Milan Magic

Milan Design Week 2024 proved to be a bountiful harvest for home decor ideas, with fresh creations from home furnishing titans to car companies and fashion houses.

- Amos Chin

Held annually since 1961, Milan Design Week transforms the Italian fashion capital into a hotbed of inspiration and creativity with a heady brew of art installations, design showcases and, not forgetting, the Milan Furniture Fair, the world’s largest furniture trade fair, which anchors the festivities.

This year’s showcase, which took place from 15 to 21 April, ups the ante with thought-provoking art, cutting edge furniture and environmentally led innovations that gave homeowners plenty to think about. Here is a selection of standout exhibitors from across the city that not only captivated visitors, but in doing so, redefined the possibilities of home decor and art.

JW Anderson

UK fashion label, JW Anderson, staged Days, an exhibition of new creations by Los Angeles-based Patrick Carroll at its Via Sant’Andrea boutique. Known for his distinctive textile sculptures made from salvaged discarded yarns, Carroll presented a series of knitted translucent ‘paintings’ at the store. From bookshelfsized to full-wall displays set against wooden stretcher bars like traditional paintings, the knitted artworks are a collage of colours and text hewn from pieces of literature and Carroll’s own words. The artist describes it as “a modular chorus” that amalgamates the disciplines of art, design and fashion.

Unform Studio

Pennsylvania-based Unform Studio, known for working with unusual forms and materials in its furniture designs, debuted the Pop-Up collection. Comprising a lounge chair, sofa and an ottoman, the collection is characterised by bold, monolithic shapes that are modular and marshmallow-like. The Pop-Up Lounge (left), for instance, features 11 columns for the backrest and nine for the seat, which are all detachable and can be adapted to different lengths and shapes, catering to specific spatial needs.

Minotti