Olivetti Divisumma 28 (1972)Olivetti TCV 250 Video Display Terminal (1966)
In 1963, Bellini became a consultant for Olivetti, where he contributed to the design of the Programma 101, a precursor to the desktop computer.[6][7] His design for the CMC7-7004 magnetic character marking machine won the Compasso d'Oro in 1964,[8][9] and his design for the TCV 250 Video Display Terminal is on display at the Museum of Modern Art.[5][10] Bellini continued working with Olivetti throughout the 1970s and 1980s, playing a key role in designing many of the company's iconic products. These included the Lexicon 82 and Praxis 35 electric typewriters (the latter of which won a Compasso d'Oro in 1981),[11] the Mercator 20 cash register (which also received the Compasso d'Oro in 1984), and the Divisumma 28 electronic printing calculator.[12][13][8][9]
For many years, Bellini designed furniture and systems for B&B Italia and Cassina. He also created TV sets, hi-fi systems, headphones, and electric organs for Yamaha. As an automobile design consultant, he worked with Renault for five years and also contributed to designs for Fiat and Lancia, including the interior of the 1980 Lancia Trevi. Additionally, he designed lamps for Artemide, Erco, and Flos, as well as office furniture for Vitra.
Bellini has also designed products for various companies worldwide and continues to collaborate with many of them. In Italy, his work includes designs for Acerbis, Bras, Driade, Candy, Castilia, Flou, Kartell, Marcatrè, Meritalia, Natuzzi, and Poltrona Frau. In Belgium, he has worked with Ideal Standard; in Germany, with Lamy and Rosenthal; in Japan, with Fuji and Zojirushi; and in the United States, with Heller Furniture.
In 1972, Bellini was commissioned to design and build the prototype of the Kar-a-Sutra, a mobile environment created for the exhibition Italy: The New Domestic Landscape at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.[14][15] His Camaleonda modular sofa system, produced by B&B Italia until 1979, was also featured in the exhibition.[16]
In 1987, the Museum of Modern Art held a retrospective exhibition dedicated to Bellini's career.[17] At the time, the museum already featured 25 of his works in its permanent collection, including a selection of Olivetti machines, furniture designed in collaboration with B&B Italia and Cassina, and office chairs created for Vitra.
In 2025, Bellini's Olivetti TCV 250[lmo] video display terminal was included in Pirouette: Turning Points in Design, an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art featuring "widely recognized design icons [...] highlighting pivotal moments in design history."[18][19][20]
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Since the 1980s, Bellini has designed buildings across Europe, Japan, the United States, Australia, and the United Arab Emirates. His firm, Mario Bellini Architects (MBA), is headquartered in Milan in a 1,500-square-meter building designed by Bellini himself in the early 1990s. In 1999, the firm obtained ISO 9001 quality certification. Today, MBA employs an average of 30 to 35 architects.[21]
Projects built
Milan Convention Centre (MICO), one of Europe's largest convention centres, 2008–2012
Museum of Islamic Arts at Louvre Museum, Paris, 2005–2012
In 2000, the Municipal Gallery of Contemporary Art in Trento, Italy, held a personal exhibition titled Mario Bellini: A Path Between Architecture, Furniture, and Cars.
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