“Family Matter”

Designers: Niko Kralj, Will West
In collaboration with Museum of Architecture and Design, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Website: www.1plus1.gallery

1+1 design gallery presents an exhibition that focuses both on the legacy of Yugoslavian architect Niko Kralj and on the new works of the English artist Will West, sharing a common feature: a close, familiar, relationship with material; wood for Kralj, marble for West. Kralj’s work is shown for the first time in Italy after the architect’s participation in the Triennale in 1957 and 1973. Historical pieces will be exhibited together with documents from the Kralj Archive, in collaboration with the Museum of Architecture and Design, Ljubljana, Slovenia. Will West, after his last solo exhibition “Making Relics” (2016), is presenting new works: a series of sculptures created with scraps from processing marble, exploring the subjects of error and discard. “Family Matter” describes a familial bond. Niko Kralj’s father was a carpenter, so wood was an obvious choice when he came to create his own designs. Will West never used marble until he moved to Italy and established a studio in the marble factory of his wife’s family, but it became naturally his material of choice. 1+1 design gallery founder, Andrea Scarabelli, has Slovenian origins. Kralj’s Rex chair was always present in his old family’s photos, even before he was able to recognize it in design catalogues.

Designers: Anna Aagaard Jensen (“A Basic Instinct”), Schimmel & Schweikle, Theo Demans & Carolin Gieszner (“touche-touche”).
Instagram @alfa.brussels

Founded by design collector and dealer Boris Devis, alfa.brussels focuses on supporting designers who are making radical, researchdriven pieces as well as artists who are creating more functional work. These makers are part of an emerging genre that Devis describes as “functional art”. At Alcova, the gallery will take over a 175square metre space inside the pannetone factory occupied by Alcova, creating an “acid cave” of non-functional design. A trio of boundary challenging designers including Anna Aagaard Jensen, Touchetouche & Schimmel & Schweikle will be showcased as part of the exhibition. Anna Aagaard Jensen presenting “A Basic Instinct”. In our contemporary society and throughout history our behaviour has been dictated by social norms. Through these norms we sculpt our body to an appropriate behaviour as seen in the eyes of our culture. Whereas men have the tendency to take as much space as needed in the public domain, women tend to live up to a strict line of societal norms and restrictions given to us by our context and culture. Schimmel&Schweikle is a design duo consisting out of Janne Schimmel & Moreno Schweikle. Their work revolves around the nexus of technology, art and culture. In that realm Schimmel&Schweikle mainly focus on developing concepts that deal with the closing gap of the digital and physical realm. These concepts result in furniture, products and installations. Theo Demans & Carolin Gieszner present “touche-touche”.

“Regaining empathy of a living space Research for the architecture of Molino Nuovo, Salerno”

In collaboration for the landscape with by Vera Scaccabarozzi and Lorenzo Rebediani
architettiartigianianonimi.com
molinonuovosalerno.com

An installation presents the beginning of a process of analysis and experimentation in which Architetti Artigiani Anonimi conducts research into the elements that improve the empathic relationship between man and his living space. The design method of the Architetti Artigiani Anonimi studio is based upon research that directs the critical eye to the past and present of architecture, trying to recover an archetypal housing model: a dialogue between man, space and nature. The Molino Nuovo project is a construction that will house residential and commercial unites in a former industrial area of Salerno, developed in continuity with an existing building, the Molino Amato. The architecture is designed by Architetti Artigiani Anonimi; the landscape is designed by Lorenzo Rebediani e Vera Scaccabarozzi.

“Non-Objective tables”

Designer: Morgane Roux
Collaboration: 3D images made in collaboration with Massimo Colonna
www.atelieraveus.com, Instagram:@atelieraveus

The “Non-Objective tables” are a collection of tables taking inspiration from the suprematist paintings of the early 20th century. Each table is a unique composition of materials where large shapes of colours are floating free. The table becomes an abstract piece suggesting the movement of each element in relation to the frame, represented here by the transparent glass table-top. Those layers of colours and shapes, usually flattened in a supremacist painting can be, here, perceptible individually and through different angles. In those ever-changing visuals and physical compositions, colour acquire a materiality, some weight and a trajectory.

“Shelter” - A solution for the Anthropocene

Designers: Christian Paul Kaegi, Paolo Paoluzzo, Aline Mauch
Qwstion.com/bananatex | Bananatex.info

The project by Swiss bag brand Qwstion is about doing instead of proposing. Over the last 4 years they have developed and produced Bananatex®, a waterproof and durable material made from sustainably grown banana plant fibers. This new textile is fully biodegradable and has the potential to replace the technical plastic materials dominating the market for outdoor applications today. With their installation titled “Shelter“ the designers behind Qwstion demonstrate the potential of the new material.

“Two Tables”

Designers: Holly Board, Peter Grove
Collaborators and other credits: Yassas, Marco Gabriele Lorusso
boardgrovearchitects.com

“Two Tables” on first impression seem to be reciprocal, appearing like one has been cut from the other. The design was developed through 1:1 model making with the ambition to design a pair of tables that compliment each other yet have their own personality. The larger table gently hovers over the lower table. Just like siblings you can tell they are related but they are uniquely different. They can be used together or apart, indoor or outdoor.

