PRESS RELEASE
MOROSO AT SALONE DEL MOBILE 2015
Explore the wonderful affinities held in the middle ground between design,
architecture and art. This is the basis on which Moroso, company with a
longstanding mission to explore and experiment, presents for the Milan Salone del
Mobile the new products from the 2015 collection. A selection which reflects, in the
cultural and material quality of the pieces presented, the unique nature of the
design approach, aimed at combining industrial production processes with the talent
of the over 60 master craftsmen and the personality of the different designers. A
distinctive ability to listen and to translate concretely into which most represents the
company’s special feature: imagining the living space as a set of worlds which, going
beyond the obvious and the conventional, heightens and promotes diversity as a
positive value for recognition and referencing.
A “frenzied and fantasy” projection which integrates the production of single pieces
and accessories with upholstered seating systems, made possible by a capacity for
quality manufacturing necessarily built on a direct and constant dialogue with the art
world.
The link between Moroso and contemporary art, its ability to interact with polyhedral
figures such as the art publisher and gallery owner Jörg Schellmann, together with a
selection of the brand’s iconic pieces restyled with a totally new interpretation, are
instead to top the bill at Vis à Vis, the exhibition which will mark out the showroom in
via Pontaccio to celebrate this year’s Fuorisalone.
THE STAND
Moroso sees the design project as place of identity, encouraging the possibility of
creating, alongside the designers, products able to overcome the functional aspect in
favour of new forms of composition. The display designed by Patricia Urquiola, who
once again this year interprets the Moroso stand, develops on the basis of the idea of
a geometric and conceptual forest, an architectural space where the products
appear to sprout, populating a fantasy natural environment. The perimeter which
defines the space, like the partitions, is made from wooden slats, slim and closely-knit
strips which create a play of light and shade. This forms a strict and, at the same time,
organic order which takes us and guides us in the discovery of the new collection, laid
out symmetrically on a series of platforms. The Moroso logo, restyled for 2015 with
clean and elegant graphics yet without losing its distinctive identity, marks the space
from the outside, set between the boards like an inlay.
NEW PRODUCTS AT THE FAIR
The products which make up the 2015 collection are part of sets, families of objects
which come together, differ from each other and mix together: chairs and stools,
armchairs and easy chairs, sofas and seating systems, lounge seats, single pieces
and accessories.
Sofas and seating systems
For Moroso designing new sofas and seating systems means knowing how to
tackle the wealth of differences which every place necessarily brings with it, in order to
offer the market, the architect and the design buff products which heighten the idea of
hospitality, integrating with function and comfort new forms of relationships between
spaces and people. Among the new products introduced for 2015 Ron Arad has
devised two sofas with surprising shapes: the first, Matrizia, is born by moulding and
covering a mattress in such a way as to create a comfortable and innovative seat,
configured as a sofa-sculpture, the perfect midway point between design skill and craft
talent. The second, Glider, is made up of a single part, rounded upholstery to which a
rocking structure can be added which transforms the sofa into a swing, combining the
experience of movement with comfort. Bold, the new sofa by Patricia Urquiola, is
instead defined by a soft upholstery which tapers towards the edges, where the
stitching is accented. Teo is a modular system of upholstered seats designed by
atelier öi, which offsets the formal minimalism and reduced number of modules with a
vast range of possible combinations. The list of this set of products ends with (Love
me) Tender by Patricia Urquiola, in a totally new outfit.
Armchairs
The armchairs instead map out, in the relationship between Moroso and designers, a
privileged area of design and production research. A constant pursuit which sets as
final destination the creation of objects with a strong iconic value, able to characterise
and differentiate spaces, drawing attention and making them memorable. The
company is presenting for the 2015 Salone both brand new and familiar products, with
special details and finishes, both bearing witness to ceaseless exploration guided by a
spirit of ongoing improvement. The first new idea bears the signature of the architect
Daniel Libeskind, with an armchair developed from the idea of contrast: Gemma
offsets the asymmetrical angularity of the forms with the softness of the material. Lilo,
classic wood frame and upholstered parts for a modern, soft composition, is instead
the new creation born of the partnership between Moroso and Patricia Urquiola, the
creator of some of the best-known iconic pieces of the Friuli company. An unusual
original idea, a corn husk to suggest the enveloping and slightly closed shape, is the
inspiration behind Husk, a new design by Marc Thorpe which creates a family of
products dedicated to the contract world, with minimalist and understated lines,
ennobled by the quality and sophistication of the finishes and upholstery materials.
