The Inflatable Dome, designed by arch. Lapo Binazzi, was featured at the ‘San Gimignano VI Culture Festival’ on Saturday June 24th . The dome, standing at 10 meters high, was displayed in the main square, Piazza delle Erbe adjacent to the city’s cathedra. ‘La Cupola (S)Gonfiabile’ was originally designed by the group UFO with Titti Maschietto and Patrizia Cammeo in the 1960’s but only brought to life in 2015 in collaboration with The Florence Institute of Design International (FIDI). The San Gimignano exhibit was the third installation of Binazzi’s Cupola, with previous locations being Villa La Sfacciata of Florence and in the town of San Giovanni Valdarno.

The dome using inflatable nylon materials in prominent bold colours is a 1:5 scale reinterpretation of Brunelleschi’s dome. Each installation creates a new display in the way the dome unfolds itself during the inflation process. The overwhelming size of the structure creates a new dialogue with the surrounding public space and context changing lines of sight and creating an awe-inspiring finished product. Brunelleschi’s giant Cupola stands out as the most recognizable symbol of Renaissance Florence, comforting past populations with its secular and religious meaning. Lapo Binazzi, remains one of the most influential architects of the Italian Radical Design Movement from the nineteen-sixties and seventies, and is well known for his ability to match the artistic experience with the same experimental design. To date the dome has been featured in Domus and Designboom as well as many regional publications’.