The Color Authority™

In questa puntata (versione originale), Judith van Vliet ospita Maria Vittoria Paggini, pluripremiata interior designer e mente creativa dell’ecosistema multidisciplinare milanese Casa Ornella. La conversazione esplora il profondo legame di Paggini con il colore come forma radicale di espressione personale, sostenendo che abbracciare palette audaci sia un modo potente per affrontare l’evoluzione e uscire dalla propria zona di comfort sociale. Si approfondisce inoltre il suo recente progetto, Animale Sociale, che ridefinisce lo spazio domestico rimuovendo le barriere fisiche per favorire una connessione umana autentica e la convivialità nell’era digitale.
Maria Vittoria Paggini è un’interior designer e direttrice creativa che considera la casa come espressione del carattere e della sensibilità di chi la abita. Nel corso della sua carriera ha affrontato complesse sfide progettuali, trasformando i vincoli in soluzioni: un approccio che le è valso il Premio Perego nel 2023 e un posto nella Top 100 di Forbes nel 2024. Progetta spazi immersivi e sensoriali, radicali nella forma e nel colore, con meticolosa attenzione ai dettagli e alla funzionalità. La sua abitazione privata a Milano è diventata Casaornella, oggi una tappa imperdibile durante la Milano Design Week. Qui ricopre il ruolo di direttrice creativa di un ecosistema in cui convergono interni, arte, design, moda e enogastronomia.
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In this episode, Judith van Vliet hosts Maria Vittoria Paggini, an award-winning interior designer and the creative force behind the multidisciplinary Milanese ecosystem Casa Ornella. The conversation explores Paggini’s deep connection to color as a radical form of personal expression, arguing that embracing bold palettes is a powerful way to navigate change and step outside one’s social comfort zone. The episode also delves into her recent project, Animale Sociale, which redefines domestic space by removing physical barriers to foster authentic human connection and conviviality in the digital age. 
NOTE: English version dubbed with AI assistance. The original version can be listened to in Italian language. 

Maria Vittoria Paggini is an interior designer and creative director who views the home as an expression of the character and sensibility of those who live there. Throughout her career, she has tackled complex design challenges, transforming constraints into solutions—an approach that earned her the Perego Award in 2023 and a spot on Forbes’ Top 100 list in 2024. She designs immersive and sensory spaces, radical in form and color, with meticulous attention to detail and functionality. Her private home in Milan has become Casaornella, now a must-see destination during Milan Design Week. Here, she serves as creative director of an ecosystem where interiors, art, design, fashion, and food and wine converge.

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In this interview, internationally acclaimed landscape architect Kathryn Gustafson reflects on her 45-year career and her unique ability to create distinctive sculptural landscapes that engage people at a fundamental level. She explains how the interplay of color, form, and volume provides intuitive information to the observer, drawing on her professional background in sculpture and tailoring to achieve artistic precision. Gustafson highlights the importance of designing public works that communities can "adopt" as their own, while striving to maintain artistic poetry amidst the challenges of a changing climate.

Kathryn Gustafson brings over 45 years of distinguished practice as Founder of Gustafson Porter + Bowman. As an internationally-acclaimed landscape architect, Kathryn is renowned for bringing a unique ability to define a project’s vision and creating distinctive sculptural landscapes which engage at a fundamental human level. 
Kathryn’s work at Gustafson Porter + Bowman includes the Cultuurpark Westergasfabriek in Amsterdam, Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain in London, Parque Central in Valencia, Taikoo Place in Hong Kong and Site Tour Eiffel in Paris amongst other high-profile projects. 
Prior to establishing Gustafson Porter + Bowman, Kathryn worked in France from 1980 until 1997, where she was the lead landscape designer for the headquarters of Shell (1990), Esso (1992) and a model factory for L’Oréal (1993). Other significant works include the award-winning Jardins de l’Imaginaire in Terrasson la Villedieu (1995), which is classed by the French Ministry of culture as one of the most notable gardens in France. Her work at the public plaza in Evry (1991) was one of the first landscape projects worldwide to create a flexible space with water jets.
Kathryn lectures internationally and is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architecture, an honorary Royal Designer for Industry member, a medallist of the French Academy of Architecture and a Chartered Member of the Landscape Institute. She is the recipient of the Architects’ Journal Jane Drew Prize 1998, the 2001 Chrysler Design Award, the 2008 ASLA Design Medal, the Arnold W. Brunner Memorial Prize for Architecture 2012, the 8th Obayashi Prize, Japan in 2014 and the 2019 Geoffrey Jellicoe Award. In 2021, she was elected as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. 
In April 2026, 28 years after establishing Gustafson Porter + Bowman, Kathryn Gustafson is stepping back from her role as Founding Partner. She will continue in a consultancy role as a Founder of the practice.