“Freedom”

Designers: Richard Hutten, Sabine Marcelis, Studio Makkink & Bey, Irma Boom, Jolan van der Wiel, Joep van Lieshout, MVRDV, Christien Meindertsma, Wim Bos.
www.carpetsign.nl, press: https://organisationindesign.getbynder. com/ FB: carpetsign Instagram:@carpetsign

Carpet Sign launches “Freedom”, a rug project of 9 prominent Dutch designers, all having a different expertise and a strong individual signature. From product designers to an artist, from an architect to a bookmaker. Every rug tells a unique story, but together they form a coherent collection. The sensational presentation includes work from Richard Hutten [art director of Carpet Sign and curator of the project], Sabine Marcelis, MVRDV, Jolan van der Wiel, Irma Boom, Joep van Lieshout, Studio Makkink & Bey, Christien Meindertsma en Wim Bos. Each design is part of a limited edition of 8 pieces. “Freedom” stands for the importance of deviating opinions and ideas to offer us new insights or unexpected inspiration in a world dominated by oppression, war and fake news. Unfiltered creativity must be cherised! Reflections of form or materialism, provocative design, sustainable thoughts or even historical originated ideas have been part of this journey. “Freedom” also refers to the ‘carte blanche’ Carpet Sign has offered the designers in developing their rug, sometimes balancing at the edge of their abilities. Having already a progressive 3D tufting technique, the collection has generated new knowledge and inspiration for Carpet Sign, underlining that freedom is also essential for innovation.

“Keeping Life”

Designers: Fabrizio Milesi
Collaborators and other credits: Studio Gusto IDS www.ciamweb.it

In the exclusive setup of Alcova, geniality and nature give life to a rigorous dance of metaphors in which the sculptures of Francesca Sarti and the technological sculptures signed CIAM become protagonists. Organic shapes, inspired by the same nature that they feed on, are housed in highly innovative design refrigerated display cabinets, able to prolong the life cycle of foods, guaranteeing organoleptic qualities and aesthetic perfection: result of CIAM research and experience. An architectonic space designed by Fabrizio Milesi in which CIAM products not only represent the museum display cases in which to exhibit sculptures as works of art, but the womb itself that preserves life. A message with a strong environmental accent that CIAM extends to its guests through the gift of seeds of phytoestractic plants, the symbol and instrument of a regeneration practice that can have each of us as its protagonist. A fascinating and contemporary concept. As the base of CIAM identity and mission. The same that moves the natural technology of soil remediation, the matrix of the performance that the food designer Francesca Sarti will stage for the brand.

“You & BOB”

Designer: Paul Kelley
www.disegnodaily.com

A calm oasis from the hubbub of Salone, “You & BOB” is an installation curated by Disegno to celebrate the launch of BOB, the beautiful magnetic modular storage and display system by Paul Kelley for Bisley. Hand-crafted with high-quality plywood, BOB’s flawlessly clean design allows you to adapt it to any situation, whether at home or in the workplace. For “You & BOB”, Disegno has created a hang-out space for visitors to relax in and play with the BOBs on display; letting you click it, twist it and rethink the space. With guidance, you can reconfigure BOB to create breakout seating, screens for privacy, coworking spaces or games - visitors are encouraged to interact with the sets or to reconfigure their own BOB to create a unique and peaceful environment, away from the bustle of the fair.

“ExCinere”

www.dzekdzekdzek.com

The result of more than three years of research and experimentation, “ExCinere” is a refined collection of volcanic-ash-glazed porcelain tiles suitable for both interior and exterior surfaces, from bathrooms to façade cladding. At this year’s Fuorisalone, Dzek and Formafantasma will present the new collection in a landscape of tiled architectural elements alongside various forms of volcanic ash that have been used to create the subtle, speckled glazes. The installation will explore the behaviour and transformation of this volatile raw material and its potential uses. Formafantasma has been researching and experimenting with volcanic lava as a design material since 2010. Its 2014 project De Natura Fossilium investigated the culture of lava in the Mount Etna and Stromboli regions of Italy. The project culminated in a series of expertly crafted glass, basalt and textile works. Formafantasma poignantly observes, “Mount Etna is a mine without miners – it is excavating itself to expose its raw materials.” Dzek was keen to build on this research and to make use of this abundant self- generating raw material to transform it into a useful architectural product. Although Volcanic ash and basalt rock appear to be inert, their high oxide content makes them complex and unpredictable to work with. Three years of exploding, imploding, cracking and caving finally yielded ExCinere’s balance of porcelain body, ash glaze, firing temperature and method. The glossy tones achieved from mixing and firing varying percentages and densities of volcanic matter are evocative of the dynamic landscape from which they come.

“E.R. FAUST”

Bibliotherapy by ORSO
faustmag.com

Collaboration: Roberto Maria Clemente, Maria Strackhsini, Enrico Donalisio, Fabio Lacertosa, ORSO.

“Util X From Lightning”

Designers: Cesare Bizzotto and Tobias Nitsche
www.from.lighting.com, instagram: @from.lighting

Deep technological research, a poetic approach, rigorous aesthetics and a keen attention to detail are the key elements of FROM LIGHTING, an independent lighting brand that offers high quality products designed in Germany and produced in Italy. The two founders are Cesare Bizzotto and Tobias Nitsche, two industrial designers who are driven by the challenge to create innovative lighting objects by the means of most advanced illumination technology. The word FROM speaks billions of the origins underlining the importance of careful manufacturing by people who love and believe in what they do. For this first collection, produced exclusively in Italy, we have sourced a selection of suppliers who manufacture the diversity of larger and smaller components it needs to build lamps of entire quality. Around Venice many production sites are located where people have a rich tradition of working on design objects since many decades. With our collection we challenge this tradition with a contemporary approach on designing objects for the modern life. Util and From Lighting are two independent brands coming from two countries with a long tradition in manufacturing. This year during Salone del Mobile they came together in the venue of Alcova to showcase what they do best in furniture and lighting.