Diatom and Clarissa Hood are instead two familiar names, shown with new finishes
and covers.
Chairs
The chair, in its apparent structural simplicity, represents for the designer, like the
producer, a vital junction in a design route. The production of a chair opens up to
endless possibilities in formal terms and Moroso offers chairs that differ by design
idiom, production technology and materials, strengthened by the capability gained
from being part of a production area - Italy’s north east - traditionally linked to the
production of high-quality chairs. The products which make up this new type include
the new Double Zero by David Adjaye, formed by two metal circles which clinch the
seat and back upholstery. It exemplifies top-quality industrial production which marks
the tendency towards maximum formal simplification. The One Skin Chair, designed
by Ron Arad, returns to the idea of Three Skin Chair, representing wood in its more
ductile and strong quality. Stackable, colourful and comfortable is the new St. Mark
designed by Martino Gamper, available in two versions, wood and aluminium,
overcoming the distinction between artisan and industrial production, as if one were
the consequence of the other. The new partnership of the Friuli company with the
designer Martin Mostböck sees the launch of production of Flaxx: the material,
mainly made up of linen fibres and polypropylene, recyclable and sustainable, ensures
maximum stability with the comfort of a cantilevered seat. The Japanese Nendo this
year has instead designed a stool, Float, with metal frame and wooden seat which
combines aesthetic innovation with an analysis of the dynamics of force. Ben van
Berkel (UNStudio) is instead the designer of Match# multipurpose chair, a system
composed of a plywood shell set on a coated steel frame, designed for use in a wide
variety of types of spaces.
Lounge seats
The company also produces two sets of lounge seats, introduced to design new
solutions for the waiting areas of a hotel, restaurant or office without ruling out the
possibility of opening up towards the home environment. The sofa and armchair are
designed as intermediate spaces, complementary to the traditional seating systems
for public spaces and capable of configuration, in structured contexts, as places
dedicated to temporary resting, to relaxed and unconventional sharing. The Pipe
family by Sebastian Herkner is formed by a tubular frame in coated aluminium on
which a seat cushion and a back cushion rest. X-Chair by Richard Hutten is instead
characterised by a structural yet at the same time decorative element, a wooden hook
with an X shape, an exposed joint which joins the oval back, slim and slightly convex,
to the seat base.
Single pieces and accessories
Celebrating diversity by raising single pieces and accessories to the status of
important details of the design. Comparing furniture composition to an orchestra, the
single piece and the accessory represent those notes which in the general
composition are essential for achieving harmony. On this theme Moroso has
dedicated a selection of products which, coordinated with different styles, can give an
innovative and experimental aesthetic tone even in the more classic layouts. The first
of these designs is Ottoman by Scholten & Baijings, a free interpretation of a zone
for relaxing, difficult to place in conventional categories, midway between sofa,
armchair and daybed. Corners, devised by Nendo, is a small family of metal storage
items with geometric shapes, while Woof & Warp, by the young designer Maarten De
Ceulaer, is a room divider inspired by the principle of weaving, from which it borrows
the concept of woof and warp, a direct reference to a strong and flexible architecture.
Imba is a family composed of a chaise longue and low table, designed by Federica
Capitani, which plays on the combination of two rings. Moroso combines brand new
products with the ottoman Brook, an upholstered item designed by Tokujin Yoshioka
and presented last September and now in production in three different sizes and with
a wide variety of textile products.
The designers and the 2015 collection
Key players in the new collection are therefore once again the designers, their
personalities reflecting in full the tendencies of the company.
