Arcangelo Metropolitano is a lamp/sculpture designed by Ugo La Pietra in 1977. The object was created for a performance in the subway of the city of Milan in Italy, as a criticism of the lack of identity in places used for underground travel (subway). A unique and ironic object, the reconversion of the blue painted street pole, transparent methacrylate wings hand painted by the artist with vitreous enamel. Circular neon on brass lamp holder. Grounded transformer. Provenance personal archive Ugo la Pietra Milan. /
Ugo La Pietra La sinestesia delle arti 1960|2000, Mazzotta Edition, Year 2001 - Intelligenza dell’effetto, Alinea Edizione, P. 112.113.114, Year 1985 - Promemoria, Katà Edition, p. 60.61 - Katalog Ugo la Pietra Promemoria, p. 37, Year 1984.
Ugo la Pietra, born in Bussi sul Tirino (Pescara) in 1938, has a design path full of trespasses from design to the field of "behaviors", architecture, street furniture and art. The eclectic Ugo la Pietra is at the same time an Italian architect, artist, designer and theorist active since the 1960s in research for the definition of balanced relationships between man and the environment, he founded and was part of avant-garde groups, such as that of the Cenobio, of Radical Design and Global Tools. In these areas of investigation he has organized numerous exhibitions in Italy and abroad, including many solo exhibitions, transferring the main theoretical reflections into important writings. In addition to carrying out an intense didactic activity at Italian and foreign universities and colleges, he directed the magazines "In" (1971-74), "Progetto in più" (1973-74), "Brera flash and Fascicolo" (1976-79 ) and, since 2000, "Crafts between art and design", while in 1980 he was editor of the magazine "Domus". He has received numerous awards and recognitions including the Compasso d'Oro in 1979. As a designer, he has collaborated with Italian companies numerous (Arosio Viscardi, Busnelli industrial group, Bernini, Poggi, Sellaro and Zanotta among the main ones). In 2008 an important retrospective exhibition of his works was held at the Mudima Foundation in Milan, while in 2014 at the Triennale Design Museum in Milan a monographic exhibition on the work of L. from 1960 was set up, entitled Progetto disequilibrante. /