Raising the bar for espresso machines

Since its invention a century ago by Milan engineer Luigi Bezzera, the espresso machine has largely been an industrial design with a focus on function. This is hardly surprising, since its primary intent is to deliver tiny perfect cups of coffee with workhorse-like efficiency (the word espresso has a triple meaning – fast, pressed, and by individual request). Design form has begun to creep into the equation, however. A decade ago, Milan architect and designer Luca Trazzi raised the design bar on a home version of the traditional espresso machine with his X1 model for Trieste-based manufacturer FrancisFrancis. The espresso machine’s rounded edges, availability in vibrant colours, and overall friendly form made a unique emotional appeal to potential buyers.
Trazzi and FrancisFrancis have continued their design explorations and their most recent espresso machine is the X6. Unlike the original all-metal X1, the body of their latest model is a combination of ABS plastic and chrome. Like the original, however, the X6 makes the same kind of emotional appeal to consumers with its likeable retro styling. Designed for use with coffee pods, the new model is capable of making three espresso types for home-based baristas – short or ristretto, normal, and long or espresso lungo. The aesthetic appeal of the X6 is as central to the machine as its function, FrancisFrancis founder Francesco Illy has noted. The 44-year-old Trazzi, whose mentor was legendary architect Aldo Rossi, has also designed products such as watches and small kitchen appliances with a sensory appeal similar to that found in his espresso machine designs for FrancisFrancis. The architect and designer is currently working on major appliance designs for the Chinese market.
Trazzi is not the first architect or designer to tackle the challenge of creating a better espresso machine. Gio Ponti, considered by many to be the veritable father of modern Italian design, teamed with manufacturer La Pavoni in 1949 to create the first espresso machine with a horizontal boiler. In the early 1960s, Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni designed the acclaimed Pitagora machine for La Cimbali. More recently, respected Milan-based designer Richard Sapper advanced the aesthetic and function of stovetop espresso makers with his 9090 model for Alessi.
These design advancements have tended to follow more functional innovations. Wider use of commercial espresso machines was accelerated following Achille Gaggia’s introduction of a spring-powered piston in his Classica machine of the late 1940s. Faema’s E61, named for a 1961 solar eclipse, was the first espresso machine to contain a heat exchanger and a rotary pump. The E61 also featured a unique clean-lined look, which ensured a longevity celebrated in a 40th anniversary edition issued by Faema in 2001.
Our coffee culture continues to grow, so it was perhaps inevitable that a designer would create an espresso machine for the home which is more than functional. With user-friendly espresso machines such as Trazzi’s X6 and like-minded competitors, the ritual of preparation is almost as warm as the espresso itself.