They are first and foremost famous designers traditionally linked to Moroso, such as
Ron Arad and Patricia Urquiola, and top names who over the years have become its
new icons, such as Nendo, atelier oï, Marc Thorpe, Tokujin Yoshioka and Ross
Lovegrove. They are architects and archistars, such as David Adjaye and Daniel
Libeskind and Ben van Berkel (UNStudio), who reveal Moroso’s strong links with
the world of architecture and its outstanding ability to produce custom-made creations.
They are the result, finally, of the goal of experimenting and innovating, like the young
Maarten De Ceulaer, Richard Hutten, Sebastian Herkner, Martin Mostböck,
Scholten & Baijings, Federica Capitani and Martino Gamper, an artist on loan to
design, who for the first time is to present an actual product after a long partnership
which has led to the creation of an extraordinary series of unique pieces for Moroso,
presented in the installation Le Metamorfosi, in 2012.
Ron Arad
Ron Arad this year has created three new products with the company. One Skin
Chair takes up again the idea of Three Skin Chair, a design from 2004, and rethinks
it, with a reverse transformation towards the original concept. The wooden seat, like
drapery rippled by the wind or a leaf attached to slim branches, is kept firmly anchored
to the ground by the steel legs, a solid and unobtrusive structure. Matrizia is instead a
sofa-sculpture, an upholstered furniture item which acts as the ideal midway point
between design skill and craft talent. The idea came about by accident, after seeing
mattresses dumped in the street when walking in town, a sight which captured the
boundless imagination of Ron Arad and triggered an imaginary operation of salvage
and decontextualisation. Matrizia was thus born by modelling and recovering a
mattress so as to create a comfortable and innovative seat, while the name is a witty
combination of the word “mattress” with “Patrizia”. The final design by Ron Arad for
2015 is Glider: fun and sensuality, function and stage presence concentrated in a
generous, full, bold form. The challenge was not to build a traditional sofa with back,
seat and armrests, but to start from a single volume, a single piece, and model it to
make it as a comfortable as a classic sofa. The tub is then formed in a sort of cut
which shapes the front part of the sofa, outlining soft and welcoming lines, to which a
rocking structure can be added to transform the sofa into a swing, combining the
experience of movement with comfort. The version on display at the Salone is to be
upholstered with the Blur shaded fabric, produced by FEBRIK exclusively for Moroso,
in the red-purple colourway.
Patricia Urquiola
As further confirmation of the total harmony between Moroso and Patricia Urquiola
the company is presenting two products by the Spanish designer - an armchair and a
sofa. Lilo, the first of the new products for 2015, hints at references to Scandinavian
style, to the modernist idea of the 1950s and the work of the great masters of design.
The classic wood frame is revamped in a modern and soft armchair, to give an idea of
pure relaxation. A bold aesthetic borrowed from the rugged wood structure which
supports the weight of the upholstery positioned according to ergonomics to ensure
the ideal support for every area of the body. The slight slant of the back followed by
the elongated shape of the armrests accompanies the resting, almost prone, position.
Lilo, soft and accommodating, demonstrates effectively and at the same time a
versatility of use which makes it perfect for public spaces and in the home. The same
hand, resolute yet at the same time feminine, outlines the shape of Bold, a sofa with a
simple, balanced and functional elegance for a “timeless” quality. Attention is then
drawn to the value of the upholstery, the quality of the finishes and details, the small
adjustments made to make the experience of beauty daily (and normal). Patricia
Urquiola has created with Moroso a product made up of soft upholstery which thins
out towards the edges, where the stitching is accented to define the distinguishing
features of this product. The original top-stitching highlights each module, focusing on
the edge.
The display also includes two other products by Patricia Urquiola: the easy chair
Clarissa Hood is joined as from this year by an ottoman footrest which adds a
connotation of high luxury and importance to comfort, and the small sofa (Love Me)
Tender upholstered for the first time in a soft velvet from the precious Kvadrat/Raf
Simons collection. The approach to this sofa is technical: a frame in aluminium,
rounded wooden legs, abundant cushions, small tables and horizontal surfaces. Few
components, easy to assemble and swap over. The fullness of the modules is offset
by the lightness of the platforms which, like imaginary stilts suspended over the floor,
appear to defy gravity. The legs, apparently extraneous to the frame, are pillars for
anchoring and grouping them in multiple compositions.
