“Nel segno di Francesco Merloni” is an event conceived to celebrate the centenary of Francesco Merloni’s birth through an immersive journey into his vision, values, and legacy. Rather than looking back through a traditional commemorative format, the experience transformed memory into a living narrative, connecting the story of one man with the future of Ariston Group, its people, and the territory where that story began.

The event took place inside Ariston Group’s Albacina factory in Fabriano, which was completely reinterpreted as a large-scale exhibition and storytelling environment. Industrial spaces became the backdrop for a contemporary narrative combining live talks, visual content, archival material, and excerpts from the documentary Tenacia e Gentilezza: la visione di Francesco Merloni. In front of more than 2,500 guests, voices from institutions, business, culture, family, and the company came together to build a collective portrait of Francesco Merloni and the impact of his work.

In the presence of the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella, the celebration moved seamlessly between remembrance and future vision. The story of Francesco Merloni became the starting point for announcing new projects in industry, research, education, and culture, giving tangible form to a legacy that continues to evolve. The result was a powerful site-specific experience where factory, people, history, and future became part of the same narrative, a tribute to a lifetime shaped by tenacity and kindness, and to a vision designed to continue well beyond its first hundred years.