 "Color Appreciation"

Designers: SPREAD

http://haru-stuckondesign.com

On 2016, "HARU stuck-on design; " was developed as a decorative tape for space design, based on the concept of 'Changing space by sticking on colors' in Japan.
SPREAD undertakes creative direction of "HARU stuck-on design; " products. When they work on their design or art projects, they pay a lot of attention to whether what they are looking at has beautiful contrasts or not. Let's say there is a beautiful ocean. The light reflects off the water and more light and shadow come into our eyes. We tend to think that the light and the shadow are two different things, but we perceive the light within the light, the shadow within the shadow, even the light and shadow within those light and shadow and it goes on. The contrasts that transcend people's perception keep emerging, and such myriad contrasts accumulate and create emotional sceneries in us. That's why we feel "the ocean is beautiful."Beautiful but contradicting elements such as "city and nature", "light and shadow", "life and death" and "coincidence and destiny" coexist in ALCOVA, which produces enticing flow of time and atmosphere. In our exhibition titled "Color Appreciation", we will bring "HARU stuck-on design; "'s 48-different-color tapes that were materialized with ultimate dedication in ALCOVA and demonstrate the beauty of contrasts by creating art installations.
Enjoy endless possibilities that continue to inspire from a roll of tape.

“New Material Award”

Designers: Agne Kucerenkaite with Ignorance is Bliss, Alexander Marinus with Hey Jute, Basse Stittgen with Blood Related, Daria Biryukova with Forz Glaze Envisions with Wood in Progress Inge Sluijs with Plasma Rock, Iris de Kievith & Annemarie Piscaer with SerVies, Ekatarina Semenova with Care for Milk, Studio Klarenbeek & Dros and Atelier Luma with Algae Lab, LUMA, Overtreders W & bureau SLA with People’s Pavilion: 100% borrowed, Sanne Visser with The New Age of Trichology, Shahar Livne with Lithoplast, Studio Chris Kabel with Recomposed Bamboo, Telesilla Bristogianni & Faidra Oikonomopoulou with Re3- Glass, Xandra van der Eijk with Future Remnants.
Collaboration: “New Material Award” is a joint venture between Stichting DOEN, Fonds Kwadraat and Het Nieuwe Instituut.
https://newmaterialaward.nl/

The “New Material Award” introduces the designs of the future. The biennial award challenges visual artists, designers and architects to use new materials and innovative techniques. The resulting designs will contribute to a better and more sustainable society. Since the first New Material Award in 2009, this annual prize has been rewarding artists and designers for their contributions to material innovation in the service of ecological and social sustainability. Over the past decade, the prize has proved an important catalyst for innovative design research. Moreover, the New Material Award offers a platform to a generation of designers who dare to ask fundamental questions about industrial production processes and natural growth, waste flows and residual materials. Increasingly often, they do this in collaboration with scientific partners. These can be confrontational questions, in which the ethics of industrial society and the politics behind environmental policy come under discussion. In the nominated projects, critical research leads to stimulating counter-proposals. With their speculative projects, the designers visualize an alternative, optimistic view of natural resources and the materials of the future.

“Micro Tools; The Invisible Synapse”

www.koozarch.com, https://abnormalstory.com

KooZA/rch continues its research into the process of making with an exhibition whose discourse goes beyond the tool as extension of the human body but rather asks the designer to reconsider all that lies beyond the body. Before pen & paper, the micro-tools are the inner software of designers, the “immemori memorie” which subconsciously ignite our designs. At a time when digital platforms have become our Mecca of inspiration, from the likes of pinterest to tumblr, instagram amongst others, we strive to draw our attention back to the physical object as well as its space of exchange. Inspired by Duchamp’s “Boîte-en-valise”, a portable miniature monograph of the artists’ work, we invite a selection of 10 contributors to present and design their own ‘valise of inspiration’ contained within a maximum volume of 45x40x15cm. Rather than limiting oneself to the notion of the container and the contained, we aim to challenge and question the very idea of how we collect, process and frame inspiration. We are ‘stressing one’s potentiality to decide his own educations, to find his inspiration, to shape his ambience and share this journey with whoever is interested.’ - Stewart Brand in “Whole Earth Catalogue”.
Developed in collaboration with (ab)Normal, the exhibition itself is intended as a space for exchange and discussion.

“Caffè Populaire”

Designers: Lambert & Fils, DWA Design Studio
Partners: Mariotti Fulget, Revol, Antoine.
www.caffèpopulaire.com

Design cannot exist without dialogue. For this year’s Salone del Mobile, Lambert & Fils and DWA Design Studio present “Caffè Populaire”, a sixday concept restaurant inspired by this shared ideal. Hosted at Alcova, “Caffè Populaire” brings people and objects into dynamic encounters with one another through the essentiality of food. Milan’s renowned DWA studio offers a series of layered scenographies designed to incite curiosity and reinvigoration within viewers. New contemporary lighting collections from celebrated Montreal design studio Lambert & Fils fill the sprawling rooms of the defunct panettone factory, creating a conversation of opposites raw and refined, past and present. Rest and reprieve can be found at one of “Caffè Populaire”’s tables in which materials summon presentness through tactility. Transformative interventions create an environment of generosity and gathering, a place for ideas activated by those who inhabit it.

“Lukas Wegwerth III+1, in collaboration with Atelier Luma”

www.lukaswegwerth.com, www.threeplus.one, www.atelier-luma.org

III+1 is a system created by Berlin-based design studio Lukas Wegwerth. It applies modular and structuralist design principles to 4.0 production methods in order to build furniture and architectural-scale structures for social spaces. The system began as a DIY exploration in 2012 in tandem with Open Structures. III+1 has since then developed to find its purest expression in a minimal joint with a scalable plugin connector for straightforward construction and convertibility at its core. It therefore provides a collaborative approach to building. This allows for considered use in multiple contexts such as exhibition design, academic research and public and semi-public spaces. In the past five years, III+1 has been applied to projects for institutions such as Atelier LUMA research lab, Arles; Offprint, Milano; New Museum, NYC; C/O Berlin; Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin; Open Design School, Matera; Design at Large, Design Miami/Basel and Istanbul Design Biennial. The structures displayed at Alcovaare representatives of the system’s essential structural features. From here, the design of III+1 evolves based on each individual collaboration and context. On view the stainless steel surfaces are merged with Atelier Luma’s Algae Biolaminates. As part of coming together Atelier Luma will launch their latest publication “Design as a tool for transition: the Atelier Luma attitude” in this space.