Nendo
The minimalist approach of Nendo continues to match perfectly, by contrast, the soft
lines and coloured style which are features of the Moroso collections. The products
presented are the Float stool and the Corners three sided cube box. Both play with
the geometry, equilibrium and force of gravity, using shades of white and wood to
create lightweight and well-defined shapes.
Float is an apparently simple stool with rectangular wooden seat and frame in
whitened tubular steel. Two of the four legs have been cut under the surface of the
seat, going to create a visual effect so that the latter appears to float in the air. The
use of a cantilevered structure, which supports only the rear legs, gives a sensation of
elasticity, with the aim of providing a different experience of comfort and thus
combining aesthetic innovation with an analysis of the dynamics of force. Multipurpose
seat available in the tall and low version which is comfortable enough to be placed
unsurprisingly around a table. Detail: a stainless steel plate is set into the footrest to
avoid feet resting on the paintwork.
There is an area in the room which seems complete when you place a book, mobile,
tablet, bunch of keys or watch there. Corners is a small family of storage accessories
in white metal with a huge variety of use, from the shop to the studio, office to the
home. Books, magazines, leaflets, small personal items or more generally all that has
not found a final resting place: the surfaces exploit the slant for containing without the
possibility of scattering. The single modules, which differ in size and number of
shelves, when placed side by side, reveal the possibility of slotting into a single body.
Free composition cannot however be excluded and which, if carried out, creates a sort
of diffused, nomadic and different shelf. The three sided cube box is designed to be
placed together in various directions and can be configured to meet personal
preferences and needs.
atelier oï
Designed to adapt to many types of space, Teo by atelier oï is instead a modular
system of upholstered seats which offsets the formal minimalism and reduced number
of modules with a vast range of possible combinations. The seats, made from single
foam which joins the cushion to the back, appear to rest on a platform structure with a
streamlined profile, supported by die-cast aluminium feet which continue its line. The
frame, made up of an aluminium profile, adapts perfectly to the different sizes,
ensuring linear continuity for both the single module and the compositions with several
places. Its minimalist aesthetic brings out the exceptional quality of the materials used:
fabrics, leather, marble and metal are of excellent quality. The simple finishes also
show the details and the shapes at their best. The extreme versatility of Teo is
underscored by the possibility of alternating the seats with support surfaces in milled
marble, optionally also usable in the low table version.
Marc Thorpe
Husk by Marc Thorpe comes from an unusual source of inspiration, a corn husk, to
suggest the enveloping, slightly closed, structure protecting the seat which echoes the
timeless, cylindrical shape of modern small armchairs. Thus a series of products is
born which is dedicated to the contract world, with minimalist and understated lines,
ennobled by the quality and sophistication of the finishes and upholstery materials.
The upholstered version is thus associated with woven chairs which, transforming the
profile of the seats into a load-bearing structure, leave closed spaces behind to
become the ideal outdoor item, replacing the rigid shell with the weave so as to confer
to the wall an original sheer effect. This latter version is produced thanks to the skill of
Dakar artisans.
Tokujin Yoshioka
Further value is added to the display by the latest creation by the Japanese designer
Tokujin Yoshioka, Brook. Designed originally for the new Issey Miyake flagship
store in Brook Street in the heart of London’s Mayfair, Brook is an upholstered
ottoman with a faceted profile where the cuts, designed as a function of the textile
covers, bring to mind precious stones. The seat this year comes in three different
sizes - small, medium and large - and upholstered in Blur, a stretch fabric created by
FEBRIK especially for Moroso, characterised by shading which passes from one
colour to the other, fading into the respective colourways.
Ross Lovegrove
Offered with the addition of a technical cushion the Diatom stackable chair in
aluminium takes its shape from the frustule of a diatom, a primordial unicellular
organism with a silica skeleton, commonly found in all aquatic environments. The
production adopts a technology developed in the automotive industry to reduce the
weight and costs of manufacture of the seats. A pressure-formed aluminium sheet
ensures maximum lightness, replacing, with the same performances, the use of steel.
