Just when I thought it couldn't get any weirder, new lamps, home accessories and furniture I saw at Milan Design Week convinced me otherwise.
1. chained
2. let's get physical
The artist Stef Fusani has shown two objects in Alcova that are made up of anthropomorphic forms. The legs, for example, are reminiscent of feet. Another part, from which water flows, resembles a hand. Yes, you read correctly. Not only body parts flow together in the objects, but also water. It ripples gently from one pool to the next.
3. neither fish nor bird
4. fun and games
5. please fasten your seatbelt
6th Big Brother
7. a monument
How to achieve the memorable furnishing trend
Want to bring the trend home? Then go for designer pieces that are somewhat ironic, reminiscent of body parts or comic book characters. The main thing is that they at least make you frown at first.
Like a cheerleader, I love celebrating good design and bringing you closer to everything furniture- and interior design- related. I regularly curate simple yet sophisticated interior ideas, report on trends and interview creative minds about their work.
The most memorable of all debuts at the last Milan Design Week combined unusual shapes, quirky decorative elements and explosions of colour. This could be a quiet protest against minimalism or simply a plea for more diversity. But it certainly shows that designers seem to see the core of cosiness in weird home accessories and furniture. The Pinterest platform was therefore right when it announced Weirdcore as the megatrend for 2023 at the beginning of the year. Because the pieces on show were more unusual than ever before. See for yourself:
Normally, chains come around the neck. Lindsey Adelman makes them the decorative connecting piece of her mobiles. The New Yorker recently founded a new platform "LaLAB", which is primarily dedicated to fantasy and presented the first work called "Fantastical Illuminated Works" in Milan. It consists of three new lamp series - Cages, Mobiles and Rock Lights - which are made up of different components like a mobile. They consist of crystals, ceramic spheres and hand-knitted chains, among other things. And that's not all: the lamps hang from the ceiling and dangle down almost to the floor. At most, there could be a futon underneath.
The glowing spheres are held together by chain connections. Source: Pia Seidel
Stef Fusani reinterprets fountains. Source: Pia Seidel
Elisa Uberti wanted to move away from the fashion industry and standardised forms. That is why she now creates sculptures and lamps that operate at the interface between art and design. She has just presented several objects in Milan. Her formal language is inspired by nature, nomadism, architecture and the poetry of space, as Uberti says. The many mentions explain why the objects seem so extraterrestrial and cannot really be categorised as a motif.
Design Brut: Elisa Uberti's objects have indefinable shapes. Source: Pia Seidel
The design studio Indefinito believes in change through experimentation and wants to create innovative products that will appeal for a long time. It presented a first example of this at the Salone Satellite event: the modular "Millebolle" sofa. Like LEGO, it is designed to invite people to assemble and linger, while adapting to its users and the environment. Its spherical modules are connected to each other by simple laces. Will it hold? Yes, at least during the trade fair ;).
The sofa consists of spherical modules that are connected to each other by shoelaces. Source: Pia Seidel
Tavinho Camerino is a trained architect and has also been a designer since 2017. He also staged his experimental lamp "Rebenque Light" at the Salone Satellite event. It is partly made up of traditional leather whips that are normally found at street markets in the hinterland of Alagoas, a small state in north-east Brazil. For the Brazilian, this lamp is an example of the human ability to transform seemingly simple materials into something extraordinary. In fact, the design immediately caught my eye with its appearance.
In his work, Tavinho Camerino combines industrial and artisanal production steps. Source: Pia Seidel
The new chair from the "T4" collection by furniture brand Uma Objects is reminiscent of the 90s - but in a good way. It was designed by the design consultancy Holloway Li. With its cute marshmallow shape, the lush, modular seat made of lacquered fibreglass and linen fabric exudes a lot of optimism. The inspiration for it comes from the automotive industry - and reality TV. In fact, according to Uma Objects, the design is based on the aesthetics of the "Big Brother" houses.
Colourful and maximalist: «T14» by Uma Objects. Source: Pia Seidel
Milan Pekař takes everyday objects or architectural elements and replicates them with ceramics. In doing so, he often ignores their primary function. This time, he presented his columns called "The End of Civilisation" at the Triennale. They are inspired by ruins from antiquity. However, the ceramicist has given them a coat of paint. Instead of white or beige, they are pastel-coloured. What's more, they are literally a little askew and resemble the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
The ceramic columns by Milan Pekař have soft ice cream colours and antique shapes. Source: Pia Seidel
