Orange is the new beige, low dining and other design trends from Milan
The 62nd edition of the Salone del Mobile, the world’s largest furniture fair, which is the centerpiece of Milan Design Week, concluded recently with a record crowd that even beats the biannual Fashion Week.
Dating from 1961, the annual fair has grown bigger and more diverse, with 361,417 visitors—a 17.1 percent increase from last year. Known traditionally as a design fair championing established and emerging studios, brands, architects and designers, in the past few years it has attracted even industries like fashion, tech and automotive, making it a truly global platform that everyone turns to for directions to move design forward. Here are some of the trends that emerged.
The conversation pit
Haus Diri by Hall Haus. Image courtesy of @hall.haus
Supermoon by Giampiero Tagliaferri for Minotti. Image courtesy of @minotti_spa
Peaks by Yves Behar for Moooi. Image courtesy of @mooo1
Haus Diri by Hall Haus. Image courtesy of @hall.haus
Supermoon by Giampiero Tagliaferri for Minotti. Image courtesy of @minotti_spa
Peaks by Yves Behar for Moooi. Image courtesy of @mooo1
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The recessed area in the living room was the center of the home for family members to bond during the 1950s to 1970s and is now reimagined for contemporary times with low, modular seating arrangements and semicircular compositions ideal for lounging. A favorite spot during the fair was Haus Dari by Hall Haus, inspired by North African seating to be an oasis for relaxing and conversing. This trend no doubt emerged from the pandemic just like the Peaks sitting system by Yves Behar, who was “dreaming of human connection, play and silliness” during isolation so he wondered about a sofa that would create intimacy and closeness.” Time & Styles’ Stone Garden evokes the eaves of Zen Buddhist temples and the rock gardens beneath them with its modular collection of tatami mat platforms hovering on bases of interlocked Akita cedar timber.
Low dining
Dudet sofa and armchair by Patricia Urquiola for Cassina. Image courtesy of @cassinaofficial
Allure O’Dot table and chair by Monica Armani for B&B Italia. Image courtesy of @bebitalia
Dudet sofa and armchair by Patricia Urquiola for Cassina. Image courtesy of @cassinaofficial
Allure O’Dot table and chair by Monica Armani for B&B Italia. Image courtesy of @bebitalia
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Just as sofas in the living area have gone closer to the ground, so have dining furniture, taking off from Asian dining arrangements with low tables and floor seating for a more informal and relaxed meal shared with loved ones. Monica Armani’s collection for B&B Italia has low bistro table options to match compact armchairs while Patricia Urquiola reworked her Dudet chair to go earthbound.
Pillow talk
Kia’s Design Cultural Communication Project, Opposites United. Image courtesy of Kia
1st by IKEA. Image courtesy of IKEA
Squash chair by Faye Toogood for Poltrona Frau. Image courtesy of IKEA @poltronafrauofficial
Kia’s Design Cultural Communication Project, Opposites United. Image courtesy of Kia
1st by IKEA. Image courtesy of IKEA
Squash chair by Faye Toogood for Poltrona Frau. Image courtesy of IKEA @poltronafrauofficial
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Slumber seemed to be on everyone’s mind, with pillow-inspired seating and cushy upholstery, some making surreal and sculptural statements. Willo Perron’s sofa for Knoll, in fact, was called Pillo because its forms were based on a modular composition of pillows that can adapt to design and lifestyle changes within the home. Squash, Poltrona Frau’s collab with Faye Toogood, has curvaceous forms and enveloping seats that you can sink into. Ikea’s pillow idea is its “first successful inflatable chair.”
Origami
Match ping-pong/dining table by Martinelli Venezia. Image courtesy of @martinellivenezia
Narinari chair by Tiziano Guardini and Luigi Ciuffreda for B&B Italia. Image courtesy of @bebitalia
Match ping-pong/dining table by Martinelli Venezia. Image courtesy of @martinellivenezia
Narinari chair by Tiziano Guardini and Luigi Ciuffreda for B&B Italia. Image courtesy of @bebitalia
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Japan’s origami art of folding has been translated to furniture and accessories through experimental approaches to construction, like the Narinari chair inspired by Sea Eagles by Tiziano Guardini and Luigi Ciuffreda for B&B Italia. Nao Tamura’s Origata bench for Porro turns to how the kimono is cut from a rectangular piece of fabric in straight lines then sewn together with little to no waste, translated to using a sheet of aluminum carefully cut and assembled.