David Adjaye
The Double Zero collection by David Adjaye was born as a study of shape and an
exploration of the primary composition required for supporting the body in space. The
armchair is formed by two circular supports, the seat and the back, elementary
modules grafted into a construction geometry of art deco inspiration, to openly
communicate the tendency towards maximum formal simplification. The seat is
enclosed by a series of metal rings which hold the two elements suspended in such a
way that they appear to float. Thus a chair and a stool are born, with and without
armrests, with the addition of a small two-seater sofa, a sophisticated formal evolution
dictated by good taste and class. Double Zero is a return to order, a transition
towards a simultaneously luxury and synthetic idiom, the prelude to top-quality
industrial production, an elegant economy of volumes expressed by the possibility
offered by the chromed tubular steel frame to structure the design into a complete
seating family.
Daniel Libeskind
The design by Daniel Libeskind sees the design project as an exercise in a small
architecture, where the landscape is replaced by the definition of a space and the
population density by the single individual. The Gemma armchair is developed from
the idea of contrast, experience and perception derived from the interpretation of an
opposite form to the usual image. The asymmetrical angularity of the forms is thus
offset with the softness of the padding. The multi-faceted profile is reminiscent both of
a precious stone and the typical geometries of fifteenth-century tapestries.
Ben van Berkel (UNStudio)
Match# multipurpose chair by Ben van Berkel (UNStudio) is a chair made up of a
plywood shell set on a coated steel frame. The colour, or more specifically the
simultaneous presence of two colours, gives the seat, designed in the combination
with the table with four places, a sophisticated personality able to give even the most
anonymous and conventional spaces a refined and original identity. Match#
multipurpose chair is designed as a system for meeting a fully defined purpose of
use in a wide range of types of spaces - schools, offices, waiting areas, meeting
areas, restaurants or canteens - offering the most in terms of durability, hygiene,
lightness and comfort.
Maarten De Ceulaer
The Belgian designer Maarten De Ceulaer has designed a room divider inspired by
the principle of weaving, from which it borrows the concept of woof and warp, hence
the name Woof & Warp, a direct reference to a strong and flexible architecture. A
coloured tape becomes the woof thread which joins together the composite panels in
wood-covered polyurethane, manufactured according to a technology taken from the
surfing world which, as well as guaranteeing top performance in terms of strength and
lightness, adds an interesting sound-absorbing quality. Versatile, easy to use and to
place, Woof & Warp can be installed in a wide variety of locations, from offices to
public spaces, shops to the residential sector.
Martino Gamper
For the first time Martino Gamper presents with Moroso an actual product after a
long partnership which has led to the creation of an extraordinary series of unique
pieces for the company, presented in the installation Le Metamorfosi, in 2012. A
chair, St. Mark, with a coloured and shimmering and at the same time very simple and
clean style. Its profile traces a continuous curved line from the back of the legs
through the back. The silhouette, in the two versions available in wood or aluminium,
configures an object with an almost retro style, as a homage, through its shapes, to
the great masters of Italian design. The back contains and guarantees the utmost in
ergonomics while the aluminium, as well as considerably reducing its weight, allows
for outdoor use. Stackable, coloured and comfortable, St. Mark finds its beauty in the
simplicity and in the versatility of use, allowing a contemporary restyling of any type of
space, from the public area to the home environment.
Richard Hutten
The X-Chair by Richard Hutten has a simple line, a lounge style which reveals right
from the first glance an open and relaxed pop mood. The name introduces the
presence of a structural yet at the same time decorative element, a wooden hook with
an X shape, exposed joint which joins the oval back, slim and slightly convex, to the
seat base. An armchair and a small sofa without armrests which, with their shape and
proportions, appear as a natural development of the pouf. The small size makes XChair suitable both as waiting seating in the hall of a hotel and for a reception area in
a shop or restaurant.
