It's just been announced that two great projects conceived by students of Scuola Politecnica di Design Milan have shortlisted for the Targa Giovani, the collateral event of the XXII Compasso d’Oro ADI.

The award, intended to promote the best thesis presented in the Italian design schools during the last three years was established in 1954, and was orginally the brainchild of none other than Gio Ponti.

The shortlisted projects coming from Scuola Politecnica di Design are 'Couture', conceived by Hiromi Fukikoshi, Kelli Pearson, Isaac Piñero and Roberto Rossi during a workshop with La Murrina, and 'The Light Orchestra'; an installation by Daniel Simonini with Lorenzo Marini and Fernando Gonzales Sandino, realized with the support of APG Group.

Both projects have been supervised by Dutch designer Huub Ubbens.

'Couture' is a sartorial way of using glass, generating unique pieces which expres the individual gestures of each craftsman and recycles discards of many different industrial manufacturing processes.

Inspired by the multi-coloured windows of ancient churches, the pendant and table lamps create lightscapes characterized by the fascinating themes and colours typical of the craftsmanship of the glass blowing workshops of Murano.

'The Light Orchestra' is music for the eyes, an installation combining sound, light and colour. The visitor can interact with a huge instrument, a reinterpretation of the piano, with twelve colourful piano keys controlling twelve LED lightsources, creating fascinating sound and lightscapes.

The piano, with its keys recalling the shape of the waves of sound, associates colours and sounds by referring both to Goethe’s colour theory, which expresses the relation of the twelve colours, and the circle of fifths.

Couture and The Light Orchestra will also be participating in an exhibition held at MACRO Testaccio (Museum for Contemporary Art in Rome) - Pelanda exhibition centre that will be dedicated to the last three editions of the annual ADI Design Index.

Scheduled from May the 31st to September the 25th, the exhibition will feature more than 400 projects concurring for the XXII Compasso d’Oro award and represented in the prestigious Annual.