Cool Hunting

Milano, I Saloni
Now in its 45th year, Milan's annual international furniture fair is the largest of its kind, featuring over 2,500 exhibitors and attracting over 200,000 international visitors. This year the event inaugurated its new sprawling location at the Fieramilano. Designed by Massimiliano Fuksas, the €750M structure is the largest and most technologically-advanced trade fair complex in the world. We sat down with Manilo Armellini, the Managing Director of the Saloni on a late Friday afternoon. What began as a conversation about the enormity of the new Fieramilano slowly became a discussion about the heart of Italian production and the reason why so many designers choose to produce in Italy. We decided to allow the interview to structure a dynamic visual journey through one of the world’s most venerable design exhibitions. Enjoy.

New Rich
New Rich, a collaboration between Swiss clothing designer +41 and the Swiss- and Belgium-based design team Big Game, debuted this month at Cologne's International Furniture Fair. Un-democratizing objects like ballpoint pens, thumbtacks, and iPod headphones, the collection exalts the mundane, transforming near-disposable commodities into coveted pieces and highlighting the intrinsic value of already-ingenious design elements. A continuation of questions posed by Big Game's first line,...