Sebastian Herkner
Placing the coarse before the fine, preferring a choice that bucks the trend compared
to the most common research into the slim form and, despite this, staying light and
ethereal. The design Pipe by Sebastian Herkner is thus structured around the most
reassuring aspect of the oversized: the simplicity. The minimalist and rugged structure
is built with a powder-painted aluminium tube with diameter of 80 mm. Resting on it is
a seat cushion with a rounded physique, a covert suggestion of the idea of the
inflatable module. The back, like a bold parenthesis, promises comfort. The effect, as
well as the natural appeal, is that of a pleasing roundness, casual and lightweight.
Martin Mostböck
The work by Martin Mostböck was developed on the basis of use of a sustainable
and fully recyclable material, mainly composed of linen fibres and polypropylene.
Flaxx is a seat which combines the stability of a standard four-legged chair with the
comfort of a cantilevered seat. The shell is produced by pressing in a mould different
layers of linen felt, mixed with the polypropylene to ensure adequate stability for the
final result. Produced originally to demonstrate the versatility and the potential of a
material developed for the automotive industry also in the area of interiors and design,
it is today part of the Moroso product range.
Federica Capitani
Imba stems from the playful combination of two interlinking rings. The geometry of the
inner ring uses for its weave a dense texture which provides comfort for seat and
back. The outer ring instead winds gently around the seat, creating side wings which,
thanks to their widened weave, create an intimate yet open space at the same time.
Made in Dakar, Africa, Imba attempts to translate the quality of craft manufacture into
a collection, composed of lounge chair and low table, dedicated to moments of
relaxation. Perfect both for interiors and outdoors, this collection is linked to the
M’Afrique design project, begun by Moroso in 2009.
Scholten & Baijings
Ottoman by Scholten & Baijings is a free interpretation of a zone for relaxing,
difficult to place in conventional categories, midway between sofa, armchair and
daybed. A casual space, open as if to pre-announce the start of an imminent
experimentation, the manifesto of “something” to come. The spacious and shaped
shell accommodates the soft seat and back cushions, supported on four rounded
wooden feet. Ottoman, in its simple and essential form, is thus suited to becoming the
ideal extension of the textile innovation which Scholten & Baijings share with
Moroso, marking the start of a partnership intended to tackle the complex and
ambivalent theme of the relationship between form and surface.
These people were asked, once again, to give a shape and vision to the world
following one single reference - beauty. Moroso therefore proposes an imagery which
adds to the search for the uniqueness of single pieces and accessories the
completeness in the production of families and ranges of upholstered seating. An
aptitude towards quality manufacture which reflects, in the cultural and material value
of the pieces presented, an element which distinguishes the design approach, aimed
at combining industrial processes with the talent of the over 60 master craftsmen and
the personality of the different designers.
THE SHOWROOM IN VIA PONTACCIO WITH VIS-À-VIS: OPEN INTERACTION
BETWEEN DESIGN AND ART.
As well as a presence at the furniture show Moroso is to house in the showroom at
via Pontaccio 8/10 a display which reflects scenographically its links with art. Vis-àVis, the title chosen for the exhibition, highlights the relationship between
contemporary art and the brand through its collections, key players at the event
together with the artists’ works.
Art meets design in the products which Jörg Schellmann, art publisher and gallery
owner, has designed since 2008 and which today Moroso has decided to produce
and distribute, integrating them within its designer product range. Undecorated
primary shapes, built according to transcendent mathematics which transports the
idea into a 3D structure, reducing the space of the technical detail to the bare
minimum. Designs influenced at the same time by industrial and commercial principles
and by references to minimalist art and conceptualism. The Conduit collection,
presented at the last Salone and composed of sofa, armchair, low tables and storage
unit, this year also includes new elements designed by Jörg Schellmann which will
go to enrich the Moroso product range. The coat stand Coatrack is structured by the
figure of a rectangle, described by a blue metal line which heightens the clean shapes
and sharp symmetry, going to form also small protuberances for holding hats, coats,
scarves and umbrellas.
Library is instead a storage unit composed of a base in metal, square and lightweight,
and a case, again in metal, closed and with the addition of a double sliding door which
decorates the product, characterising it thanks to the special nature of its surfaces.
The first is plain and coloured while the second is metallic and perforated.
Seat Frame is a family of seats made up of two armchairs and a small sofa. The first
armchair and the small sofa have a structure made up of different geometric figures
which compose the base using the surfaces and planes of rectangles and squares.