“Elle” Collection

Designers: Marco Campardo and Lorenzo Mason
Collaborators and other credits: Ditta Braggio
www.m-l-xl.org, www.dittabraggio.com

“Elle” is an idiosyncratic furniture collection developed as a result of extensive research on the use of metal L-profiles. The starting point of the research was the willingness to use a common, everyday material to question the meaning of “experimentation” that is often emphasised in today’s design practice. Through different combinations, this standardised extrusion is turned into a structural element, forming “invisible”, yet aesthetically revealing, joints. Rather than being made of aluminium, however, the furniture is made of brass — transforming an ordinary, mass-produced element into a sophisticated, bespoke item. The furniture was coated in holographic paint to further emphasise the interplay between standardised production and craftsmanship — where the objects themselves shift between concrete presence and immateriality.

“Hacker”

Designers: Manuel Coltri, DWA Design Studio - Frederik De Wachter and Alberto Artesani
Curated by Paolo de Vivo
www.manuelcoltri.it, www.dw-a.it, www.paolodevivo.com

The “Hacker” project should be explained as a subvertions of the rules to create new ones, born from the union of two leaders’ experience: DWA Design Studio in Milan - founded by the duo Frederik De Wacher and Alberto Artesani - and Manuel Coltri, since decades in the manifacturing of marble and natural stones. Paolo de Vivo saw an opportunity to merge these two realities, putting them in contact through a new sinergy in the design system. Hacker, the new collection of marble masterpieces that will be presented during Salone del Mobile 2019, is the summary of a long work of studies and analysis that in this time will be focused exclusively on objects of design and on a primordial material such as marble. A research generated by the attempt to identify new techniques for processing the stones, breaking up classic methods to create new ones. The designers, thinking of this collection, have started a research to discover new ways to interpret the artifacts, reaching the result to mix audacious artisan technics and so giving life to unexpected aesthetics with complex and interesting references. Far from being a mere exercise of style, Hacker is not only references strictly linked to the personal and professional experiences of the designers, but also and above all their will to break the rules, a concept that has always distinguished their projects.

“Invertere”

www.matthewmccormick.ca

Matthew McCormick has created a site-specific lighting installation for Alcova that will be presented during Milan Design Week. Sitting midway between a lighting sculpture and design-art object, the gestalt configuration is an undulating cluster of McCormick’s Mila pendants combined to create a randomized, multi-layered composition. “Invertere” is made up of 19 oblong forms finished in brushed sterling silver, featuring the newest iterations of his notable Mila fixture in 4 varied sizes and diameters. Suspended from the ceiling by a series of thin cables, the elegant collection of balanced and inverted globes imbues Alcova Popoli Uniti’s Room 11 with a sense of poetry and grandeur - balancing both shape and mass to create its dynamic effect. “Invertere” is intentionally designed with the observer in mind. Presented as an exhibit that can be navigated and explored, the sculpture exudes a visual tension from every vantage point,” says McCormick. “The harmonious mix of impossible balance and gravity defied is seemingly random in nature; however the shape of each Mila pendant are intentionally positioned to create a unique, billowing dialogue between each form.”

“Japanese Stories”

Designers: Olimpia Zagnoli (Vertical Landscape) / Tsukasa Goto and Marco Guazzini (Dōso)
www.nan-ban.com

Nanban presents “Japanese Stories”, a new selection of items coming from all over Japan, together with two special projects, specifically created for the event and part of its East meets West series. The title of the exhibition encompasses its purpose: telling the story of today’s Japan, one item at a time, adding more elements and recomposing a new image of it, step by step, far from stereotypes. On the other hand, the two new projects developed for the Salone aim at establishing a dialogue between Japanese and foreign creators and designers with manufactures from the opposite hemisphere, searching for the spark that this collaboration can create. The first one, is created by the Italian artist Olimpia Zagnoli, known for her imaginative and witty illustrations: a tenugui, a jack-of all trades cloth, nicknamed “Vertical Landscape” and made in Japan according to traditional techniques. The second one, is a collaboration between Japanese designer Tsukasa Goto and his Italian counterpart Marco Guazzini, which created together an extraordinary product halfway between a sculpture and the functional item par excellence: a marble spaghetti measure, nicknamed “Dōso” and made in Carrara, Italy.

“Shaping the Odd”

Designers: Adrianus Kundert, Elvis Wesley, Ward Wijnant, Thomas van der Sman
Sponsored by Stimuleringsfonds voor Creatieve Industrie
Collaborators: AnoukxVera
www.oddness.nl/

Oddness is a label for interior products that shape the odd. Our platform gives rise to products that involve uncommon production techniques and play with the quirky beauty of randomness.

“Tempietto”

Authors: Matteo & Allina Cor
Collaborators: Nerpede (Mattia Rigon, Carlo Camerin)
Website: instagram.com/operevarie

Minimi dettagli architettonici sono sottolineati attraverso la pittura: dando un ritmo e diventando quasi ornamento, instaurano tra essi stessi un linguaggio, consentendo una nuova lettura dell’intero oggetto.

