MARIA CHRISTINA HAMEL designer

Designer, born in New Delhi, she spent her childhood in India, Thailand, Austria, and in 1973 she moved to Milan, where she graduated at the “Scuola Politecnica di Design” in 1979. After working experiences with Andries van Onck, Ugo La Pietra, Ambrose Rossari, from 1981-1994 she was the main assistante to Alessandro Mendini in his studio and at the University of Applied Arts (MAK) in Vienna. Having actively participated at Alchimia, she soon developed her own particular multicultural style. Always self-producing her work, particularly in glass and ceramics, she visited historic sites such as Deruta, Murano, Albisola, Castellamonte, Sesto Fiorentino, Modra (Slovakia), Milan, Pietrasanta, Limoges.

She has taught at the National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad in India (University whose were founders Charles and Ray Eames), the Craft ENAD of Limoges (France), the ISIA in Faenza, at the Università del Progetto in Reggio Emilia, to ‘University of Applied Arts in Vienna and at the NABA in Milan has worked with the Master of Lighting Design of Polimi and has recently organized workshops at ISDAT in Toulouse (France). She is currently Adjunct Professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Verona. Consultant for some of the most important companies in the design, her works are part of the permanent collection of the Triennale in Milano, the MIC of Faenzaand the museum of wooden inlay in Sorrento. She participated at numerous international exhibitions, including Arte Fiera in Bologna, the Biennale in Venice, the Cheongju Biennale (Korea) and exposed at the MAXXI in Rome, the Madre in Naples. Selected for the Compasso d’Oro, the Bundes Preis and the Grand Design Etico.