The Orbit’s Orbit
Performance
©Davide Colombino
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With The Orbit's Orbit installation, the Salone del Mobile.Milano is reinterpreting its narration of Made in Italy design
There was a great turnout and appreciation for the new format devised by the Salone del Mobile for the Chinese market, which combined the best of Italian design with a modern, agile and engaging proposal – proof of the Salone's ability to bring different markets, cultures and design visions into dialogue. The event attracted more than 5,000 domestic and foreign architects, interior designers, artists and collectors, brands, distributors, buyers, high-end owners as well as design and art lovers.
The Salone, accompanied by the ITA – Italian Trade Agency, has chosen to be a partner of the West Bund Art & Design, a point of reference on Shanghai's cultural scene: a prestigious event that attracts galleries and visitors from all over the world and that shares with the Salone the focus on innovation, creativity and being the ideal platform to explore the intersections between the two worlds.
The event, which was held from November 7 to 10 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.
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The Orbit’s Orbit:
The Orbit’s Orbit
Performative Installation
©XELEVATION
A performative installation devoted to Italian design by Matilde Cassani
The Orbit’s Orbit
Performative Installation
©XELEVATION
“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 hosted daily a series of talks and dialogues. A symbolic representation of the Salone del Mobile system and its heart made up of exchanges of ideas and encounters between different cultures, people and companies. The furnishings inside the space are also the result of these fortunate encounters.
The Orbit’s Orbit
Opening event
©XELEVATION
Performances
The scenography is shaped by the spatial movement of human bodies. To emphasize this peculiarity, a series of performances have been held throughout the 4 days of the Show in which spectators and 36 performers, by taking possession of spaces occupied by design, expand the exhibition into a public square where bodies move through spaces, creating living architectures. The music was composed especially for this event using both western and eastern rhythms to celebrate the mutual influences and highlight the synergies between Eastern and Western cultures. The Orbit’s Orbit is a tableau vivant, a living painting that features actors, acrobats, and spectators as protagonists in a sequence of scenes depicting public life.
The Orbit’s Orbit
Performances
©XELEVATION
Maria Porro
President Salone del Mobile.Milano
Maria Porro
President Salone del Mobile.Milano
©Davide Colombino
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 ITA – Italian Trade Agency
Matteo Zoppas
President ITA – Italian Trade Agency
©XELEVATION
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.”
Matilde Cassani
Artist and Architect
Matilde Cassani
Artist and Architect
©Davide Colombino
Matilde Cassani said: “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
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
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The Talks Programme
The Orbit’s Orbit
The Talks Programme
©XELEVATION
Friday
8th November
Art Waterfront International Forum
"City, Design and Sustainability"
The installation formed the backdrop for the Art Waterfront International Forum. At the opening talk, entitled City, Design and Sustainability, Maria Porro, President of Salone.Milano, spoke alongside Ma Yansong, founding partner of MAD Architects, Ute Meta Bauer, curator, Professor of Contemporary Art, Director of the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Martin Guinard, Curator of LUMA Arles, Alan Chan, founder of Alan Chan Design Company, and Xu Bo, Associate Director and Head of Legal of China Property Hongkong Land.
The forum aimed to explore the concept of Sustainable Creative Cities from the perspectives of architecture, design and the arts. During the forum, the essential role of cultural and creative industries in urban development was explored, with particular reference to the ways in which art and culture contribute to urban renewal and transformation projects; how artists and designers interact with public spaces in cities; the role of art and design in promoting ecological awareness and inspiring alternative lifestyles; and how creative practices can stimulate new ways of thinking and provide tools for public dialogue, ultimately promoting essential creativity for urban development.
