Thursday, April 19, 2018 – During Milan Design Week, Ginette Caron presented her project “The Journey of the Word,” supported by Fondazione Pesenti.
The inscriptions from the Vatican Pavilion at Expo 2015 Milan are traveling to locations around the world.
Otherwise destined for scrapping, the inscriptions have been and will be placed within socially and spiritually significant contexts in various parts of the world. This project recently received the 2018 Grand Prix du Design in Montreal in the category of Event Design and Temporary Installations.
The Journey of the Word
“Not by bread alone” and “Give us this day our daily bread” are the two phrases chosen by the Vatican to represent the theme of Expo 2015, “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life.” Translated into thirteen languages, these phrases cast shadows from their metal letters onto the pavilion’s façades, evoking the biblical episode of manna descending from heaven.
With the dismantling of the pavilion, there arose the need to preserve these words, so beloved by the millions of visitors who read them as they stood out on the slanted folds of the façades. The idea of “scattering them like manna carried by the wind” inspired this repurposing project, spreading their strong and positive message in special places in Italy and abroad.
To ensure durability over time, the inscriptions were removed from the façades and treated through an innovative process called the Triplex® System by Nord Zinc (pyrolytic oven stripping and hot-dip galvanizing, with nano-ceramic coating) and finally powder coated in pure white.
The final color is Pure White, which will make them shine in the various proposed sites, on an ideal and real journey connecting the north and south of the planet.
“The Journey of the Word” is a project conceived by Quattro Associati architects and Ginette Caron (Ginette Caron Communication Design) with Marco Imperadori (Politecnico di Milano) and Alessio Pesenti (Nord Zinc).
Design
Graphics: Ginette Caron Communication | Architectural Design: Quattro Associati
Awards
The Vatican Pavilion at Expo Milan 2015 won the BEI (Bureau International des Expositions) award in the category of pavilions under 2000 sqm. It also received the international AWDA (AIAP Women Design Award) for the graphic design related to the architecture.
Il Viaggio della Parola - Progetti di Ginette Caron www.ginettecaron.it