Rethinking and redesigning the famous Italian architecture magazine Domus.

Following the several redesigns (Ettore Sottsass, Alan Fletcher, Simon Esterson), the new Domus was launched in April 2008. Concept, Project Lead, Design, Creative and Art Direction, Milano, 2008 – with Flavio Albanese and onlab

Every cover was kept free from architecture and text. Wrapping and cover were both designed as a composition – the overlapping of their two images produces a third. The image vanishes with the act of unwrapping the magazine.

Monthly supplement – a magazine within a magazine. Each issue was developed differently and according to the particular topics.

A magazine which no longer accepts disciplines and knowledge packed in watertight compartments. Full transparent balance of form and content, interior and exterior. Its mix and match of ideas and hints, emotional explorations and experiences perfectly mirrors the sensitivity and aesthetics of this third millennium’s global society.

Contents are organised according to intertextual and intervisual relations rather than according to a fixed chapter structure. Each issue works with a basic motif and its variations to create a distinct jazz-like rhythm and flow.

Infographics working as index, reflecting the magazine’s content based on the published architecture. Collection of physical data, providing an average and overview over the buildings and projects displayed in the magazine – and through the successive issues.

"The challenge was huge: I was 32 years old at that time and had never dealt with such a complex assignment. I had to bring the vision of the new chief editor to life, listen to the practical requests of the journalists and editors, and guide the Italian design team while my team was traveling regularly between Berlin and Milan.

I had to understand the goals of the publisher, fulfill the expectations of the stakeholders, challenge the competitors, take care of the critics in the local and global press, and above all, please the readers – taking into account the long-standing subscribers as well as attract new subscribers.

The historic values of the magazine as an institution in the architectural field as well as their working methods were challenged by the rise of the new social media channels and blogs and rapid digitalization. End of 2008 we faced a financial crisis and a dramatic decrease in advertising and sources of revenue. This pushed us to search for new creative solutions to sustain the position of Domus as an outstanding international leading voice in the architectural domain.

I had a very close relationship with the chief editor, spending as much time with him as I could. I wanted to be able to understand his motivation, catch his ideas, translate his passionate aspirations into clear directions for the stakeholders, and structure thoughts to guide my teams. Besides my ambitions and creative goals, my role was to inspire all the participants, defending my strong views while managing tough planning.

We created an outstanding agile world-class product, adapting our approach from one issue to the next, developed and tested new solutions, put ourselves out of our comfort zone, played with the challenges of digitalization, and stimulated the reader.

This extraordinary project allowed me to reinforce the values I shared within my community while creating a strong identity for the member of my team."