Brionvega is an Italian
electronics
The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...
company that is known for manufacturing futuristic televisions and audio equipment. The company was founded in 1939 by Giuseppe Brion and Leone Pajettain in Milan. Initially named B.P.M. Radio, the company was rebranded as "BRIONVEGA" in 1963.
In the early 1960s, the company began collaborations with notable industrial designers including brothers
Achille and
Pier Giacomo Castiglioni
Pier Giacomo Castiglioni (22 April 1913–27 November 1968) was an Italian architect and designer.
Early life and education
Castiglioni was born on 22 April 1913 in Milan, in Lombardy in northern Italy. He was the second son of the scul ...
,
Mario Bellini
Mario Bellini (born February 1, 1935 in Milan) is an Italian architect, critic, and designer. He received a degree in architecture from Milan Polytechnic in 1959 and began working as an architect in the early 1960s. Like many other Italia ...
,
Richard Sapper
Richard Sapper (30 May 1932 – 31 December 2015) was a German industrial designer based in Milan, Italy. He is considered one of the most important designers of his generation, his products typically featuring a combination of technical innovat ...
, and
Marco Zanuso
Marco Zanuso (14 May 1916 – 11 July 2001) was a leading Italian Modernist architect and designer.
Early life
Marco Zanuso was born in Milan (Italy) 14 May 1916. He was one of a group of Italian designers from Milan shaping the internat ...
, resulting in the introduction of designs such as the TS 502 radio (a later "export" version of which was called the TS 522), Doney 14 and Algol 11 television sets. Following the success of these designs, the RR 126 stereo was introduced in 1966, followed by the Cubo television in 1969. Many of the products that the company produced during this period were awarded the
Compasso d'Oro, and have become icons of 1960s Italian design which are included in the collections of museums such as the
ADI Design Museum Adi or ADI may refer to:
Names and titles
* Adi (mythology), an Asura in Hindu faith who appears in the Matsya Purāṇa
* Adi (name), a given name in Hebrew and a nickname in other languages
* Adi (title), a Fijian title used by females of chie ...
in Milan, and the
Cooper Hewitt and
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues.
It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...
in New York.
In recent decades, the company has continued its practice of collaboration with notable industrial designers such as
Ettore Sottsas,
Michael Young, and
Hans Wettstein.
An updated version of the Cubo television was produced in 1992 with the same exterior casing but new electronics but this is now out of production.
In 1993,
Gian Mario Rossignolo
Gian is a masculine Italian given name. It is a variant of Gianni and is likewise used as a diminutive of Giovanni, the Italian form of John.
In Italian, any name including Giovanni can be contracted to Gian, particularly in combination with othe ...
bought Brionvega from the Brion family and placed it into his
Sèleco
Sèleco S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of consumer electronics. History
Sèleco was born in 1965 as a spin-off from the home appliances maker Zanussi.
In the first years of its life, Sèleco produced mostly black and white televisions with ...
company (which later became
Seleco-Formenti). Seleco developed financial problems when Turkish electronics producers caused prices to fall rapidly and by April 1997
Seleco-Formenti was declared bankrupt. Almost 10 years later, the Brionvega brand came back to life when it was bought twice - the rights for the production of radios and audio systems was bought by
Sim2 Multimedia
Sim or SIM may refer to:
Computing and technology
*SIM card or Subscriber Identity Module, used by mobile telephones
*HP Systems Insight Manager, a system management tool
* Scientific instrument module in the Apollo command and service module
* ...
whilst in August 2006 the rights for the Brionvega brand plus the TV designs and production was taken over by the
Super//Fluo company.
Since the take over of the brand,
Super//Fluo has re-issued two of the original products in limited edition runs, the Doney TV and the Algol TV . The also introduced a new design
LCD Television
Liquid-crystal-display televisions (LCD TVs) are television sets that use liquid-crystal displays to produce images. They are, by far, the most widely produced and sold television display type. LCD TVs are thin and light, but have some disadvantag ...
, the Alpha, presented at
Salone del Mobile
The Milan Furniture Fair ( it, Salone Internazionale del Mobile di Milano) is a furniture fair held annually in Milan. It is the largest trade fair of its kind in the world. The exhibition showcases the latest in furniture and design from countrie ...
in 2007.
See also
*
List of Italian Companies
Italy is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe with the third largest nominal GDP in the Eurozone and the eighth largest in the world. As an advanced economy the country also has the sixth worldwide national wealth and it is ranked third fo ...
References
External links
*
Brionvega Company WebsiteSuper//Fluo
Electronics companies established in 1945
Italian companies established in 1945
Electronics companies of Italy
Design companies of Italy
Science and technology in Italy
Industrial design firms
Telecommunications companies of Italy
Italian brands
Design
{{italy-company-stub
Compasso d'Oro Award recipients