“Bricknic”

Designers: Timm Donke, Leif Czakai, Nathan Fordy
Collaborators: Römertopf
bricknic.org

Hollow clay bricks that can be filled with raw ingredients and stacked together to make a temporary outdoor oven. The bricks build social ties through a shared cooking and eating experience. Inspired by the ageold process of brick firing in East Africa, this collaborative project aims to put social interaction back on the menu and celebrate community spirit. At a “Bricknic” event, each participant is provided with a brick to fill with the ingredients of their choice. Everyone then gets together to discuss the plan, build the oven, light up a fire and cook the food inside the bricks. Afterwards, the oven is taken apart and it’s time to eat! Let‘s build and eat!

“Tense“

Designers: Stefano Panterotto, Alexis Tourron
https://pantertourron.com

“Tense” presented by Panter&Tourron in the upcoming Milan Design Week 2019, is a furniture research project that explores the evolution of living in a time of global mobility and fluid identities. Celebrating the multi-locality of today and tomorrow, Tense consists of five neonomadic essentials characterized by sculptural forms and innovative materials. They are easily transportable, tool-free and entirely connected by force of tension allowing one to recreate and rebuild a home anywhere in a few simple steps.

“Exposur”

Designers: REV 001 Group is a collective of international designers and architects from Germany, Switzerland, and the United States: Casey Doran Lewis, Dan Snyder, Erik Berg Kreider, Laylee Salek, Mirko Ihrig, Safura Salek, Sanam Salek, and Studio XYZ (Nadine Fumiko Schaub, Stephan Wespi, Tiziana Vögtli).

“Exposur” is a collaborative exhibition by REV 001 Group that explores the value of common construction materials beyond their conventional use. Created with express purpose in form, finish, and inherent physical property, they are rarely exposed or celebrated individually. Members of the collective developed pieces that seek to reveal the unintentional beauty and honesty of these materials, placing them in a new domestic context.

“Intimate Phenomena”

Designer: Gio Tirotto
Secondome.biz

Secondome presents “Intimate Phenomena”, Gio Tirotto’s investigation about shapes and materials, a collection of “tools for the imagination”. “Intimate phenomena happen to all ofus, events of different size and duration, we observe them in wonder, explore them out of curiosity. “Fascinated by the idea of research and lab testing (as for physics and chemistry), I imagined a collection of “tools for the imagination”, where shape clearly recalls the technical equipment and light has the role of door to the imaginary world. The four lighting items, inevitably create a physical relationship with the observer that steers and places them in the space according to his functional needs or evocative wishes.” Gio Tirotto. “Intimate Phenomena” is a limited-edition collection of four lamps made of scotch brite satin steel and plexiglass.

“WaterSchool”

Collaboration: Minji Choi, Aliki van der Kruijs, Atelier NL, Ola Korbańska, Boris Maas, Adelaide Lala Tam, Philipp Kolmann, Giuditta Vendrame
smb-waterschool.nl

The WaterSchool is a speculative primary school designed and organized around water as an essential material, subject and social phenomenon. It proposes a rethinking of the economic and infrastructural model of education: this school could produce everything it needs to function onsite through small-scale industrial collaborations with selected designers/artists. Currently the WaterSchool is being developed in a myriad of manners within a wide range of outputs. Using the medium of an exhibition and lectures as a tool, Studio Makkink & Bey aims to connect companies, governmental bodies and designers working on topics related to water and education. Within the framework of exhibitions, Studio Makkink & Bey acts as a curator, inviting upcoming artists/designers to present their work in thematic exhibitions and lecture series. Through uniting works by artist/designers within a larger (speculative) framework, Studio Makkink & Bey hints towards a future in which art and design are more integrated in education and life in general. In the exhibitions, projects are categorized according to themes, being Clean, Grow, Harvest, Make, Build and Document. Each of these themes pertain to a larger context and water-related issue, as well as a space and an act.

“New-normative”

http://supaform.studio/

Supaform will showcase the surreal collection “New-normative” which makes advances to the Soviet everyday life of the ‘50-’70s and it’s features. This collection is a Supaform’s thoughts about the existence of a fantasy soviet reality in which neo-classicism was not been forced out by the principle of utility and efficiency. Under such circumstances, the furniture would remain normative and would not lose its originality and uniqueness at the same time.

“Lost in Transition”, Urban Chair

Designers: Tessa&Tara Sakhi
www.tsakhi.com

Due to the technological era we live in and the social pattern caused by social media, we no longer are focused on physical social interactions rather on virtual ones. “Lost in Transition” is an urban object-space, comprised of two chairs connected by an arch which enforces a physical face-to-face interaction while the periphery stools focuses on a solitary moment for writing, reading or enjoying the surrounding. The structure adapts to the ephemerality of spaces today and enables numerous spatial configurations in various environments by juxtaposing many. Blurring the boundaries between objects and spaces, it is characterized by its mobility, flexibility, and versatility to create fleeting scenarios in a city.

“Util X From Lightning”

Designers: Manuel Amaral Netto
Collaborators and other credits: Joschua Brunn, From Industrial Design, Geckeler Michels, Relvão Kellermann
www.thisisutil.com, instagram:@this_is_util

Util is a Lisbon-based furniture and accessories brand. We create everyday objects for a more rewarding contemporary life. For that, we
rely on a group of exceptional emerging designers working together with the know-how of local manufacturers. Our pieces are designed to make people feel welcomed and at ease in their surroundings. We believe that objects should be more than beautiful, they should be meaningful. When designing new furniture and accessories for the modern home UTIL underlines the importance of sticking to the essential. We strive to develop truly useful products that concentrate on essential aspects from manufacture all the way to the clients home. Sourcing the best manufactures in Portugal who love and understand their craftsmanship, while nourishing a collaborative relationship in order to develop the most pertinent furniture for the market. Our aesthetics rely on the purity of form and material to define every single detail to a bare minimum of resources for longlasting and meaningful products. Util and From Lighting are two independent brands coming from two countries with a long tradition in manufacturing. This year during Salone del Mobile they came together in the venue of Alcova to showcase what they do best in furniture and lighting.