Art Waterfront International Forum
©XELEVATION
Saturday
9th November
AD100 YOUNG Talk
In collaboration with AD China
"Thinking and Anti-Thinking"
Saturday 9th November gave over to the AD100 YOUNG conversation and Award Ceremony, under the topic of "Thinking and Anti-Thinking". The Talk took a sweeping and multifaceted look at the young Chinese design scene, with guests Maria Porro, a member of the jury that selected the 100 budding talents, and Marva Griffin Wilshire, curator and founder of SaloneSatellite, the prime meeting place for entrepreneurs/talent scouts and designers under 35. Also joining the conversation were Jin Qiuye, founder of Jin Architects, Li Hu, founding partner of OPEN Architecture, Kenzo Tange Design Critic in Architecture at Harvard University Graduate School of Design, Visiting Professor at Tsinghua University and China Central Academy of Fine Arts, André Fu, founder of André Fu Studio and André Fu Living, and the young talents of 2024 AD100 YOUNG. It is the latter who now follow the process from the conception to the realisation of a project, are the organizers of time and space; they use architecture as a means to promote the cultural and spiritual development of cities. The imagination of young architects in relation to the present and the future will be transformed into the appearance of the cities of tomorrow: "thought" is their most precious weapon.
AD100 YOUNG Talk
©XELEVATION
"In 2024, we unveil the third edition of AD100 YOUNG: 100 promising firms, 143 brilliant architects and interior designers. AD100 YOUNG is more than just a list. It harnesses media to connect realms and regions, spotlighting young architects and interior designers. We believe that the vibrant energy of young visionaries will revitalize our contemporary world. Architecture and space, as vessels for human activity reflect the present and sketch the path to the future. The future is now." —— AD China
Sunday
10th November
"When Design meets Art.
A Conversation between Italy and China"
Curated by Annalisa Rosso,
Editorial Director & Cultural Events Advisor of the Salone del Mobile.Milano
A cultural discussion exploring the intersections between art and design, unveiling new perspectives in the dialogue between East and West.
The talk curated by Annalisa Rosso, Editorial Director & Cultural Events Advisor of Salone del Mobile.Milano, and moderated by Wang Xu, media design expert, offered a unique multidisciplinary perspective, exploring the ways in which the dialogue between art and design can open up new avenues for creativity and innovation in a global context with Italy and China as its protagonists.
Internationally prominent figures in the world of art and design took to the stage. The Chinese designer Wu Bin, known for his unmistakable ‘Modern Orientalism' style, spoke about his aesthetic vision, which combines Eastern and Western furniture and artworks.
Feng Cao, founder of the 20C Gallery and collector, shared his aesthetic vision: inspired by iconic Italian design pieces from the 1950s to the 1980s, Cao creates connections that celebrate craftsmanship and cultural heritage as key elements in building a better future.
The discussion was enriched by the presence of Matilde Cassani, an Italian architect and artist, who works between visual art and design, and discussed her experiences of creating art projects and installations that interweave visual communication and spatial performance, offering a fresh, unprecedented and authorial look at spaces and architecture.
When Design meets Art.
A conversation between Italy and China
Salone del Mobile.Milano Talk
at The Orbit's Orbit, Shanghai
©XELEVATION
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Brands
Products
The Orbit’s Orbit
Performative Installation
©Davide Colombino
The installation is developed on circular axes and houses 65 iconic products by 36 of Italy’s leading furniture brands.
Brands A-L
Brands M-V
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Salone
Satellite
The Orbit’s Orbit
Performative Installation
©Davide Colombino
The SaloneSatellite Permanent Collection debuts in Hong Kong
11th November, the opening ceremony of the SaloneSatellite Permanent Collection 1998-2024 Exhibition was held at the Arts Pavilion in Hong Kong's West Kowloon Cultural District. Showcasing more than 100 products presented over 25 years at SaloneSatellite, the exhibition gives an insight into the history of design and bears witness to the Salone del Mobile's focus on young talent.
“SaloneSatellite Permanent Collection
1998-2024 Exhibition”
- Ph. Davide Colombino
SaloneSatellite Permanent Collection 1998-2024 Exhibition
Arts Pavilion, West Kowloon, Hong Kong
11-21.11.2024
11am to 7pm
Stay tuned！
