For this new signed and numbered, limited edition collection, illy has chosen the acclaimed, versatile Chinese artist Liu Wei, famous for his highly original artistic vision. His evocative and creative universe, reinterpreted for the illy Art Collection, seems to blend cup and saucer into a single dimension.
According to the illy site, the inspiration for the design on these small but important everyday items came from The Purple Air, a complex and frenetic work with science-fiction overtones which for Liu Wei represents the continuously-evolving process of urbanization, and the structural changes taking place in modern cities. The result is a stylized metropolitan landscape with a powerful visual and emotional impact.
With illy….art and coffee were definitely born together. With voids and spaces defined by unconventional colors, rigid lines that soften and then seem to liquefy, vivid sunsets and dreamlike lights: Liu Wei’s surreal skylines breathe new life into espresso cups and saucers, transforming the daily coffee-drinking ritual into an experience of taste and original creativity.
To learn more about illy’s Art Collection and the latest cup designs by artist Liu Wei, go here:
