Design Week

Modem was there, visiting and documenting, therefore this is a selection of the shows that we saw and liked in Duomo - San Babila.

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From Vase to Flower
Poldi Pezzoli Museum

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At the occasion of the Salone, The Poldi Pezzoli Museum hosted a design exhibition entitled From vase to flower, it beautifully contrasted with the XIXth century building and collections.
Curated by Beppe Finessi, the exhibition was a consideration about the vase, one of the most studied objects among designers,
On display were up to fifty vases created by renowned designers. The vases on show were filled with flowers, carefully chosen for each vessel considering its colour, shape and texture. The exhibition, on two floors, constituted an amazing inventory of species of flowers and designs.
Once inside it was worth visiting the whole house-museum: the collection of Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli is rich and diverse, and it includes outstanding pieces.

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Established and Sons

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Settled in the Versace Theater, Established and Sons launched new series of objects. In the dark and circular space of the theatre, surrounded by mirrors, new products under the projectors demonstrated once again the agility of Established and Sons to spot talented designers and collaborate with them in oder to produce innovative and fresh designs.
This year we could discover a shelf with a perspective, volcano and meteor prints, a corner lamp, a collection of rubber and earthenware pots and many other products combining elegance and function.

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Nilufar

<sld(nilufar)|left>Nilufar’s multi-levelled- labyrinth showroom we contemplated a selection of new pieces from reknowned designers. A graphic experience was offered by the installation of Barnaba Fornasetti exclusively created for Nilufar.
A collection named La matrice di Fornasetti: objects from Fornasetti’s historical catalogue, covered with the original zinc-alloy plates used for the lithographic printing of his father Piero’s original decorations from the Fifties.
In the next room, the transparent glass suspensions of Bethan Laura Wood called Totem were casting complex shadows on the walls. A marble model of Immobili, an installation by Marco Ferreri, was displayed next to the styrofoam scale one.
The marble and copper Barometro Lamps by Giacomo Ravagli provided a soft glowing warm light contrasting with their sharp angles and raw edges. Upstairs, one could admire the installation of a massive marble mirror in a blue room by Robert Stadler and the country-like Cabin Seat construction of Studio Makkink & Bey.
In the main room of the gallery, and taking over the whole space: Grandi Legni, Diagrammi and Immersions, three installations that played with vertical and horizontal plans, textures, structures, transparency and dividing canvasses.

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AlessiLux, Piana Chair and Alessi + Ecal
Alessi

<sld(alessi)|right>Alessi premiered its new space on Via Manzoni at the occasion of the Salone, and presented three new projects. From the street window on the right as we entered the attention had been caught by an unprecedented typology of object within Alessi’s collection: a chair. Alessi has launched Piana Chair, designed by David Chipperfield. Foldable, flat and colourful, the Piana Chair, still a prototype, fits in Alessi’s collection of simple and efficient design pieces, easy to adopt and joyful.
Next to this, a collaboration between Alessi, Foreverlamp and a trio of designers: Giovanni Alessi Anghini, Gabriele Chiave and Frederic Gooris, gave birth to AlessiLux, an innovative research on light bulb designs going one step further than the debate about sustainability and the need to use low-consumption light bubs, Alessi and the designers have provided new typologies of bulbs. They have become carefully designed objects, and not anymore disposable goods. Taking the shape of a robot, a lampshade or facetted like a crystal glass, the collection AlessiLux is “a particularly fresh design perspective” said Alberto Alessi. He added:
“The topic naturally led us toward a sort of dissolution of the boundaries between the light bulb and the luminary: several of the designs are probably closer to a real luminary than a mere light bulb. I believe this new design project will open the door to a revolution in the world of lighting: it’s as if we no longer needed to hide the boring, nondescript and often truly ugly bulbs…”

Last but certainly not least, Alessi was featuring the outcomes of a workshop initiated by Elric Petit with the 2nd year bachelor in design students of the ECAL. The workshop was focussed on the field of the office, and the students came out with innovative concepts and shapes. Their objects -ranging from the pencil case to the tape dispenser, the clock or the organizer- convey the idea of a working space where aesthetics goes together with function, and where working can be pleasurable.

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Highlights
Baccarat

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Baccarat launches, in its own milanese schowroom, the Highlight collection. Collaborations with Michele De Lucchi, Jaime Hayon, Eriko Horiki, Yann Kersalé, Arik Levy, Alain Moatti & Henri Rivière, Philippe Starck and Baccarat gave birth to a poetic and lightful series of chandeliers and lamps. From contemporary reinterpretations of the classic chandeliers to complete free-ranging design variations, the creations of the eight designers were glowing and sparkling along the path of the exhibition.
(On the pictures: Baccarat - Zenith; Jaime Hayon – Candy Light; Yann Kersalé – Jardin de Cristal)

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Ecal + Baccarat
Baccarat

<sld(ecal_baccarat)|right> Crystal can be playful. It seems that it was the brief given by Ed Barber and Jay Osgerby to the Master Luxe of the Ecal, at the occasion of a workshop in collaboration with Baccarat. Students came out with beautiful concepts, enhancing the qualities of the crystal, and revealing the amazing potential of the crystal manufacturer.
The objects were nicely displayed on light tables that enhanced the glowing and sparkling beauty of the facetted crystal. Augustin Scott de Martinville, young and dynamic head of the department, spoke enthusiastically about that experience and his student’s works, while fighting against the dust on the tables. Even Philippe Starck complimented the show, he told us, and suggested Baccarat to put into production all of the outcomes of that partnership!

Charlotte © modemonline.com