“Botanica Variegata”

Collaborators and other credits: Art direction: Baratto & Mouravas, graphic design: Vera van de Seyp, programming: Jorrit Schaap, researchers Aesthetics of Exclusion: Clara Langlois, dr. Thomas Smits, Mark Jan van Tellingen, dr. Melvin Wevers.
www.aestheticsofexclusion.com

Contrary to popular belief, it is not the human species that select the houseplant to furnish the domestic environment; it is the plant itself that proliferates in the area of its choosing. “Botanica Variegata” creates a system of classification and taxonomy around plants, according to their online presence on Instagram. An algorithmic structure analyses tens of thousands of plant images in relation to their surroundings – ranging from cats, dogs, colours, design objects and art to human demographics. In the exhibition, different plant species compete with one another through a special system that assesses, favours and values photographic settings. The more homogenous the context of the plant, the higher its score. Plants of the winning compositions are presented in the installation. The photogenic arrangement of the exhibition will provoke visitors of the Milan Design Week to form a feedback loop that influences both the digital and physical world. What is first seen as a variety ultimately results in a process of homogenization.

“Back to Origins”

www.alissavolchkova.com

Inspired by the Stone Age and the caveman objects, it’s a come back to the authenticity and nature. The aim is to reveal the beauty of that unique era, and take advantage of the nature that surrounds us through a personal interpretation of the prehistoric objects, like stones and glass that were used and cut in a particular way. The use of materials such as marble and glass is considered today as luxurious. The aim is to emphasize their beauty not only by showing their refined and shiny parts, but also their rough and natural sides. That contrast - rough and refined - will reveal the beautiful characteristics of these well-known but surprising materials. Through that project, Alissa is also taking advantage of our digitalised era, to remind us about the beauty of the nature, and how that beauty can be paradoxically emphasized by machines.

Designers: Federica Elmo, Odd Matter, Studio Pepe
Collaborators and other credits: Justin Morin Sponsors: 4Spaces
www.bloc-studios.com

Bloc Studios will present three new series of objects created in collaboration with designer Federica Elmo and design studios Odd Matter and Studio Pepe. The collections will be immersed in the dreamlike atmosphere of Justin Morin’s installation. Bloc Studios has always collaborated with international designers to create its collections and Limited editions based on an innovative vision of marble that rethinks functional design beyond industrial applications. The brand was established in Carrara in 2014 with the aim of transforming raw, natural stones into everyday objects while preserving the inherent qualities of marble. Bloc’s philosophy is based on the idea that every piece of marble has a story that needs to be told. That’s why every product is an exclusive one-off piece.

“Planetaria”

Designer: Lara Bohinc
www.bohincstudio.com

Bohinc Studio launches “Planetaria”, a new furniture collection to include lighting, seating and console designs. Bohinc Studio, launched in 2016 by Lara Bohinc for the exploration of furniture and object design, is exhibiting new works for the third consecutive year during Milan Design Week (9 - 13 April 2019) in Italy. This year, Bohinc Studio presents three chairs, two pouffes, a loveseat, a console and a new lighting range. Lara Bohinc’s new work demonstrates her deft use of metalworking techniques and her geometric, yet intricate and feminine, signature style. The pieces continue Bohinc Studio’s celestially inspired furniture designs. “I have always been fascinated by cosmic forms”, says Lara Bohinc, “and manipulating these shapes into furniture design. This collection reflects my fascination for planets like Saturn, which seem to be caught within their rings, and has inspired these designs of spherical and tubular shapes, encased within outer forms.” All new pieces are made by hand using geometric and intricate metalwork, in small artisanal workshops in Italy and Portugal, and combine traditional craft and modern technology.

“The Pipeline Project”

www.christophemachet.com

Christophe Machet is a product designer and creative technologist; he invents tools and processes that serve to reincarnate discarded or ready-made materials into functional objects with purposeful design, notably creating “The Pipeline Project”. “The Pipeline Project” is a machine designed to craft a collection of furniture from giant PVC pipes, a low-priced yet incredibly strong and durable material. The machine in itself is a mesmerising performance, bringing a balletic element to the act of production. The worldwide availability of PVC pipes allows for production to happen anywhere, limiting transport and therefore encouraging a more localised manufacturing. Machet brings to Alcova his latest development for “The Pipeline Project”, introducing BLUE: a new series of works that further investigate the matrix of design capabilities of this innovative process.

Designers: Cookies, George Henry Longly
Collaborators and other credits: Hyun Vin Kaspers (Cookies), Gert Jan Van Dijken (Van Dijken Glas)
Sponsors: Van Dijken Glas, Feek furniture, Molteni&C, Potier Stone
https://www.cookies.lol/VdW

Cookies and London based artist George Henry Longly (GHL) have created a collaborative entity named Van der Waals Inc. VdW Inc. have designed a series of functional items inspired by modern archetypes and current trends in office furniture, corporate aesthetics and contemporary live/work environments. Alcova Sassetti is the world premiere of VdW Inc.’s first prototype: the Daybed. How can we take the collaboration between the design practice of Cookies and the artistic practice of GHL and move beyond a superficial collage of ideas? How can we use the full integration of art, design, architecture and research to reach relevant outcomes for emerging work practices and behaviours? How can we go beyond pure functionalism and invoke artistic elements like symbolism and abstraction to create objects that are relevant to current lifestyles? How can different approaches to the creative process meet and meld on a molecular level to create a new and pertinent perspective on the contemporary condition? The Daybed, presented here in glass and aluminum, is directly borrowed from the Roman triclinium and perfectly embodies the staged laziness and horizontal scrolling culture; the cosy acceptance of ambient slavery and social media gatherings that characterise our generation.

