Three exhibitions to check out at Milan's upcoming Design Week
April 4 to 9, industry professionals and design fans will be heading to the Italian city of Milan for its annual furniture fair. The main show now spills out into city with a wider Design Week of events and exhibitions on related themes. Here are three exhibitions to check out during this year's furniture fair fringe.
Palazzo della Triennale, April 4 to 9
The Milan Triennale has several events in store for the city's design week.
- "Abet Laminati, An Imaginary City"
Designer Paola Navone tells the story of Abet Laminati, a company known for making laminates. The exhibition features emblematic furniture pieces, including one by Ettore Sottsass, as well as creations specially designed for the exhibition.
- "Action Giromari, House of Birds"
Twenty-four designers from Italy and further afield were invited to design a house for birds. Each was free to express and experiment their own vision through functions, forms, colors and finishes.
- "Korea Craft and Design Foundation, Between Serenity and Dynamism: Korean Ceramics"
The Korea Craft and Design Foundation presents an exhibition exploring the traditional art of ceramics, showcasing the work of some of the country's most illustrious current artists.
Cos x Studio Swine at Cinema Arti, April 4 to 9
Clothing brand COS has teamed with London-based art and architecture practice Studio Swine for a multisensory installation. The work is billed as a "blossoming sculpture" of bubbles, mist and darkness. The installation will be housed in the Cinema Arti, a former movie theater dating from the 1930s. "2016 was a year full of changes and crisis, and so we wanted to create an installation that could offer a moment of contemplation. The inspiration for the installation was nature and the changing of the seasons. For us, this idea has such universal beauty. We aim to create a democratic experience which brings people together," explain Studio Swine's Alexander Groves and Azusa Murakami.
"Jellyfish Vase" by Nendo at the Jil Sander showroom, April 4 to 9
This year, Nendo is heading to Milan Design Week with an exhibition redefining the traditional role of the vase at the Jil Sander showroom. Japanese designer Oki Sato's studio will present 30 vases submerged in an aquarium filled with water. The vases are made from an ultra-thin transparent silicon material which is dyed twice, giving them a jellyfish-like appearance as they move around in the water. The strength and direction of the water's current change to make the vases gently undulate like jellyfish.
