Salone del Mobile.Milano The Orbit’s Orbit Grand Opening

The Orbit’s Orbit

Performative Installation

On November 7, Salone del Mobile.Milano once again lit up Shanghai with its red color of “The Orbit’s Orbit”, a large-scale event that attracted much attention in the industry.

The Orbit’s Orbit

Performative Installation

A community of over 350+ businesses, architects, interior designers, creatives, buyers and communication professionals were involved in this VIP opening event. 

The event, which was held at West Bund Central’s The Orbit, designed by the architect Thomas Heatherwick, brought design, art and culture together in a powerfully atmospheric and impactful immersive experience. “The Orbit’s Orbit, a performative installation dedicated to Italian design, conceived by Matilde Cassani” tells the story of contemporary Made in Italy design, the processes of hybridisation between different forms of art and design, the work of international designers and artists, valorising the reciprocal cross-pollution of East and West. The installation is developed on circular axes and houses 65 iconic products by 36 of Italy’s leading furniture brands, while the epicentre is occupied by a stage that will host a series of talks, from 8th to 10th November. A symbolic representation of the Salone del Mobile system, its heart made up of exchanges of ideas and encounters between different cultures, people and companies. As was the case in April in Milan, the furnishings inside the space are the result of these fortunate encounters.

The Orbit’s Orbit

Press Conference

From left: Tiziana D’Angelo, General Consul of Italy in Shanghai; 

Matilde Cassani, artist, architect and curator of "The Orbit’s Orbit"; 

Matteo Zoppas, President of the Italian Trade Agency; 

Maria Porro, President of Salone del Mobile.Milano; 

Paola Antonelli, Senior Curator in the Department of Architecture and Design of MoMA (New York); 

Aldo Cibic, Architect; 

Edwin Tan, Chief Executive Officer, Globus Events

The Orbit’s Orbit

Ribbon cutting of Opening Event

Maria Porro

President of Salone del Mobile.Milano

Maria Porro, President of the Salone del Mobile.Milano, had this to say: “The presence of the Salone del Mobile.Milano in Shanghai as a partner of West Bund Art & Design is a happy and unprecedented event. China continues to represent a great opportunity for our companies: today, we have observed a great desire for Italy and a profound appreciation for the quality of our products. A large number of people attended the press conference and the opening night of The Orbit's Orbit, expressing enthusiasm for a project that has brought art and design into dialogue, geared to stimulating interest in establishing new relationships and contacts with the companies we have accompanied. This is precisely what our long-term commitment to China consists of, which is to create events capable of bringing together and involving all the new design communities in a fertile and valuable relationship with all our brands.” 

Matteo Zoppas

President of ITA – Italian Trade Agency

Matteo Zoppas, President of ITA – Italian Trade Agency, had this to add: “Italian furniture is a benchmark for high-end Chinese consumers. Despite the current challenges facing the Chinese market, Italy remains the leading country of origin for Chinese imports in this sector. ITA's objective is a leading position and competitive advantage in China through continued market oversight. Our partnership with Salone del Mobile is a key initiative in promoting the sector in China.”

During the event from November 8-10, there will be recurring performances every day. 

The scenography comes alive through the movements of human bodies. Spectators and performers, merging with the spaces defined by design, transform the exhibition into a public square, in which the bodies move across the space, tracing geometries and living architectures. The Orbit's Orbit is a tableau vivant, a moving painting, in which actors, acrobats and spectators become the protagonists of a collective narrative: a fluid and dynamic sequence of scenes of public life. 

The Orbit’s Orbit

Performances

Italian and Chinese guests invited to the opening night VIP party at ORBIT had the opportunity to immerse themselves in the multilingual world of design. The installation reasserts its mission as a place where design, the performing arts and cultural fabric of the city come together, triggering conversations and providing an opportunity to get to know the great masters of design and the new promises the sector holds. 

The Orbit’s Orbit

Opening event

When & Where

8th November: 1pm – 6pm 

9th November: 12pm – 6pm 

10th November: 12pm – 6pm 

ORBIT 

3299 Longteng Avenue, Xuhui District, Shanghai

For more events, please refer to the following schedule ↓

(Swipe up and down to view)

Stay tuned！