Voids and planes create a play on light and shade, also playing with reticular and
perforated decorations. Comfort is guaranteed by seat and back cushions which
complete these objects with a modernist and architectural appearance. The second
small armchair, Seat Frame Light, references the style features of the collection,
streamlining however the geometric composition of the base.
The circle is closed by a set of storage units that reference the style of industrial
archives, using colours such as yellow, red and grey for the metal frames which hold
the boxes-units in light grey plastic. Storage Vertical develops its build upwards while
Storage 6 and Storage 9 extend horizontally offering two different capacities to meet
different space requirements. Five Boxes Floor, finally, alternates with the
composition of the storage units an exclusively structural part which highlights the
clean lines of the base.
On the walls, defining the space, a selection of site-specific installations taken from
the archive of the Wall Works project, recently acquired by the Neue Nationalgalerie
in Berlin. Works of conceptual art, created especially by the artists to be reproduced,
in a limited edition, on walls of various sizes and proportions. The showroom in Via
Pontaccio is therefore to house “original” works, for sale, by Daniel Buren, Donald
Judd, Gerhard Merz, Peter Halley, Cindy Sherman, Liam Gillick and Rosemarie
Trockel with the addition of those by Sarah Morris and Sol LeWitt, unrelated to the
Wall Works project yet part of the same movement.
The single pieces designed by Jörg Schellmann, in the contemporary art context,
reflect the minimalist and conceptual ideas which have shaped the work of the
designer. The key players of these movements dating back to the early Sixties,
Donald Judd, Daniel Buren and Sol LeWitt, have had a profound impact on today’s
formal idiom of art, architecture and design. The artists of the later generation pursued
and refined these basic concepts: in a careful reconsideration of modernism Gerhard
Merz seeks clarity and emptiness, while Liam Gillick suggests formal structures
which reflect ideas and models of our civilisation and Sarah Morris explores the
formal codes and rhythms of global city suburbs.
In Schellmann’s words:
“The works chosen for this exhibition show formally basic principles and conceptual
art trends which inspired my ideas: formal systems rather than artistic inventions,
sequence and repetition, the whole and its parts, radical simplicity, lack of
ornamentation and the revealing of the production processes”.
In this temporary gallery, on the upper level, design meets art through a masterful
work of decoration which, in the combined use of the surface as a space for
exploration and experimentation, investigates the ambivalent relationship between
substance and appearance. Conflicting or synergic with the wall installations, some
iconic products in the history of Moroso are placed alongside works of art to create a
relationship so that the colour, texture, stitching and weaves of the upholstery become
the connection, the link which sanctions their affinity. A selection of the brand’s
iconic products was in fact upholstered in new and luxury fabrics which bring to
these well-known shapes a new and different key to interpretation, thanks to
Moroso’s high textile capabilities. An experimental relationship which from and in the
upholstery of the single object interprets and simultaneously reveals its purity, its
idealness.
Moroso’s path also continues this year, between different and separate yet collateral
worlds. Aesthetic exploration made up of reciprocal exchanges and mutual
enrichment between art, design, architecture and the world around, as witnessed also
by the experiment of the Premio Moroso, now in its 4th year. Introduced as Premio
Moroso in 2010 from an idea by Andrea Bruciati and with support from Patrizia
Moroso, the prize has evolved into Moroso Concept as from the 2015 competition,
acting as a platform and network which serves as encouragement for a dialectic
relationship and a functional exchange between the new exponents of contemporary
creativity and a brand representing Italian production such as Moroso, always with a
view to creative and functional experimentation. This initiative is in fact a unique oneoff in the area of partnerships between organisations and business, as testimony to
the excellence of a format founded on research, innovative both from an
entrepreneurial and institutional viewpoint. The initiative confirms its intent to
document, value and support under-45 artists who work in Italy, setting up as a
specific site for production and promotion of applications linked to the strictly
contemporary.
Moroso Press Office
Tel. +39.02.878990
E-mail: cora.manzi@moroso.it
E-mail: veronica.villa@moroso.it