Cooper Hewitt says...
Elena (Lella) Vignelli was born August 13, 1934 in Udine, Italy, into a family of architects. She received a degree from the University of Venice's School of Architecture and attended MIT's School of Architecture. Marrying designer Massimo Vignelli in 1957, the two were lifelong collaborators. They co-founded the Lella and Massimo Vignelli Office of Design and Architecture in Milan in 1960. She was head of interior design at Unimark International, 1965. In 1971, the Vignellis left Milan for New York City where they co-founded Vignelli Associates.
Lella Vignelli's expertise extended to a multitude of design disciplines, including interior and furniture design especially for offices and showrooms, exhibition design, jewelry and clothing design and silverwork. Over the years she obtained prominent commissions from leading companies and manufacturers.
Shortly before he died in 2014, Massimo wrote a book about Lella, entitled, Designed by: Lella Vignelli, in which he said the following about Lella and her creations. "All her work bears the mark of clarity and simplicity which is specific to her design approach. All of it shows a distinctive sense of pragmatism with no room for meaningless decoration......her work is solid, timeless and elegant."