“Breath in Breath out” - the smell of future materials

Designers: Vlasta Kubušová, Miroslav Král, Moritz Maria Karl
Collaborators and other credits: Studio Moritz Maria Karl
Sponsors: Fritz und Trude Fortmann-Stiftung, Slovak Art Council
www.craftingplastics.com, www.nuatan.com, www.moritzmariakarl.de

“Breath in Breath out” explores the yet to come world of bio scents for innovative future materials. Smell directly triggers emotions and memories but is a material property which is often overlooked and we use only a very small portion of our fragrance-detecting capabilities. How to distinguish between natural and synthetic materials? How do future materials smell? Crafting plastics! studio & Studio Moritz Maria Karl present their research on the scent of the bioplastic material NUATAN ® to create spaces, experiences and demonstrate how much future materials can contribute to our health and perception of materials. Smell offers new aesthetics and opportunities for designing architecture and objects. The installation investigates the emotional connection to different scents as a conscious response to circular economy and next step to transition to fully circular design. The bioplastic NUATAN ® has been co-developed by crafting plastics! studio and is a new generation of bioplastic material for value added products made from 100% raw renewable resources; hypoallergenic and biocompatible. Crafting plastics! studio is based in Berlin and Bratislava and was founded in 2016 by Vlasta Kubušová and Miroslav Kral. The design research is funded by the Fritz und Trude FortmannStiftung für Baukultur und Materialien.

“Ondula” in dialogue with “Post-Process”

Designers: Erica Agogliati, Francesca Avian (Flatwig Studio) + Kristína Šipulová
Collaboration: Anna Škvarková (“Post-Process” Patternmaker)
www.flatwig.com, www.kristinasipulova.com

A series of furnishings, “Ondula” by Flatwig Studio, comes to life from corrugated metal sheets, an industrial material commonly used for roof coverings, to dialogue with a collection of garments, “PostProcess” by Kristina Sipulova, created from reused handwoven linen fabrics. In their dialogue, “Ondula” and “Post-Process” return to dismissed materials and their origin, to reflect on the ways in which these may be transformed into sustainable elements for everyday life. Taking advantage of the structural qualities of a building component, Flatwig Studio with a simple gesture curves the sheet to create a series of furnishings, customizable in various finishings and colours. The carefully collected, handwoven linen textiles by Kristina Sipulova, with their unique character, adorn “Ondula”, at once garments and sculptural objects that offer an intimate space for the wearer.

“Industrials”

www.maier-aichen.com

There are objects that don’t only serve a functional and informational purpose in the most efficient way, but create space for imagination and transform into a state of altered perception. Everyday objects in flush, out of context and disregarding its original purpose, disrupting preconceived images of use and form. Stripped-down from practical real world value the Industrials, formerly soulless products, are turned into abstractions of poetic and thought-provoking quality.

“Collaboration/Heritage”

www.byhenzel.com

Henzel Studio Collaborations was conceived as a continuous initiative inviting some of the most prominent contemporary artists of our time to freely and seamlessly translate their work through an alternate media and the extraordinary practices that are involved in the making of Henzel Studio’s rugs. All pieces are made by hand, using centuries’ old weaving techniques that make each rug one of a kind. The artists are all ground-breaking and leading forces within their respective fields and media, ranging from sculpture, drawing, collage, photography, installations, reliefs and video art. Their mark has not only been honored and highlighted at leading galleries and institutions worldwide, but also widely documented and manifested as a mirror of cultural movements. Henzel Studio collaborates with some of the most prominent names in contemporary and 20th century art, and has had site-specific displays and exhibitions worldwide at venues that include Barneys (New York), Colette (Paris), Museum of Contemporary Art (Cleveland), Museum of Contemporary Art (Los Angeles), Boca Raton Museum of Art (Boca Raton), Art Basel Miami (Miami Beach) and Joyce (Hong Kong).

“Dissolving Views“

Designers: Thomas Ballouhey, Théophile Blandet, Anais Borie, Koos Breen, Chan Chiao Chun, Theo Demans, Pleun Van DIjk, Misha Gurovich, Anna Aagaard, Donghwan Kam, Busan, Audrey Large, Janis Melderis, Ortamiklos, Clémentine Schmidt.
Supported by Stimulering Fonds Creative Industies, The Netherlands
www.morph.love

MORPH presents “Dissolving Views”, a transdisciplinary show blending the practices of 15 designers working with different mediums such as still and moving images, space, sound, volume and objects. MORPHing, as a continuous transformation of matter (whether this material is digital, physical, moving, tangible or invisible) can also be envisioned as the gradual process of giving shape to possibilities beyond predefined disciplines. Affirming a fluid approach towards design, MORPH is above all a design attitude. “Dissolving Views” proposes a total environment in which collective views takes the steps on individual positions to display works that sometimes steps on each other toes. Coming in the exhibition, a flow of physical and digital artifacts create a familiar but bizarre feeling around a domestic space, where intuitive associations form happy confrontations as well as possible frictions.

“Other loves”

Designer: Nadja Zerunian Collaborators: wodek pschigoda, vienna - wood / victor clopotar, brateiu & martin hufnagl, vienna – metal / h&l. lobmeyr & robert comploj, vienna - glass / decorative painting franz pleininger, vienna / r.mattejka - mother of pearl / toxicology & general survival advice alexander ehrmann & karin pollack
www.nadjazerunian.com

Six sets exploring magical potions, lotions & rituals promising eternal love. lacquer, mother of pearl, silver, gold plated. Unique & hand made. We always try to challenge what seems to be the ephemeral nature of love this most powerful emotion, that makes us so vulnerable and exposed when unrequited or lost. to defy the non-predictability of this sensation we have throughout history developed tools to give us the illusion of mastering our own destiny. from ancient rituals of erotic thrill, to classical spells of attraction & compulsion from medieval potions & rituals or contemporary enhancements we do not yet have deciphered the magic spell, that true loves hold.

