Salone del Mobile is debuting a special edition supersalone this year from September 5—10 at Rho, Fiera Milano. Under the care of a new president, Maria Porro, the design fair will hold this one-off event with the help of curator Stefano Boeri, working alongside the co-founder and director of Stefano Boeri Interiors, Giorgio Donà, and a team of international designers including Maria Cristina Didero, Andrea Caputo, Anniina Koivu, Lukas Wegwerth, and the Studio Folder duo Marco Ferrari and Elisa Pasqual.
Kaarigari tapestry by Rashmi Bidasaria, RCA Royal College of Art, courtesy of Rashmi Bidasaria.
“We are well aware that September’s will be a different sort of edition and, given the current exceptional circumstances, it could not have been otherwise, but if there is a common thread that ties it to the Salone del Mobile.Milano it is the indisputable quality of the products on show and the prestige of our brands, which will be enhanced and valorized by the exhibition layout designed by Stefano Boeri and the specially-selected curators,” said Claudio Feltrin, the President of FederlegnoArredo.
supersalone is open to the general public for the first time, conceived as a large design library, and accompanied by the newly launched Salone del Mobile.Milano digital platform, celebrating the return of large-scale, in-person design events. Fairgoers can expect to find alongside the presentation booths sectioned into themes and itineraries, a space dedicated for talks, lounges designated for business meetings, spots meant for school activities, a food court presented with Identità Golose – The International Chef Congress, lounges for relaxing, and a display of Compasso d’Oro award-winning chairs, curated by the ADI.
From “The Makers Show” at “supersalone,” courtesy of Wouter Kooken and Nicole Marnati.
Attendees should look out for programming highlights like “The Lost Graduation Show,” curated by Anniina Koivu, and “The Makers Show.” Supporting design students whose graduation was postponed or canceled due to the pandemic, “The Lost Graduation Show” encompasses all areas of furniture design through work from around 300 international design schools, highlighting designs that pose solutions to urgent issues in contemporary design and work that explores this new era of home living. Meanwhile, “The Makers Show” will center independent design through the feature of single projects from a selection of workshops, laboratories, start-ups, and studios.
As part of a focus on sustainability, guests will be greeted outdoors at the Rho by an installation of 200 trees, created by Forestami, which will be dismantled at the close of the event to safely relocate the trees to Milan’s metropolitan area. The special edition of the design fair will also highlight new products focused on contemporary living spaces created by brands across the last 18 months—which are available for sale through the Salone del Mobile.Milano digital platform and will donate a portion of sales proceeds to a charitable cause.
Biodegradable Medical Clothing by Benjamin Bichsel, ECAL Ecole cantonale d’art de Lausanne, courtesy of Benjamin Bichsel.
“At a time of huge change, the ability to reinvent will be the main driver of this unique edition which, thanks to tremendous teamwork, will be the event that signals not just the recovery of our sector, but that of the country as a whole,” said Maria Porro. “A live, shared event at last, an opportunity for the design sector to focus all its energies on best expressing the quality that sets it apart.”
From “The Makers Show” at “supersalone,” courtesy of Sebastian Mintus.
