ZUVALifeCulture: Milan Design Week: Salone del Mobile Day 4, Salone Fair & Euroluce

Salone Internazionale del Mobile 2013 Day 4 was something to behold. This was my first of 2 days spent at the fair ground – which is the actual Salone del Mobile fair. Everything else I had been doing before then was FuoriSalone (outside Salone) – representing the design events (brand experiences, exhibits, store openings, product launches, parties etc) taking place elsewhere in Milan as a complement to the main fair.

I was wowed by the creatively staged exhibition spaces at the fair – the furniture and accessories on display almost seemed to be actors playing roles in an elaborately styled movie. I have never seen anything like it. It was clear from the moment I arrived that the companies went all out to wow us, and display their new products to full effect. This is where the heavy hitters like Moroso, Zanotta, Riva 1920 came to play – their stands were leagues above the competition and their products pushed us out of our comfort zones (a wooden tea-cup armchair??? – see Riva 1920 picture below).

How can I describe Day 4 of the show: Creative, dramatic, awe-inspiring

What themes stood out:

Redefinition of work furniture combining comfort and high-tech productivity – think home-at-work vs. work-at-home (Coalesse), pops of colour – pastels and neutrals (Moroso), geometric shapes and abstract compositions (DECO), exposed stitching detail (Drugeot), ironic lighting in everyday shapes (Flos’ A4 Light by Philippe Starck in the shape of a book – fun!), soft quilting in unexpected places e.g. padded office chairs (Zanotta)

What were the stands like: Incredibly well staged on rotating pedestals, under colourful spotlights, under cascading waterfalls, containing frolicking half-naked females… I was encouraged by many companies to try their products - sit in the chair, plug in my iPad to charge, rotate the TV; the stands were full of visitors taking short breaks to rest their tired feet on luxurious velvet clad ottomans. That was meaningful – the ability to “live” in the products in order to understand their tactile sensation, comfort, useability, durability.

Where did I go:

Fair Visit – Salone (furniture exhibition) and Euroluce (lighting exhibition) (63 stands in one day!)

Event – Riflessi Opening Party

Highlights of the day:

Drinking blue spumante (sparkling wine) at Riflessi’s opening party! (how did I forget to take a picture!)
Seeing grown men hanging out on a playground swing set at Ares’ Euroluce stand – some of them were even swinging!