Annalisa Dominioni and Benedetto Quaquaro founded the studio (a+b) in 2011 in Milan. Their aim was, and continues to be, to combine research and innovation with poetry. They specialize in space design and extreme environments, and experiment by hybridizing space and terrestrial design. They have designed in many fields: transportation design for big industry, fashion tech, limited editions for art galleries and design.
At the same time, they are dedicated to teaching at the Polytechnic University of Milan. There they created and direct Space4InspirAction, the first space design course in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA). They are also visiting professors at many universities abroad.
Their latest projects include a new Space Station for Thales Alenia Space and the Leonardo trains of the Milan Metro. They received the Eccellence della Lombardia Award ADI Design Index 2016 for the latter.
Annalisa Dominioni and Benedetto Quaquaro also collaborate permanently with the main international Space Agencies and with important design companies. At the same time, they conduct independent research through institutional teaching and the publishing of essays.