As Milan opened its arms to the international design world following a hiatus of almost three years, it was nothing short of an all-out celebration as designers, retailers and makers finally got together in the same space as the latest collections. During a week of warm summer days and nights, where garden parties, galleries, showrooms and meticulously detailed installations at the Salone del Mobile fairground revealed pieces that had been patiently waiting in the wings, some interesting themes took shape. One standout was the growing number of brands that dug deep into their collections to re-release designs that were catalysts for change in the 1960s and 70s, and continue to hold both relevance and beauty half a century later.
In a move that carried a good layer of symbolism as the design industry addresses its impact on the planet, the archives at Arflex, Acerbis, B&B Italia and Azucena drew on an era that was both socially focused and pushed for freedom and expression which, in the home, took form in more diverse and convivial ways to live. Both B&B Italia and Arflex celebrated 50 years with Le Bambole by Mario Bellini for B&B Italia and the Marenco sofa by Mario Marenco for Arflex, showing new forms, fabrics and production methods for the two iconic pieces. While a new contemporary spin on the Life storage system and Med chair by creative directors Francesco Meda and David Lopez Quincoces at Acerbis, saw the brand’s ‘Remasters’ collection further expanded.
Arflex
This year Arflex’s Milan show was held at the Salone del Mobile fairground inside an architecturally finessed installation, its large courtyard and skylight above showing off new outdoor pieces for the brand (news on the full collection coming soon). Described by Arflex as ‘a refined chromatic harmony where colour, materials and textile details were the protagonists’, the compositional rhythm of the collection mixed new collaborations with historical pieces from their richly layered archive. The iconic Botolo armchair designed by Cini Boeri in 1973 was selected by the architects Calvi Brambilla for the Elle Decor show at Palazzo Bovara, while the 50 year celebration of the Marenco sofa designed by Mario Marenco in 1972 involved an extension of the iconic collection. One of the most enduring designs in form and structure, the sofa’s eight cushions are held in place by a light, fire engine red metal frame which is as lovely as the shape of the sofa itself. It is a favourite of designers around the world including Japanese architect Tadao Ando and now the classic, sculptural softness of the original sofa includes a weatherproof outdoor collection and a re-edition without arms.
The Marenco sofa collection first designed by Mario Marenco for Arflex in 1972 has been added to, its new edition featuring the iconic pillowy form without arms. Photo c/o Arflex.
Acerbis
With two big shows in Milan, including an installation that took over the windows of the Salvatore Ferragamo flagship and featured furniture by Giotto Stoppino, Vico Magistretti, Nanda Vigo and Lodovico Acerbis, it was the extensive design archive that set the scene for one of Italy's most enduring furniture trailblazers. This year Acerbis presented an expanded ‘Remasters’ collection drawing out two new pieces from the archives under the guidance of creative directors Francesco Meda and David Lopez Quincoces who described the collection as pieces of ‘mini-architecture’.
Broadening Acerbis’s creative approach to contemporary living spaces, the re-worked pieces included the Life System by Roberto Monsani and Med chair by Lodovico Acerbis and Giotto Stoppino. Monsani’s Life system has been subtly refined for versatility, with ribbed glass, diffused LED lights, lightweight glass shelves, and a new checkerboard effect in vibrant vintage car colours. While the new lighting system allows the cubes of the Life system to sit flush against the wall and also hide hinges, the reworked Med chair first designed by Lodovico Acerbis and Giotto Stoppino takes on a more streamlined dimension and airier proportions for its 2022 re-launch.
Lodovico Acerbis and Giotto Stoppino’s Med chair takes on a more streamlined dimension and airier proportions for its 2022 re-launch. Photos c/o Acerbis.
B&B Italia
Along Milan’s via Durini not far from Villa Necchi Campiglio the historic home and garden in the centre of the city that featured in the evocatively gorgeous film ‘I am Love,’ B&B Italia and Azucena showed new pieces, renewed classics and special, limited editions that combined beauty with sustainability and technology.