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This interview features Mehek Malhotra, founder of Giggling Monkey Studio, discussing how her Indian heritage and the psychology of color inform her narrative-driven design work. She describes color as an innate, universal language—akin to a lifelong tattoo—and uses the "masala dabba" (spice box) metaphor to explain India's consistent yet versatile palette. A central theme is her philosophy of "serious play," which encourages designers to reclaim the judgment-free creativity of childhood to develop original, commercially viable ideas. Mehek also explores her preference for "lived-in" aesthetics over sterile perfection, reflecting on projects for IKEA and Google that translate personal memories into universal experiences. 
The colorful and brilliant designs of Mehek Malhotra, a young designer based in Mumbai, India, are well-known for their fusion of modern aesthetics with traditional Indian elements. Malhotra, who has experience in graphic design, visual communication, and drawing, has made a name for herself in the competitive Indian design industry. Her portfolio features a wide range of projects in fields as diverse as product design, packaging, brand identity, and more.
India is where Mehek Malhotra spent her formative years. Her early years were spent absorbing visual culture, during which her budding interest in art and design flourished. She continued her education by earning a Bachelor of Design degree with a concentration in fashion communication and graphic design, while being awarded the best graducation project award at NIFT in 2018. Her formal education laid the groundwork for her to develop her abilities and explore other forms of expression.
She was awarded 25 under 25 in 2016 by TATA Nano and Campus Diaries for the field of Art + Design and was recognised in the Power 25 List of the Rolling Stone Magazine in 2023. In 2025, she received a Special Mention in the Forbes 30 Under 30 India list for Design, acknowledging her growing influence and contribution to creative culture in the country.

Mehek started the graphic design, illustration, and branding studio Giggling Monkey Studio. She has done work for well-known customers like major corporations, young businesses, and non-governmental organisations through her studio. Malhotra's work is readily recognisable for its emphasis on whimsical shapes and vivid patterns. The creative methods used by Giggling Monkey Studio have earned them praise and a dedicated following; with clients such as Google, Facebook, Instagram, and others, as well as smaller businesses, to help them find their creative voice and place in Indian markets. The studio loves to collaborate and produce work for music; this has led to numerous projects for various artists, most recently with the Berklee Indian Ensemble, whose album was nominated for the 2023 Grammys.

She is also the Creative Lead for India at Canva. Canva is a website that lets people design and makes beautiful graphics. This makes design more accessible for everyone to use and understand.

In 2025, Mehek brought her perspective on food, memory, and domesticity to the international stage. At Salone del Mobile — Milan Design Week — she collaborated with Maurizio Tentella on Eat With Your Mouth Open, a lived-in dining room installation created in partnership with IKEA. The project wove together Italian and Indian cultural references around food and home, drawing on the stories of both their grandmothers. The installation ran April 21–26, 2025, and invited audiences to sit with the idea that a dining table is never just a table — it is where culture is passed down, arguments are had, and love is fed.

Numerous organisations and publications have recognised and  to name a few. Mehek's passion for art and her dedication to her craft have propelled her to the top of her field, and she continues to inspire and entertain audiences with her unique and captivating work, making her craft more accessible and understood so more people can aspire to work as creatives in India.
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In this episode, Draga Obradovic and Aurel K. Basedow’s creative synergy, where "one plus one is three," combines industrial materials with the "material alchemy" of resin and glass. They view color as an emotional "gift and a subjective experience that cannot be replicated by artificial intelligence, which lacks the capacity for human feeling. Embracing the unpredictable nature of their materials, they advocate for a "handmade future" rooted in physical gesture and emotional discernment.
Draga & Aurel is a multidisciplinary studio working across art, collectible design, and product design, based in Como. Founded in 2007 by designer Draga Obradovic and artist Aurel K. Basedow, partners in life as well as in work, the studio now counts a team of 30 people active between design and in-house production. With a heterogeneous background spanning art, fashion, and craftsmanship, Draga & Aurel are internationally recognized for an original language that merges rigorous design methodology with an artistic approach to material and composition. Their first collections, Deshabillé (2007) and Heritage (2009), marked their debut in the design world and introduced a pioneering experimentation with the upcycling of vintage objects, reinterpreted through a contemporary sensibility. Their dialogue with design history continued through early collaborations with the Italian company Baxter, launched in 2009 and still ongoing, a partnership that helped propel Draga & Aurel onto the international stage.
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