Milan Design Week 2021: Highlights, News & More

Over the past week, the city of Milan came to life at the acclaimed Milan Design Week, held between 4 and 10 September 2021. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights, news and more that sprouted from this acclaimed event.

Salone del Mobile – Supersalone

One of the biggest highlights of the week was certainly Salone del Mobile, the world’s largest and most important furniture fair which took place at the Fiera Milano exhibition centre. Dubbed ‘Supersalone’, the 2021 edition of the fair was curated by Stefano Boeri. It proved to be an immersive, unique design event. Supersalone was presented as a thematical and scenographic display. Companies were able to show their best work from the past 18 months: a unique and special moment to discover today’s design panorama.

B&B Italia debuts the UP5_6 armchair in a recycled material

What’s a design week for, if not for sporting a new look? At Fuorisalone, Gaetano Pesce’s iconic 1969 UP5_6 chair has been unveiled in an entirely new medium: cork. Recycled bottle corks sourced from Italy, to be exact. The chair is one of the many debuts to be seen at D Studio Milano, the just-opened showroom on Via Durini featuring portfolio brands B&B Italia, Maxalto, Azucena, Arclinea, Flos, and Louis Poulsen.

Dior unveils Medallion chair exhibition

Dior has commissioned more than a dozen artists and designers to put their spin on the medallion chair, a symbol of the French fashion house since its inception in 1947. Christian Dior originally selected the Louis XVI–style Medallion chair to seat guests at his fashion shows because of “sober, simple, and above all classic and Parisian” style, as he recounted in his memoirs. This season, Dior Maison therefore collaborated with a group of artists to reinterpret the house’s signature chair for a special exhibition. Participating designers included Dimore Studio, Pierre Yovanavich, India Mahdavi, and others. These visionaries delighted exhibit visitors with their far-flung takes on the traditional furniture piece.

The Veranda Collection – A Collab

The spirit of Italian entertaining is alive and well in the new Veranda collection. This is a collaboration between textile designer Lisa Corti and ceramics manufacturer Laboratorio Paravicini. Striking, colourful ikats ground painterly camellias, gardenias, and peach blossoms throughout the line. Furthermore, this includes table linens and tabletop ceramics.