The huge Exansaldo space in Zona Tortona is just across the street from Superstudio Più, so it was a natural progression to drift into more great design from established companies and the excellent That’s Design exhibit that featured student work from all over the world. Stockholm’s Konstfack was well-represented, showing a knitted radiator and a table that made us look again. A pebbly rug by Piet Boon Zone and the Booklamp for Autoban by De La Espada were two designs that definitely married form with function, while Meeting Erwin had a clean display of car-inspired designs. The Rhode Island School of Design focused on the concept of time, and New Zealand’s Hothouse placed an emphasis on open innovation. There were also some great entries in the LG HI-MACS Design Contest at That's Design.

+ thatsdesign.it
+ exansaldo.it

Design Factory Brainport Eindhoven.com was another lively exhibition of work from the Netherlands in the Zona Tortona area of Milan. Among the work of the many young designers represented, we were most drawn to Anna Ter Haar's stools and Julien Carretero's colourful concrete bench. It was fun to see The Beautiful Game and its happy creators, and a new light from YKSI. Lianne Van Genugten's tin tableware hails from Tanzania and the High Heeled plates by Lara de Greef were an installation unto themselves. And who could resist the When I Was Little dressing table by Ontwerpduo?

+ designfactorybrainporteindhoven.com

Domestic is certainly known for vinyl wall stickers, but the exhibition at Zona Tortona in Milan allowed for a more complete display of other Domestic products such as mirrors, accessories and tableware. On show from Matali Crasset was the waste paper basket that makes use of positive and negative space, and the Alice in Wonderland mirror, as well as the Alla Francesca mirrors by Emiliana Design and porcelain plates covered in insects by Studio Job and the Animals vs. Vegetables by Jeremyville. Of course the walls made use of Doomestic’s popular vinyl, such as the Opulent Boat by Dylan Martorell.

+ domestic.fr

Superstudio Più is a huge complex in Zona Tortona that was the venue to several big name design companies this year. There was a wide range of furniture and lighting, both old and new, and most of it was presented within large-scale installations that allowed some of the pieces to be shown in context. Superstudio Più was quite a showcase for companies such as Moooi and Tom Dixon, and Poliform created My House of Dreams, featuring more work by Marcel Wanders. Jaime Hayon and Andrée Putman had mosaic installations for Bisazza, but it was clear that most people did not know what to make of Hayon’s airplane.

+ superstudiogroup.com

Boaz Cohen and Sayaka Yamamoto make up the design team of BCXSY. Based in Eindhoven, BCXSY was recently at the Salone Satellite in Milan. We were very happy to met up with them and get a firsthand look at their new collection, based on the concept of Forever. The idea behind the Forever dish is “never go hungry”, and even when the food has been eaten, the relief on the bottom of the plate reminds us of the food we have. The blanket is inspired by the moebius strip, to provide eternal rest, and is very cosy. The vases for dead flowers allow appreciation cut flowers once they have dried, and the Pot∞Vase provides spots for both growth and display. The Infinity aquarium contains fish swimming around in circles and the Golden Glory collection is a series of cheap plastic objects that have been gilded by hand to make them objects of value.

+ bcxsy.com

Five design companies from the U.K. put on a joint show called Design+ in Zona Tortona. Modus had some terrific new designs from Patrick Norguet, Michaela Forster, Christophe Pillet and Simon Pengelly. Innermost showed classics as well as the new edition of Michael Young’s Sticklight and the Ribbon table and candelabra by Shin Azumi. There were deliciously intricate wallpaper designs from Timourous Beasties and Anglepoise.com had their huge lamps on hand, including the new anthracite version. Decode was also there with a new array lighting and furniture.

+ zonatortona.it