Announcement of the new location and the first special projects that will feature in the fifth edition of  EDIT Napoli 2023, the independent and authorial design event

Victory flags fly throughout Naples with less than four months to go before the EDIT Napoli event devoted to independent and authorial design will once again be running in the heart of the city, as it celebrates winning the Italian football league cup. Following on from the success of the 2022 edition, the international design fair directed and curated by Emilia Petruccelli and Domitilla Dardi will now officially be holding its fifth consecutive edition from October 6^th to 8^th 2023. Again, it will be casting a spotlight on the work of independent designers, design authors and editors, creators and producers, all of whom will be displaying their creations in the city overlooking the Mediterranean that has been attracting international talent in this sector since 2019.

Alongside the winners of last year’s edition, ccontinua+mamt and Paolo Marasi, many of those who have participated before have confirmed they will be returning, such as Aaina Kaari, delsavio 1910, Galapagos, CIMENTO® and Marco Ripa. There will also be new arrivals such as Jonathan Bocca, Valnes Studio, the young team at Felix Pottinger Studio, Barraco and Chris Fusaro.

This year’s big news is the new principal location of the event. As always, the city will more broadly be playing an essential part through special places – some very well-known, others less so – highlighting aspects of its history. In celebration of the centuries of history and deep-rooted identity of Naples, this year’s fair will be held at the Archivio di Stato di Napoli, within the grandiose monastic complex of SS. Severino e Sossio, one of the oldest and most influential centres of Benedictine spirituality in the Mezzogiorno. This special, majestic space right in the historic centre of Naples both houses and embodies the Medieval, modern and contemporary history of Italy and Europe. The former Benedictine monastery of Santi Severino e Sossio was converted for use as the general archives of the Kingdom of Naples in the 19^th century. Many of its architectural features exemplify the city’s illustrious history, not least its four spellbinding cloisters. Fully in line with the spirit of EDIT Napoli, contemporary design will interact with the historic architecture of the complex both through the exhibitors being housed within it over the course of the three days and with the staging of the fair itself, conceived by the Stamuli studio that won the 2021 edition. One of the magnificent cloisters of the Archivio di Stato will be adorned with a bar area designed by Very Simple Kitchen, another friendly venture that has grown alongside EDIT Napoli.

As always, the main location will only be one of a number of areas involved in the event. Many other venues scattered across the city will be hosting installations and special projects conceived by EDIT Napoli in collaboration with major national and international players in art, architecture and design. Among the most eagerly awaited EDIT CULT projects will be the one launched by the Feudi di San Gregorio winery, which has been close to EDIT Napoli in its past editions and which firmly supports projects with a strong accent on design, art and creativity. This year’s partnership between the event and the Avellino-based wine producer will be cemented through a homage by designer Fabio Novembre to the late architect, designer and artist Riccardo Dalisi, a year since his passing. Novembre will be acting as a bridge between different and often overlooked cultures, connecting Naples with international artistic situations through a transversally animated itinerant installation that will combine artistic craftsmanship with design and music. 

For the duration of the fair, the exhibitors selected by the curatorial team of EDIT Napoli will be displaying their work –products and projects that prioritise quality over quantity, territoriality over globalisation. Sustainability in production processes, understood as a short and transparent production chain, is one of the event’s focuses. Also a priority is the ability to bring together designers and commercial realities from across the world by encouraging creations that retain the attention to detail typical of a unique project whilst having the potential to be manufactured on a larger scale. As with past editions, a commission made up of Italian and international designers, specialists, journalists and those working in the sector will be awarding prizes to the most deserving. The jurors are Manuela Barretta, design+art projects manager for YOOX; Marina Lazarus Million‑Brodaz, buyer for the house département, Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche; Hannes Peer, designer and founder of the eponymous architecture practice based in Milan and working internationally; and the Web director of ELLE Decor Italia Alessandro Valenti.

As a complement to the fair, which attracts a considerable number of visitors – both experts and aficionados –, each year EDIT Napoli develops various partnerships that underscore the importance of networking. In support of young talent, with a view to promoting their work, this year the event boasts two international collaborations. The first is with the Embassy of the Netherlands in Rome and the Consulate-General in Milan, which launched the “Young Dutch Titans 2023” competition offering a selection of emerging Dutch creatives the chance to exhibit at the EDIT Napoli Seminario. The second is an initiative that has been promoted in collaboration with the Instituto Cervantes de Nápoles, with the “España Diseño Mediterráneo” special open call directed at young Spanish designers who have been invited to exhibit during the event in Naples.

The countdown has begun, and this year more than ever Naples will be proclaiming its global centrality, its soul, its many faces, the countless historical, artistic and cultural treasures for which it is recognised and celebrated internationally. With its unshakable belief in this city and its magnetic power, EDIT Napoli looks forward to welcoming the public from October 6^th to 8^th 2023. 

EDIT Napoli

6 — 8 October 2023: opening to the public

5 October 2023: press preview 

Archivio di Stato di Napoli 

Curator and director EDIT Napoli: Emilia Petruccelli

Curator EDIT Napoli: Domitilla Dardi