“Unexpected Bunker”

Designers: Duccio Maria Gambi, Flensted Mouritzen, Alexis Christodoulou
http://www.nerodesigngallery.com/

NERO design gallery is pleased to announce its participation, during Milano Design Week, at Alcova Sassetti, to present “Unexpected Bunker”, showing in an unexpected space the latest project by Duccio Maria Gambi “Guerra Fredda”, by the Danish designer duo Flensted Mouritzen “Revolve for Nero “ and by the South African digital artist Alexis Christodoulou. Through their works the three artists dialogue in perfect harmony using a coherent, balanced language that enhances and emphasizes their being on the border between functional object and art object.

“Of Movement and Material”

Designer: Philipp Weber
Collaborators: MOTE Studio
www.analog.glass, www.philippweber.org

ANALOG x Philipp Weber presents at Alcova Sassetti a debut series entitled “Of Movement and Material”. The installation will feature a cluster of glass elements that are illuminated with video projections and lights. “Of Movement and Material” addresses the way in which the human body and an amorphous substance like glass influence each other. The forms are created through a dance between the maker and the material. The work aims to attain a sense of the human, capturing the emotional quality of the physical movement. It represents the body in a rhythmic play between the restrictive tools and the glass. The bare matter is only enlivened by the moves of the body, and thus, turned into expressive volumes. The result is not only about the form, but about the fascinating movement, during which body and material are unified. Philipp Weber joins his concept for “Of Movement and Material” with the philosophy of ANALOG, which is seeking to rethink the relevance of a human quality within products. The project celebrates the launching of the first series of lights for the newly formed brand ANALOG, producing in Berlin’s first and only glass studio.

selvaggiaalazraki.com

The collection of cushions and props she has designed are enriched by her own Milanese interpretation: a rich mix of materials, textures and colours for the covers,and natural and organic fibres for the core (kapok, hemp, organic cotton and bamboo). A little booklet of illustrations serves as a colourful visual guide for how best to relax at home making use of the cushions. For the Salone del Mobile, Selvaggia will be collaborating with her longtime friend Andy Barlow, musician and producer best known for Lamb. Together they will be hosting multi-sensory, experiential evening performances, where Barlow with his new project LAmbient, will compose live music. Visitors are invited to lie down on the cushions and experience a transformative state of being.

“Moon Rock”

Designers: Marina Dragomirova & Iain Howlett
www.studiofurthermore.com

“Moon Rock” by Studio Furthermore is a collection of one off and entirely unique furniture items, each unrepeatable. Carved one by one from moon rocks revealing the unfamiliar formations of metal rich lunar mineral ore. This studio is just one in a crowd of designers working with an array of newly available materials mined in space and transported back to earth. “Thinking back just a few years when we first got going as a studio the design debate and the overall conversation was very much about resource scarcity, reduction and recycling. At that time people were quite pessimistic about the future and rightly so. Thanks largely to the actions taken by the people as well as corporations working alongside sound governance, we now live in a time of abundant resources and energy, peace and prosperity.” Says Studio Furthermore’s founder. “Moon Rock” includes lunar cut mineral tables of various sizes as well as lighting and seating. Some items combine and contrast earth and moon rocks. Each piece is a handmade studio edition with characteristic metallic pattern and certified earth weight number. For pricing and more information please contact Studio Furthermore.

“The factory is my playground”

Designer: Joris de Groot
The projects have been achieved in close collaboration with the industry.
Sponsors: Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie, Heij Konijn Fonds
www.jorisdegroot.com

Joris de Groot is a designer searching for the connection between craftsmanship and industry in his work. Interested in collaborating with the industry, Joris creates his own workplace within the factory grounds. Once familiar with the process of the existing techniques, he experiments with the available machinery and materials for new innovative uses. During Salone del Mobile 2019, Studio Joris de Groot will show various collaborations, all started from the factory floor. Projects such as the “Pleated Seat”, “2000N Pressed Shoe” and “Weld bag” will be part of the exhibition. Not only the end results, but also the process will be shown. Because the research is at least as important as the end result. By presenting the process from inspiration to the end product and everything in between, Joris gives you a look into his way of working. He aims to show that experimenting with the existing techniques and materials can lead to innovative results.

“I like Acid Baths - Electric Transmutations”

Designers: Kuniko Maeda, Mario Minale
Collaborators and other credits: Charles Gateau, Geoffrey Pascal, Laura Gaudenzi.
Special thanks to Katharina Wahl.
Sponsored by Istituto Europeo del Rame/Copper Alliance, Creative Industries Fund.
www.minale-maeda.com

“Nothing is lost, Nothing is created, everything is transformed”, Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier. Studio Minale-Maeda developed an electro-galvanic manufacturing process which allows to grow solid metal objects inside reusable moulds through the use of electricity. At the end of their usable life parts can be recycled without degradation through the same process. The parts are durable and precise and the process consumes very little energy. Along with a working setup for manufacturing parts on site, a number of items and accessories reinvented through the process in combination with diverse materials will be shown. Simplicity, durability and aesthetics are brought together in ways defying convention while everything can be disassembled back into versatile and unique elements that can be transformed or combined differently to allow for changing tastes at a moments whim. Finely crafted and decorated parts go along with parts liberally showing their organically grown forms and textures, precise joinery goes along with metals used glue and tape of sorts. Objects of different scale bring together a variety of forms, colours and finishes that make one wonder what acid was in the bathwater. The contemporary situation and its questions without answers calls for crossing boundaries we do not even know exist.