Made in Brianza

Brianza is famous worldwide for its companies in the furniture industry, the driver of a district that has engendered some of the leading masterpieces of Italian design.

And if you’re wondering where the heart of Made in Brianza design beats, then the answer is in the northwest of Monza. In Lissone, for example, home to the Biblioteca del Mobile e dell'Arredamento - a furniture and furnishings library housed in the community library in Piazza IV Novembre, and the only one of its kind in Italy, in addition to the contemporary art museum of Lissone, MAC - Museo di Arte Contemporanea, with a new permanent design collection showcasing the ever-present icons, prototypes and unique pieces, as well as a series of very curious but lesser-known items.

And it also beats in Meda and in Giussano, where you can visit the Molteni Museum - a member of Museimpresa, the Italian association of corporate archives and museums - by appointment from Monday to Friday between 10 am and 4 pm.

Curated by the British designer Jasper Morrison, it covers the history, innovation, research and quality of this industry through a permanent exhibition of 48 products, including masterpieces and original prototypes from the companies in this furnishing group

But that's not all. “Know-how” in Brianza is also the voice of the textile industry, whose origins date back centuries. Wool, felt hats, silk and other fabrics, yarns and dyes: passing from artisan production to industrial manufacturing, Brianza has always survived by reinventing itself and adapting to technological innovation. Some of the gems of industrial archaeology in the area, particularly along the Lambro Valley are linked to the textile industry, e.g. the hat factories in Monza, the former Biffi cotton mill in Macherio, the Bevilacqua wool mill in Verano Brianza and the Krumm spinning mill with its workers' village in Realdino, Carate Brianza.

And there’s even more. Because the local flavours are also excellent in Brianza. For example, the wild garlic pesto (obtained by crushing the fresh leaves with pine kernels or almonds in a mortar and pestle for a pasta sauce or paired with boiled meat), the pink asparagus from Mezzago (a distinctive asparagus variety, the only one at the national level, with a characteristic white colour and pink tip) and white potatoes from Oreno (with white flesh and richly bold flavour, perfect for gnocchi).

And the future? The future is here and now. Carate Brianza is home to a company – Isc Ingegneria robotica - which has developed unparalleled technology for humanoid robotics and aerospace devices, writing a new chapter in a long story involving more than 600 enterprises with more than 50 years of history in Monza Brianza alone, 30 of these over 100 years old.