Milan Furniture Fair 2014

The latest design trends
Images: Nuno Ladeiro / I Saloni (Cosmit)


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By Nuno Ladeiro, Architect - 16/May/2014

Milan's International Furniture Fair 2014

The 53th edition of Milan's International Furniture Fair was the most visited of all time, with 350,000 visitors. The i Salone 2014 is today a world reference in the furniture sector and an essential tool for this industry in terms of innovation and promotion.

This year, the increasingly global Italian brands bet on designers, not by their features but fundamentally by their names as brands. Some legendary companies are losing their identity over designers they work with. The designers who work for the generalities of the brands are about a dozen important and internationally renowned names. There are not many works of young designers with the exception of the exhibition at the satellite lounge, a space dedicated to young designers. The companies seem to focus less on themselves and more on designers and it is incomprehensible why at the top of the pyramid, the designers are always the same! There seems no room for talented young people coming from the universities, so many of them create and edit their own work. They are disclosed in the Fuori Fiera, in satellite exhibitions at some of the busiest streets of Milan such as the Via Tortona, Brera and others. Auto production is increasingly trendy and 3D printers made it possible to make a small furniture editions.

Salone Satellite's general view - young exhibitors area

The architect and designer Mario Bellini, a reference in Italian design, returned this year to Milan's International Furniture Fair after an absence and he has been highlighted for the design of a new sofa and table for Meritalia. Freud sofa can provide multiple combinations, is extremely versatile and allows different rest positions. The position can be changed through the back to increase the support area and stay even more comfortable.

Designer Mario Bellini

Freud sofa by Mario Bellini - Meritalia

The Opera table, one of the attractions at the fair, is characterized by its solid wood structure and may have different natural wood finishes such as natural oak or birch plywood with a matte finish painted in different colors. Opera table may be oval (290 x 180 cm or 250 x 155 cm) or circular (diameter 160 cm).

Opera table by Mario Bellini - Meritalia

From the partnership between Meritalia and the author of the redesign of the Fiat 500, Lapo Elkann, came the EYE-EYE mirror shaped like sunglasses with two sizes (96x33 or 144x44) and wood structure with various colors: black, red, dark blue and red.

EYE-EYE mirror by Lapo Elkann - Meritalia

A surprising novelty was the presentation of the mirror Álvaro edited by Danese designed by Siza Vieira. This is an extremely minimalist object with a faceted corner in order to create a specific inclination with only a single chrome metal rod serving as a support. Despite its simplicity, the mirror is extremely useful, elegant and adds character to any room. The dimensions are as follows: 21 x 25.5 x 19 cm.

Like Siza Vieira, Jean Nouvel also designed for Danese a very simple chair that reminds us of an old director chair . It has metal frame and upholstered seat, and is stackable.

Alvaro mirror by Siza Vieira - Danese

Stretch chair by Jean Nouvel - Danese

Colico, renowned for editing furniture in acrylic and plastic, this year presented a completely different concept, directed to a more naturalistic perspective, combining recycled and natural materials. Among other products, the Rap Wood chairs stood out, designed for both home and office. The structure can be in natural oak, off-white, smoked, white and varnished steel. The seat can be in white polypropylene, linen, taupe, coffee or charcoal gray. The Asami Iron sofa was redesigned and the structure was replaced with acrylic painted steel sheet (white, charcoal gray), corten steel effect.

Rap Wood chairs - Colico

Asami Iron sofa - Colico

From Mauro Lipparini the new Gramercy line stands out, designed to the prestigious Milanese brand MisuraEmme. In addition to desks and coffee tables, now features an extremely elegant dinner table with a traditional design inspiration with a sense of lightness by the reduced thickness the tabletop. The dining table Gramercy combines the mastery of the designer with the wisdom of the factory and introduced the top in solid oak wood, rectangular in shape with slightly rounded corners and polished colored ribbon. The dimensions of this table are: 2650 x 1110 x 735 mm.

The Archetto chair, also designed by Mauro Lipparini, presents a cold sprayed polyurethane foam structure. Upholstered in leather or fabric based on solid smoked oak wood .

Gramercy table and Archetto chairs by Mauro Lipparini - MisuraEmme

Gramercy coffee table by Mauro Lipparini - MisuraEmme

In a setting dominated by sounding names in design, the brand La Palma was the exception and bet on 2 young Norwegians, Andressen & Voll, deeply rooted in their origins: the Nordic design. The Kipu poufs are inspired by natural elements and particularly in smooth pebbles that can be found in the rivers of Norway. The poufs are extremely flexible and functional, suitable for workplaces, informal meeting areas, waiting areas, libraries but also for residential spaces. Are available in three sizes and colors, and the height can also be different.

Kipu Poufs by Andressen & Voll - La Palma

ADD is a modular bench system for the waiting areas, lobby hotel, airport, office, etc.. It can also be used in the home environment. The system consists of a base to which may be joined panels, seats, seat backs and other accessories to obtain the desired module.