Last week, design aficionados flocked to the Milan for one of the creative calendar’s most important events, the Salone del Mobile—this year’s edition with 2,000-plus exhibitors from more than 165 countries. Here, Galerie’s contributing market editor, Melissa Colgan, shares her favorite picks.
22 Highlights from Milan’s 2017 Salone del Mobile
Galerie’s contributing market editor shares her picks from Milan
Airbnb's "Passeggiata" at the Casa degli Atellani
For Airbnb’s latest project, Martina Mondadori transformed the 15th-century former home of Leonardo da Vinci into a giant cabinet of curiosities. Personal treasures from 22 emerging and established designers and architects filled the space. Standouts included ethereal stones collected by Faye Toogood, watercolor paintings by Italian architect and designer Matteo Thun, and tall vases by glassmaker and ceramicist Felicity Aylieff.
Photo: Courtesy of Airbnb
Cementiles by Campana Brothers for Bisazza
Inspired by agate gemstones, Brazilian design duo Fernando and Humberto Campana's first collaboration with Bisazza, Cementiles, seeks to reproduce the colored spirals of layered geode. In unexpected saturated greens, pinky reds, and cheerful yellow, the organic yet contemporary design is made entirely by hand from high-strength cement blended with colored oxides.
Photo: Courtesy of Bisazza
Margherita Chair by De Padova
Opposites attract in the cheerful Margherita chair by De Padova. Glossy red-painted ash meets handwoven natural paper cord in a design that’s both exotic and rustic. With its low, wide seat and airy construction, it is a versatile accent chair that would uplift a range of settings.
Photo: Courtesy of De Padova
Apparatus Studios
Jeremy Anderson and Gabriel Hendifar of New York’s Apparatus Studios did it again with their much-anticipated new collection of lighting and furniture at a stunning space in the heart of the Brera district. The unpolished concrete walls were the perfect backdrop for the showstopping pieces like powder-coated glossy brick red segment tables and frosted glass pendant lighting with matte brass details.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Cipher Light by Yabu Pushelberg for Lasvit
Some of the most innovative design was seen in the Euroluce Hall. Heritage Czech lighting company Lasvit put out several collections in collaboration with architects and designers. The light they created with Yabu Pushelberg, titled Cipher, combines tradition with cutting-edge technology and contemporary form. Inspired by the way light reflects through the etched surface of a Lasvit drinking glass, the American duo used traditional glass-blowing techniques to create delicate crystal cylindrical pieces with ultra-contemporary clean lines. The Cipher collection will soon include tables, floor lamps, and sconces.
Photo: Courtesy of Lasvit
Blush Lamp by Studio Formafantasma
The Blush Lamp designed by Amsterdam-based Studio Formafantasma drew attention at the Flos Booth. Making use of an LED strip and a piece of dichroic glass, it casts brightly-tinted reflections of light on the nearby wall.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Tebe Tables by Baxter
At the Fiera, Italian furniture company Baxter presented a trio of gorgeous onyx tables that succeeded in hitting two of the hottest design week trends at once: natural stone and the color pink.
Photo: Courtesy of Baxter
Fidelio Lamp by Roberto Lazzeroni for Poltrona Frau
Defined by its linear elegance, the fabric lampshade and cherry red electrical cord—an oft hidden feature—are encased in a curved rectangle of carved solid wood.With its brass details and high-gloss wenge stain, Fidelio is as much a functional lamp as it is a room-making statement piece.
Photo: Courtesy of Poltrona Frau
Log holder by Hermès
Since launching its first home collection with new artistic directors Charlotte Macaux Perelman and Alexis Fabry in 2016, this year’s Hermès presentation was one of the most packed events of the week. Among the line of ten offerings—which included porcelain, rugs, home textiles, and furniture—was this refined log holder in leather, wicker and wood.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Vincent Van Duysen for Molteni & C and Dada
The brand's new creative director, Vincent Van Duysen, has reimagined not only the stunning flagship showroom but also a handle-free kitchen for Molteni’s luxury kitchen brand, Dada. The Belgian designer’s take features linear countertops in natural stone like green porphyry and ceppo di Gré interrupted only by top-mount sinks. The minimal cabinetry in walnut and graphite-stained oak adds to overall sophistication.
