Passione italiana: l’arte dell’espresso
Coffee Museum Santos; Immigration Museum of the State of São Paulo, Brazil
The exhibition in Brazil that celebrates the design and innovation around espresso coffee, one of the most beloved symbols of Italy in the world, through the history of Italian migration.
Coffee Museum, Santos, from October 1, 2024, to February 4, 2025
and
Immigration Museum of the State of São Paulo from February 21, 2025, to May 26, 2025
The all-Italian passion for espresso is the focus of a dual exhibition in Brazil, curated by Elisabetta Pisu, that tells the story of the evolution of design and technology surrounding coffee through the history of Italian migration to Brazil, which celebrates 150 years in 2024. Sixty items, including domestic and bar-use coffee machines, sets, and coffee cups, are on display in the two venues of Passione italiana: l’arte dell’espresso, from October 1, 2024, to February 4, 2025, at the Museu do Café in Santos, and from February 21, 2025, to May 26, 2025, at the Museu da Imigração do Estado de São Paulo. The exhibition is structured around two main themes that build a rich and nuanced narrative about the history of coffee. One part of the exhibition is a historical journey that tells the story of the evolution of coffee machines and consumption habits, driven by the creativity of inventors who have tirelessly sought to improve the quality, taste, and aroma of the beverage while optimizing production processes over time. In addition to the historical narrative, the exhibition offers thematic explorations of the broad social significance of coffee—the world’s most consumed beverage—through its places, domestic rituals, and the designers who have most shaped habits and the collective imagination. Among these themes are: historical cafés in Italy; the bar and the Italian way of life; the aesthetic evolution of the moka pot; the Neapolitan coffee maker and Riccardo Dalisi; Aldo Rossi’s designs, bridging architecture and domestic landscapes; the ritual of home-brewed coffee; Alessi’s Tea & Coffee Piazza and Towers collections.
A key element of the Passione italiana: l’arte dell’espresso exhibition is the connection with the history of Italian migration to Brazil, which marks 150 years in 2024. Italian migrants were key to the widespread adoption of coffee in the South American country. «The selection of objects on display speaks of Italian creativity and the drive for innovation, which have always characterized Made in Italy design – explains the curator Elisabetta Pisu – but it also tells us much more, it tells us about Italians in Brazil, about how our culture has been the bearer of new habits and has inaugurated a social ritual overseas, a symbol of our country. Together with this, the exhibition highlights the strong bond between Italy and Brazil, a mutual relationship that has fully engaged the business world as much as love for espresso coffee.»
The exhibition was created in collaboration with the Consulate General of Italy in São Paulo and the Instituto de Preservação e Difusão da História do Café e da Imigração.
