion, thinking about a way of life and creativity eco and stylish at the same time. Funny the initiative “happening” by Chinchen, who thought to involve the public in a fun test of his seat in cellular material paper-based and invited to sit in groups 15/16 people at once.
In Trienniale have been set a series of exhibitions on the latest news from some big names of design and some monographic exhibitions devoted to major figures of the Italian and international design, such as Alessandro Mendini, whose works have been exhibited in some midway between design and art, and Karim Rashid, which was presented a collection of pieces of furniture and objects created for various Italian and foreign companies, active in various sectors.
Interfaceflor, today highly committed to developing products with low environmental impact, has been presented to the public through the fascinating labyrinth of The Positive floor: installation-path to discover the most innovative design for “dress up” environments, from designer Francesco Maria Bandini.
Spectacular is the salon Confindustria Ceramica, in which some of the leading Italian production of sanitary ceramics have designed a colorful presentation of the most “eco-cool”, assembled in the art installations. Very interesting also the Irregolare/Eccezionale: an exhibition of the contributions of “great names” of design, including that of Patricia Urquiola, the new frontiers of marble floors and surfaces with low and high relief carvings and inlays, and the additional bathroom and outdoor.
Interesting also the design work of Yi, the Taiwanese brand that brings together a large group of international designers led by Gijs Bakker. The team’s primary objective is to explore the links between craft and design and the possible synergies between the Western and Eastern creativity, through a rereading of some historical pieces of European design. Of course by respect for the environment, especially as regards the choice of materials.

A++ welcomes lighting designers Cannata & Partners among the list of its prestigious operative partners; an indispensable addendum to the network’s professionalism palette.

After a long therm collaboration, A++ and Cannata & Partners, are joining forces to provide a more comprehensive approach to architecture and design services.

what is Lighting design and what is its role in a sustainable architecture and interior design project?
most people in the architecture and interior design business have a dim view of lighting design. The general sentiment is that lighting design is an expendable extravagance added to the price tag of building planning and construction.
It’s difficult to explain to the man on the street why good lighting design is essential to the built environment and why a professional is needed to do it right, moreover, the profession of lighting design is a relatively young discipline among the design profession. Although lighting has certainly been an integral component of the built environment for centuries, its only emerged as a true design specialty in the last years…Once considered an obscure consulting niche or high-budget luxury, lighting design has become an accepted discipline in the project design process in many parts of the world for those who have understood that ” an architecture poorly lit is a poor architecture”.

Lighting design is to be considered as a science and art applied to the built environment for the functional and aesthetic benefit of society; it is the application of objective criteria such as science and technology, and subjective criteria such as art and inspiration, to every phase of design and construction for both a building or outdoor site to efficiently and properly illuminate spaces for the public good. Lighting design is a specialized multi-faceted discipline woven into the fabric of the design and construction process. It is a crucial component of the process and is worthy of more than just a unattentive glimpse.
The lighting design process, takes an important role since the earliest stages of a project as it considers vital aspects as user needs and preferences, psychological needs, visual tasks, quantity/quality of lighting, glare and visual comfort issues, color temperature and color rendering, combining them with architectural design features, the flexibility of spaces and their functions, the controls requirements, security issues, budget concerns, operating and maintaining costs and many others that are able to both enhance and shape architectural project’s decision.
Lighting design is furthermore an extremely important factor in all issues strictly related with the sustainability aspects;
those lighting designers that keep an updated profile and conforms to most recent standards, such as Cannata & Partners, use techniques to support health, well being, visibility and productivity, services that will minimize initial equipment costs with specifications that reduce operations costs, lighting that reduces carbon emissions, hazardous waste and controls outdoor light pollution, and last but not least, light that improves interior and exterior design aesthetic for a visual wellbeing of the inhabitant.

Our new partner, will actively improve the quality and the completeness of each A++ project, as well as be a new and highly authoritative contributor to our magazine’s content.