Photo: Courtesy of Molteni & C
Corrispondenza Tiles by Dimore Studio
Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran of Milan’s Dimore Studio collaborated with Ceramica Bardelli for Corrispondenza, a collection of seven hand-brushed tiles featuring kaleidoscopic, origami-like shapes. In muted colors like ochre, loden green, mauve and berry, the glazed stoneware pieces can be combined in a multitude of ways to create unique patterns on interior floors or walls.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Rocking Nest Chair by Carl Hansen
Danish designer Anker Bak created the perfect solution for parents in small city apartments. His rocking nest chair is not only small in scale, but also easily folds up and can be set to two different incline positions. Presented in both leather and canvas versions, the chair combines the expert manufacturing of Carl Hansen with the playful ingenuity of the young designer.
Photo: Courtesy of Carl Hansen
"Doppia Firma" at Galleria d'Arte Moderna
The exhibition at Milan’s fabulous modern art museum celebrated the tradition of great Italian artisanship by displaying 15 unique works carrying the signatures, or “doppia firma," of both the designer and craftsman. A crowd favorite was the Bubble Dressoir by Rotterdam-based designer Lex Pott and Italian wood artisan Emanuele Rivadossi.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Michael Anastassiades lights at Nilafur Gallery
While these opaline glass and structured brass lighting pieces by Cypriot-born, London-based designer Michael Anastassiades are not new, this year’s versions in glossy red were particularly covetable.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Max Lamb's Solid Textile Benches for Really
British designer Max Lamb, known for his experimentation with different materials, created twelve benches made entirely from Solid Textile Board—a newly engineered building material using textile waste. In partnership with Really—a company that up-cycles old textiles—and Danish textile firm Kvadrat, the exhibition aimed to challenge architecture and design industries to rethink their use of resources. Currently only 25-percent of textiles are recycled.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Scarlet Splendour and Sé Collections at Rossana Orlandi
A go-to for eclectic design, Rossana Orlandi displayed new pieces by Scarlet Splendour, an Indian design company headed by Ashish Bajoria and Suman Kanodia, and London's Sé. The latter (pictured) set up three rooms of an apartment in Orlandi's showroom. Both collections used a chic color palette of pinks, brass, and mint.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Damantio Table by Rubelli CasaThe contemporary tables by Rubelli Casa nod to the Venetian textile company's historic legacy. Custom-made metallic fabric is suspended in a resin slab through a complex artisanal process. The trompe l’oeil pieces are produced in gold, silver and bronze, and is available in dining, side, and cocktail versions.Photo: Rubelli Casa
Candy colored glassware at Paola C.
Paola C. never fails to impress at Milan Design Week with its chic tableware by creative director Aldo Cibic. This year’s offering included a cheerful take with opaque rose, gray, and aquamarine glass atop sculptural brass bases.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Amanrath collection by Prememoria
Prememoria founder Romeo Sozzi spotlighted the striking natural purple color of Amaranth wood in this beautiful sideboard by fashioning the exterior in fan-patterned marquetry.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Michael Anastassiades for Salvatori
Anastassiades was tapped to create a series of tables for Salvatori, the Italian design firm known for its innovative use of natural stone. This dining table, in Rouge du Roi, is a striking balance between opulent and minimal with its solid slab of marble topping gently curved legs.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
Gregg Lynn for Atelier Swarovski Home
After their fair debut in 2016, Atelier Swarovski Home teamed up once again with a number of the biggest names in design. The innovative designs presented at the breathtaking Palazzo Crespi on Corso Venezi combined crystals with unexpected materials like oak wood in these bar accessories by Los Angeles-based designer Greg Lynn.
Photo: Courtesy of Atelier Swarovski Home
"Wander From Within" at Villa Necchi
The exhibit at Villa Necchi, the modernist Piero Portaluppi-designed masterpiece that played host to the 2009 film, I Am Love, featured five pieces by Japanese designer Shigeru Uchida in collaboration with Adrian Cheng. The poetic collection, titled "Khora" aims to explore man's connection with nature and the role of furniture in tea ceremonies. Crafted from Japanese bamboo and chestnut, the pieces incorporate traditional lacquering techniques and washi paper. The display was not only a breath of fresh air at the end of a week filled with copious color and texture, but also marked the last collection by Uchida, who died this past November.
Photo: Melissa Colgan
