The Bite Magazine - Spring/Summer 2020 - Issue 27

bite exhibition Inside the Liberty building in Sesto San Giovanni, the first Campari production plant was opened by Davide Campari in 1904 and operative until 2005. Between 2007 and 2009, the industrial complex was transformed into the new head- quarters of the Campari Group by architects Mario Botto and Giancarlo Marzorati which house the company mu- seum. The brand retains its historical references with two bas-reliefs on the sidewall designed by Botta, inspired by two sketches by Fortunato Despero in the 1920s. At Galleria Campari, you will see original Belle Époque (French and Western history) posters, drawings, sketches, and artists’ books from the 1920s to the 1990s by artists such as Marcello Dudovich, Leonetto Cappiello, Fortunato Depe- ro, Franz Marangolo, Guido Crepax, Bruno Munari, and Ugo Nespolo. In addition to these amazing visuals, you will witness the significant steps the brand has taken in the fields of graphic, communication, and design. As you walk through the gallery, you will come across caroselli (carousels) and television commercials by famous directors Federico Fellini and Tarsem Singh, and objects by successful designers including Matteo Thun, Dodo Arslan, Markus Benesch, and Matteo Ragni. A story of brilliant in- sights, advertising campaigns, and collectors’ images; Gal- leria Campari is both a place of memory and a place of the present with moving images and technological wonders. Some of the works exhibited have been reinterpreted and animated with multimedia technologies that give visitors a sensory experience through the senses of smell and hear- ing. The first floor is dedicated to the Campari experience with an exhibition of works by international artists and on the second floor, the display becomes visible, tangible, and real. The Campari Headquarters, designed by Mario Botto displays previous vintage objects, historic bottles, original clocks, and signs from the 1960s and 1970s. Upon entering the gallery, the word ‘Campari’ greets you, and each letter changes into different fonts and colours like on a slot machine. You will pass a wall where objects race across it providing a fascinating sight and an example of the technologies the brand has undertaken. There is also a dis- play that has 15 screens showing past digital adverts promot- ing the alcoholic liqueur. Another screen showing a bottle of ‘Campari Soda’ with the words coming out will certainly hold your attention. Interesting is a red screen with ‘Campari’ written in different fonts and symbols before a screen showing a picture of a boy, perhaps the founder when he was a child, appears. Anoth- er display in black and white has a huge egg timer with the black sand falling through to the bottom on a backdrop of a church in the city of Milan and the words ‘Bitter Campari’ in bubble writing. The egg timer then turns over automatically Images courtesy of Campari