Every year over 300,000 designers, architects, buyers and retailers descend on Milan for Design Week. This year homestyle editor Alice Lines joined them. Here, she reports back on what she saw at both the Salone Del Mobile and the FuoriSalone offshoots – and what you can expect to see instore in the seasons ahead.
Memphis makeover
First making an appearance over 30 years ago at the Salone Del Mobile (the official Milan Design Week fair showcasing the work from the super-brands), it is only natural that the Memphis movement – encompassing clashing colours, block shapes and loud patterns – would have a revival back in Milan. Known for its polarising properties, we wonder if this modern riff on the theme will meet the mass market – or with mass rejection, as it did in the 80s? Regardless, there is something to be said for injecting a little bit of fun and frivolity into interiors.
IMAGE ONE, ABOVE Morten & Jonas is a design duo from Norway, who design products, spaces and environments with a focus on shape, function and visual perception. Their 2015 collection is as practical as it is aesthetically pleasing, making an impact with its debut at Milan Design Week. Hoff sofa (left), from Salone Satellite. morten-jonas.no
Compelling colour combinations
Pastels have been a hot interiors topic for a while now, but there was a fair share of jewel tones returning to the mix in Milan. Think tangerine with topaz, ruby with petal pink, or emerald and amethyst. Iridescent and watercolour effects embraced the whole spectrum and were used across a variety of solid and transparent surfaces. Also noted: rich red is back – see more on this in my Last Word in homestyle Jun/Jul 2015.
IMAGE TWO Prolific Danish design house Normann Copenhagen shared some dramatic pieces at Salone Del Mobile. New designs such as this Era lounge chair allow customers to mix and match materials and colours to suit their home. Available locally through designdenmark.co.nz
Out of this world
Designers from around the world paid homage to the human fascination with outer space, and all things related to the great beyond. Celestial patterns played out across
a variety of surfaces from tabletops to wallpapers and dinnerware.
IMAGE THREE The young guns at Brooklyn-based Calico Wallpaper teamed up with Amsterdam studio BCXSY to present a conceptual new work at Spazio Rossana Orlandi. The imagery for Inverted Spaces, their dreamy pastel and metallic bespoke wallpaper, was sourced via NASA’s free image bank of photos from the Hubble Telescope. calicowallpaper.com
Luxe Geometry
Despite the fact that metal and marble have almost defined the current minimalist interior zeitgeist, neither material is going anywhere fast. In what could be catergorised as refinement rather than invention, designers explore new interpretations of archetypal, geometric structures in their pursuit of creating luxe everyday objects. It was refreshing to see the attention to detail that many of the new generation of designers applied to the material composition of the objects they were creating.
IMAGE FOUR The Milanese design duo of the moment, Arianna Lelli Mami and Chiara Di Pinto of Studiopepe, work across a variety of projects from product design to spatial styling. They are responsible for seasonal takeovers at the showroom of Spotti Milano, who give them carte blanche to share their unique approach to interiors. The velvety background sets the scene to showcase Spotti’s curation of contemporary and re-issued classic furniture. studiopepedesign.it
Words Alice Lines
