Milan Day 2: Rho Fiera

Bolon – bolon.com

Bolon launched a new studio shape called The Wing, as well as their autobiographical book about the last 10 years of the business.

The Story of Bolon – A book by Bolon

A decade ago, the current generation of the family (the company began with their grandparents) undertook a series of designer collaborations.

Bolon stand at Salone

Bolon friends, such as Jean Nouvel and Missoni, have taken the company into some fantastic projects, and onto many of the stands at this year’s fair.

Bolon stand at Salone

Wing – A new tile design from Bolon

Melbourne Movement – melbournemovement.com

Continuing to carry the torch each year, Melbourne Movement – led by the inimitable Kjell Grant – proudly shows at Milan as one of the only Australian exhibitors.

Blossom – Jiyoon Kim, The Melbourne Movement

Lumps – Tracy Jung, The Melbourne Movement

The group of RMIT students takes part in SaloneSatellite, the section of the fair that promotes emerging design. It’s one of the most interesting parts of the fair as it shows purely creative works, and brands such as Moooi cast a keen eye over the designs to scout for new talent. Good luck to Ed Lineacre and Jiyoon Kim for their entries into the annual competition, which are judged by a panel of industry leaders.

Ribbon Chair – Vivianne Kollevris, The Melbourne Movement

The Nest – Ed Linacre, The Melbourne Movement

Tokujin Yoshioka for Kartell – kartell.it

We spoke with Tokujin about his Sparkle range for Kartell, on their ‘Galleria’ stand. It’s a further exploration of light playing across and through surfaces, a fitting concept for the primarily plastic brand.

Sparkle Table – Tokujin Yoshioka for Kartell

Tokujin graced Australian shores recently and we’d love to see him back sometime soon.

Sparkle Stool and Table – Tokujin Yoshioka for Kartell

Missoni Stand at Salone del Mobile 2013

Missoni – missoni.com

We’re loving their new ranges, which are a balance of surprisingly earthy palettes, and the more dazzling colour combinations we’ve come to know and love.

Missoni Stand at Salone del Mobile 2013

The large pouffe seating is still a winner, but the feature of the stand was the light fixtures, which dripped Missoni-coloured threads from on high to the display floor.

Adam Cornish and Michael Young for Wovin Wall

Wovin Wall – wovinwall.com

Another Australian company exhibiting and launching some impressive new designs. Michael Young’s metal panels belie their acoustic nature; the faceted surface invites the sound in and perforations allow sound waves in to the soft, noise-absorbing surface underneath.

Adam Cornish  for Wovin Wall

Adam Cornish has taken inspiration from unfurling petals to create his decorative panels; each ‘petal’ can be curled up individually and held in place by a concealed magnet. The varying colours of the back panel and the petal panels, and the physical curling up of them, creates great depth for a dynamic wall treatment.