Laufen: How dare you – Milan Design Week 2023
During Milan Design Week LAUFEN’s installation asked the provocative question – How dare you?! Referring to the courage to go beyond one’s limits and create courageous, eclectic and surprising projects.
“How dare you”, the installation designed by Milanese Studio Lys for Fuorisalone 2023, emphasized the expressive power of a series of courageous projects born from the collaboration between LAUFEN and some experts from the world of design, architecture and art.
The common thread that links the various creations in the LAUFEN space Milano is experimentation, which does not only concern innovative materials and techniques, of which LAUFEN can certainly boast a great deal of experience, but which implies the exploration of new living scenarios.
The exhibition wound its way through the LAUFEN space Milano, from the ground floor, into the internal courtyard, then continuing into the showroom on the second floor. This space hosted the two main characters of the show: the capsule collection created in collaboration with the NM3 design studio and the interpretation on ceramics by the Swiss artist Monique. Two languages so different from each other that they almost confuse us and make us ask LAUFEN ‘How dare you’?
Sharp designs on the second floor!
The LAUFENXNM3 capsule collection included furniture and accessories in stainless steel made using simple metal carpentry processes.
The rigorous geometric lines and the high quality allow the pieces to fit perfectly into any environment. This is why LAUFEN chose to portray the collection in the very elegant entryways of some of Milan’s most symbolic buildings, where the pieces blend perfectly with the polychrome marbles, the ceramic workmanship and optical effects that are reflected on the stainless steel surfaces.
In the installation ‘How dare you’ one of these settings was recreated to show all the sculptural strength of the pieces.
On the same floor, the visitor saw a glimpse of Monique Baumann’s atelier, the Swiss artist who for LAUFEN has reinterpreted some ceramic pieces from the iconic Kartell • LAUFEN collection using the collage technique, painting and charcoal. A creative approach completely at odds with the industrial design of the NM3 studio.
At the entrance to the space, the visitor was intrigued by the light projected by Helix, an installation characterized by elements in Saphirkeramik, with a helical shape, which were strung on motorized poles forming an elegant dividing wall that could open or close to create different environments. The project was developed in collaboration with the Austrian studio EOOS NEXT. The design studio collaborated with the LAUFEN Research and Development Office in Gmunden (Austria), to design a system of LED spotlights which, when applied to the individual modules, guarantee better fluidity in the rotation of the ceramic elements. The wide range of colours in glossy or matt versions allows you to create a series of combinations and offers maximum customization. A project that combines technology and great poetry, opening up new possible areas of use for this material and new future applications.
The mezzanine showed the new collection of ceramic colours which offer designers various compositional possibilities between soft or brighter shadows and glossy and matte textures.
Moreover, the two pieces of furniture showcased had been created using the space collection furniture configurator.
Bohemian rhapsody on the ground floor
The exhibition continued on the ground floor where the small space opening onto the internal courtyard offered projects with an elegant design and a very refined taste, for a different interpretation of the bathroom environment.
A decidedly unusual piece is the Falconnier Chandelier, born from the joint work between LAUFEN and Marcel Wanders to pay homage to the Swiss architect Gustave Falconnier, who towards the end of the 1800s invented a technique for the production of glass blocks widely used in architecture. The chandelier was made up of glass blocks made using some original Falconnier molds, and Saphirkeramik blocks with a matte finish.
The New Classic collection designed by Marcel Wanders for LAUFEN is enriched with three delicate relief motifs born from the continuous research on the innovative Saphirkeramik. The light textures on the ceramic surface add a touch of personality and the unmistakable decorative language of Marcel Wanders.
‘How dare you’ offered a journey through different scenarios not exclusively related to the bathroom and showed the many solutions that the eclectic soul and curious gaze of LAUFEN can offer.
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