Reinvented crystal and glass
Torsade lighting collection by Saint Louis. Image courtesy of @saintlouiscrystal
Sema Topaloglu’s installation in the bathroom of Villa Borsini. Image courtesy of @sematopaloglustudio
Graft light fixture by Formafantasma for Wonderglass. Image courtesy of @formafantasma
Torsade lighting collection by Saint Louis. Image courtesy of @saintlouiscrystal
Sema Topaloglu’s installation in the bathroom of Villa Borsini. Image courtesy of @sematopaloglustudio
Graft light fixture by Formafantasma for Wonderglass. Image courtesy of @formafantasma
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The art of glass-blowing sees contemporary twists like in Saint Louis’ latest lighting collection, Torsade, which turns the rope — the long, hollow element used for chandeliers — into a series of playful, looping patterns that form delicate swirls of illumination when lit and transforms into glass sculptures when switched off. Multiple combinations make it the modern alternative to Murano chandeliers, sconces and table lamps of yore. Handcrafted Murano glass flowers have also been given a new life, looking delicately tied around the steel tubes that suspend Formafantasma’s industrial Graft pendant lamps of cast glass. Sema Topaloglu’s bathroom at Villa Borsini bloomed with glass flora, referencing the motifs in the original hand-painted tiles.
Sensual shine
Bridges cabinets by Muller Van Severen for Barcelona Design. Image courtesy of @mullervanseveren
Gaetano Pesce’s Shadow armchair for Meritalia . Image courtesy of @meritalia
Bridges cabinets by Muller Van Severen for Barcelona Design. Image courtesy of @mullervanseveren
Gaetano Pesce’s Shadow armchair for Meritalia . Image courtesy of @meritalia
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Lacquered wood and shimmery leather added sensuality to furniture that invites you to reach out and feel for yourself. Muller Van Severen for Barcelona Design’s Bridges cabinets have distinct sculptural bottoms resembling bridges, elevating the units to create room for light to flow through. Vincent Van Duysen follows up his shiny Mateo table for Molteni with the Lucio armchair in silky leather. Gaetano Pesce’s foam-filled Shadow armchair for Meritalia shines again in vibrant lime.
Reflective metal
Mirrored cabinet at Schönbuch. Image courtesy of @schoenbuch
The Porto sofa by Project 213a. Image courtesy of @project213a
Mirrored cabinet at Schönbuch. Image courtesy of @schoenbuch
The Porto sofa by Project 213a. Image courtesy of @project213a
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Designers favor aluminum, chrome, steel and reflective surfaces, not just for their shine but for their reflective qualities, subtly mirroring the colors and patterns of their surroundings, adding life to the objects as well as their environment — the way Project 213a’s Porto sofa wonderfully reflects the work of art above it. The combination of silvers with bright blue added a cooler filter of reflection to USM Haller’s benches and Christian Hass’s sideboard Canvas series for Schönbuch.
Orange is the new beige
Draga & AUrel’s Parka sofa for Poltrona Frau . Image courtesy of @poltronafrauofficial
Zanotta Z24 sideboard. Image courtesy of @zanotta_spa
Draga & AUrel’s Parka sofa for Poltrona Frau . Image courtesy of @poltronafrauofficial
Zanotta Z24 sideboard. Image courtesy of @zanotta_spa
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Orange became surprisingly easy to match, whether used as a small detail, an object or an entire three-set sofa like Draga & Aurel’s Parka Sofa for Poltrona Frau. Zanotta’s Z24 series included vibrant pieces by Muller Van Severen, while Eero Arnio’s Puppy for Magis appeared covered in stunning orange fur.