One to watch: Chiara Lionello’s practice finds beauty in simple gestures

Chiara Lionello believes design should always be something that opens up possibilities, whether this be an object or a space. ‘In all my projects, I try to give people the opportunity to establish a relationship with the designed elements, so that they feel empowered to make them personal through their gestures,’ explains the Milan-based architect, designer and researcher.

Her practice is rooted in exploring the relationship between design and its users, and how this material presence activates memories and shared experiences. Lionello seamlessly moves between interior, exhibition and product design, with a focus on transforming contemporary living.

Get to know Milan-based designer Chiara Lionello

Lionello was born in Pavia in 1987, and moved to Milan in her mid-twenties after completing her studies in architecture at the Politecnico di Milano. ‘I have always been passionate about history and art, and have a particular fascination with beautiful, anonymous objects,’ shares Lionello. ‘Growing up with parents who are both collectors of everyday things, I learned to find beauty in simple gestures and daily spaces.’

After working for Cristina Celestino and Dimorestudio in Milan, in 2018 she founded her own practice in Italy’s design capital. If founding your own practice isn't enough to keep you busy, Lionello decided to complete a PhD in Architecture, for which she developed her research between Italy and Tokyo. ‘This experience was crucial in shaping my personal design language, as it gave me the opportunity to dive into a complex and sophisticated material culture, reflecting on what truly defines quality in spaces and things,’ she explains.

Lionello also wants her designs to be interactive. ‘I believe that interaction is fundamental for establishing a lasting relationship with objects and spaces,’ she says. ‘It’s something I always try to achieve in my projects, where the design elements can be seen not just as beautiful elements to stare at but rather as tools to be used.’

This interaction can create a sense of surprise, as in ‘Coup de Théâtre’ (one of Lionello’s interior projects, an apartment in collaboration with Paola Ostellino), where a majestic folding screen conceals the kitchen, inviting a theatrical gesture to reveal it. It can enable movement, as in ‘House Around a Blue Volume’, where the central blue element organises different activities and functions around it. Or it can evoke memories, as in Carosello, where the shapes and colours of the bookcase recall old urban carousels from childhood, bringing a poetic dimension to the domestic space.'

This is also reflected in designs such as her ‘Inserti’ vases, recently presented at the Italian fair Edit Napoli 2025, and defined by a ceramic vessel equipped with an anodised aluminium bar to support a small flower composition. 'In their coexistence, the two elements create a small architecture, an interactive object, waiting to be completed by the gesture of whoever will use it.'

Although her practice reaches across different areas of design, Lionello’s work is cohesive as she approaches projects of diverse scales with the same mindset, focusing on creating spaces and objects that invite users to inhabit or interact with them, while emphasising the quality of that interaction.

‘This quality often stems from a sense of beauty found in contrasts. I enjoy juxtaposing different colours, materials and technologies, allowing them to engage in a dialogue in search of a unique balance,’ explains Lionello.

Old books and magazines inspire the architect, who has a particular fascination for those places that might not appear glamorous at first glance. Spending hours exploring Milan on foot, Lionello observes unexpected colours and materials from 1930s architecture to hidden second-hand bookshops.

‘I like the idea that objects and spaces may have a personality,’ she comments. ‘When I was studying in Japan, I was fascinated by the habit of giving names to tools or everyday stuff and to imagine that they could have a soul, as their human users. It is a kind of sensitivity that I feel also mine and that I hope can be found in my projects.’