patricia urquiola

Patricia Urquiola was born in Oviedo (Spain) in 1961. Lives and works in Milan. She attended the University of Architecture at Madrid Polytechnic and Milan Polytechnic, where she graduated in 1989 with Achille Castiglioni.
Assistant lecturer to Achille Castiglioni and Eugenio Bettinelli in Milan and Paris, responsible for the new product development office of DePadova, working with Vico Magistretti, head of Lissoni Associati’s design group.
In 2001 she opened her own studio working on product design, architecture, installations. Amongst her last projects of architecture: Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Barcelona, das Stue Hotel in Berlin and the Spa of Four Seasons Hotel in Milan; showroom and installations for Gianvito Rossi, Flos, Missoni, Moroso, Officine Panerai, H&M, Santoni and the general concept of Pitti Immagine Firenze.
She designs for the most important Italian and international companies such as Agape, Alessi, Andreu World, Axor, B&B Italia, Baccarat, Beko Arçelik, Bisazza, BMW, Budri, Coalesse, De Padova, Driade, Emu, Salvatore Ferragamo, Flos, Foscarini, Gandia Blasco, Glas Italia, Kartell, Kettal, Kvadrat, Maurice Lacroix, Molteni, Moroso, Mutina (Artistic Direction), Louis Vuitton, Panasonic, Paola Lenti, Rosenthal, Champagne Ruinart, Viccarbe. Consulting for Honda and LG, Panasonic and the Qatar Museum Authority.
Some of her products are exposed in various Museums and collections, amongst others: the permanent collection of MoMA in New York, Museo della Triennale Milan, Fonds National D’Art Contemporain in Paris and die Neue Sammlung in Munich.
She has won several international prices and awards. Amongst others the Medalla de Oro al Mérito en las Bellas Artes (Gold Medal of Fine Arts) awarded by the Spanish Government; Order of Isabella the Catholic, awarded by His Majesty The King of Spain Juan Carlos I; “Designer of the decade” for two German magazines, Home and Häuser, “Designer of the Year” for Wallpaper, AD Spain, Elle Decor International and Architektur und Wohnen Magazine.