At street level, B&B Italia celebrated the 50th birthday of the iconic Le Bambole collection by Mario Bellini that, like the classic Camaleonda sofa re-released in 2020 (also by Bellini), has had a contemporary rethink. ’I feel the pleasure of revisiting this family again, because it confirms to me that it is anything but aged,’ enthused Mario Bellini at the launch. ‘On the contrary, it is enjoying a thriving and promising second life, a rebirth done in a big way, done with enthusiasm, with breadth, with decorations and with the original flourishes. We have recovered its charm, its sumptuous fluidity, its softness.’
Part of the B&B Italia collection for half a century, the reworked Le Bambole has a look and feel more akin to the original. With a generous, curvy shape, the new additions build on the original components and now include the Bambole armchair, the Bibambola two-seater sofa, the Bamboletto double bed and a three-seater sofa with a deeper seat called the Granbambola. In refining the feel of the collection, comfort was paramount and the original metal frame has been developed using a new generation of circular materials that like the 2020 edition of the Camaleonda, has been designed so that each element can be separated and recycled.
To further celebrate the collection during Milan design week, B&B Italia launched the ‘Fungi Forest’ fabric collection in collaboration with Stella McCartney and paid homage to the Le Bambole's iconic 1972 advertising campaign (shot by Oliviero Toscani with model Donna Jordan) with a short film. Commissioning film director Massimiliano Bomba, ‘Tutte Le Bambole' featured a cheeky cameo by Mario Bellini (peaking out from behind The New York Times) in a nod to the eclectic nature of the 70s and the era’s influence on the ongoing collection.
Le Bambole designed by Mario Bellini in 1972 has been reworked inside and out, with circular materials for the softer interior structure and covered in a special edition 'Fungi Forest' fabric designed in a new collabroarion with Stella McCartney (with more to come). Photo c/o B&B Italia.
The illustrative 'Fungi Forest' fabric in detail. Photo c/o B&B Italia.
The B&B Italia flagship on via Durini exhibited all the new additions to Le Bambole by Mario Bellini. Photo c/o Space.
In a myriad of colours and configurations, Le Bambole on show at B&B Italia. Photo c/o Space.
The re-designed internal structure of Le Bambole is more comfortable and more sustainable, with circular materials and new upholstery. Photo c/o Space.
Another fabric detail for the new Le Bambole. Photo c/o Space.
Le Bambole spin-off, the new Bamboletto double bed by Mario Bellini for B&B Italia. Photo c/o B&B Italia.
The Marenco sofa first designed by Mario Marenco as an armchair and two-seater sofa in 1972, has been further developed into a flexible seating system. Photo c/o Arflex.
The Outdoor Marenco sofa. Photo c/o Arflex.
The classic San Siro sofa designed by Luigi Caccia Dominioni in 1967 has been relaunched by Azucena, the brand founded by the architect in the 1960s. Photo c/o Azucena.
The soft curves of the San Siro sofa designed by Luigi Caccia Dominioni are a trademark of the collection. Photo c/o Azucena.
The Med chair, front and rear (following), by Lodovico Acerbis and Giotto Stoppino for Acerbis. Photos c/o Acerbis.
The Med chair with Roberto Monsani’s Life system that has been subtly refined for versatility by Acerbis's creative directors Francesco Meda and David Lopez Quincoces. Photo c/o Acerbis.
'I feel the pleasure of revisiting this family again [Le Bambole], because it confirms to me that it is anything but aged. On the contrary, it is enjoying a thriving and promising second life, a rebirth done in a big way, done with enthusiasm, with breadth, with decorations and with the original flourishes. We have recovered its charm, its sumptuous fluidity, its softness.’
Mario Bellini
Azucena
This year Azucena, a brand founded by architect Luigi Caccia Dominioni in the 1960s and launched back into production by B&B Italia in 2019, exhibited new additions to the classic San Siro collection first released in 1967. With its strong, visual connection to Caccia Dominioni’s home city of Milan, the name of the range (after Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, commonly known as San Siro) follows the architect’s habit of christening his designs with references to places of culture and characters whose stories 'belong to our collective memory'. In its re-edition, the sofa respects the compact volumes of the original design and adds an armchair, a two, three and four-seater sofa. In each design, the lines of the armrest are defined by the curves, a trademark of Caccia Dominioni, and the fabric and leather upholstery also draw on the original Azucena collection.
Stay tuned as More Space continues its report over the next few weeks, covering all the standout shows, designers and new products from the Salone del Mobile.
