Italian Style and Design comes to the Dovecot in Edinburgh

PERONI NASTRO AZZURRO BRINGS

ITALIAN STYLE AND DESIGN TO EDINBURGH

Edinburgh is the perfect
city to highlight and showcase the importance of Italian design and style, as
identified by Rosita Missoni of the Missoni Hotel, Michelin starred Chef
Giorgio Locatelli and Cucina head chef Mattia
Camorani and many others.

Now,
Italian icons Peroni Nastro Azzurro and Alessi will add to the growing Italian
scene through their collaboration on the first ever Peroni Blue Ribbon Design
Awards 2009, exhibiting at Dovecot studios.

Launching
on the 20th October until 24th October, this exhibition
offers visitors an innovative display of design items in a unique celebration
of Italian style. Plus, on selected days, members of the public can further
their Italian experience with a series of exclusive aperitivo evenings, with a
menu designed by Giorgio Locatelli.  The
exhibition, in a virtual form, will also take place at the 56 North Bar, West
Crosscauseway for one evening only on 21st October.

The Peroni
Blue Ribbon Design awards recognise and celebrate the importance and influence
of Italian style and design. Alessi, like other Italian design brands, has
continually led the way with its dynamic and iconic designs, with products that
are a hybrid of function and fluidity. They exemplify a firm belief in Italian
heritage and style, which, like Peroni Nastro Azzurro, is underpinned by the
values of passion, craftsmanship, and a meticulous attention to detail.

For the Peroni Blue Ribbon Design Awards, design enthusiasts were
asked to create pieces inspired by the authentic Italian occasion of aperitivo, which combines delicious small plate food with
refreshing light alcoholic drinks during the early evening hours of the week as
a relaxing prelude to dinner. Aperitivo is recognised as a stylish and
elaborate affair, particularly in Milan which
is said to be the home of aperitivo. The exhibition, which has previously shown
at the Institute of Contemporary
Arts in London, will
show an array of Italian-inspired designs ranging from tableware, small
furniture and kitchenware, to glassware and gadgets - all pushing the
boundaries of product design and innovation.

David Weir, Director of Dovecot, says, "It is
important to nurture and represent up and coming talent both in the UK and from further afield. The Peroni Blue Ribbon
Design Awards give us the perfect platform to do this and I'm delighted to see
these iconic Italian brands - Peroni Nastro Azzurro and Alessi working together
and bringing the exhibition to Edinburgh. The city of course has a very strong art and cultural scene and so is
the ideal place for emerging talent to showcase the future of home design".

The
Peroni Blue Ribbon Design Awards will tour design venues and style bars across
the country from October onwards including Art Lounge at The Mailbox, Birmingham and Urbis
in Manchester. See www.peroniitaly.com/exhibitions for further details.