The 53rd edition of the Salone Internazionale del Mobile is ready to go, along with the biennial EuroCucina and International Bathroom Exhibition. Some 2,400 exhibitors are expected, bringing all the very latest furnishing solutions to Milan. There will also be a major cultural event at the Milan Fairgrounds, Rho – from 8th to 13th April – involving eight leading international architects.
Milan is once again the international furniture and design capital, the only city in the world to host a trade fair capable of attracting over 300,000 visitors from 160 different countries.
The 53rd edition of the Salone Internazionale del Mobile has been split, as usual, into three style categories.
– Classic, Modern and Design. More than 1,400 exhibitors from Italy and around the world will be showcasing their products at both the Salone and the International Furnishing Accessories Exhibition. The Salone Internazionale del Mobile will boast not just the consolidated presence of leading national and global sectoral manufacturers, but also the new inclusion of high-end furnishing companies such as Hästens, Kvadrat, Iittala, Tom Dixon, and upmarket fashion brands such as Ferré, Pierre Cardin and Ungaro, making the wide range of goods on offer even more tantalising. Some very well-known names will be back on the stands: Flötotto, Gebr. Thonet, SCP, Thonet, Treca, Wittmann.
-All the leading Italian and foreign kitchen manufacturers will be exhibiting at the 20th edition of EuroCucina, International Kitchen Furniture Exhibition, ranged over 25,000 square metres, in the four dedicated pavilions: 9-11, 13-15. Many top manufacturers will be back at this biennial exhibition, Alno, Cesar, Dada, Mobalpa, Pedini, Schiffini and Valcucine to name but a few.
– The International Bathroom Furniture Exhibition will feature all the latest bathroom accessories and furniture, shower cubicles and saunas, sanitary ware, radiators, coverings, bathroom and/or kitchen taps, bath and hydromassage tubs.exhibitions are by several leading companies, including Gessi e Sicis. Several new companies will be exhibiting this year: Florim, Geberit, Graff, Kartell by Laufen, Ceramica Sant’Agostino.
– Changes are also afoot for SaloneSatellite – devoted to creative young designers – which will be held in pavilions 13-15, easily accessed from Cargo 4 and with free entry.
– As always, the wide-ranging trade fair itself will be accompanied by a collateral event, curated by Francesca Molteni e Davide Pizzigoni, entitled “Where Architects Live.” Shigeru Ban, Mario Bellini, David Chipperfield, Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas, Zaha Hadid, Marcio Kogan, Daniel Libeskind and Bijoy Jain/Studio Mumbai, eight leading international architects, will throw open the doors of their “private homes,” presented in pavilion 9.
The installations will trigger crosscutting reflection on contemporary architectural methods, practices and trends, illustrating what designing a house entails today.
Social Media
The Salone has bolstered its social networking and internet presence, with a blog (blog.isaloni.it), official Facebook and Twitter, pages, a dedicated YouTube channel, a Flickr gallery and Linkedin and Pinterest profiles. The following are the official Salone 2014 Twitter hashtags: @iSaloniofficial: #iSaloni | #EuroCucina | #SaloneBagno | #SaloneSatellite
Free and updated App – Salone del Mobile.Milano 2014 – (for iPhones, iPads and leading Android devices), will be available for download as of mid-March, helping exhibitors and visitors to negotiate the fair.
Collaborations between Salone Del Mobile & Others throughout Milan:
The Salone del Mobile is renewing its close ties with the city of Milan and, in collaboration with its
Department of Fashion and Design, will be promoting and setting up a structured welcome, with input from Milan’s design schools. Information stands organized in collaboration with Fiera Milano will be set up in various focal points around the city (stations, airports, undergrounds), manned by students providing visitors with logistical information on how to access the Fairgrounds and move around the city, along with details of the Department of Fashion and Design’s Palimpsest of initiatives in Milan. This is a major sector- promoting project, immediately and enthusiastically embraced by all the various protagonists of Salone del Mobile Week. The schools involved in the Project (IED, Domus Academy, Naba and Politecnico di Milano/Scuola del Design) will draw on this experience to tackle a didactic exercise involving an analysis
and verification of Salone users and come up with ideas for services that could be incorporated into the 2015 edition.
The Salone is expanding its collaboration with la Rinascente, which in April will host a special area of the Design Supermarket that will provide information on the Salone and the various services and initiatives around the city. For those who possess the Rinascentecard, the collaboration also offers the opportunity to purchase tickets to the Salone at a reduced price for the days open to the public (Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th).
All the information stands that will be installed by the Salone around the city and at the airports will be designed this year by architect Piero Lissoni.
The increasingly close collaboration between the Salone del Mobile and Milan’s City Council, including the Departments of Culture and Fashion and Design, is underscored again with two major initiatives designed to strengthen the promotion of Milan’s heritage and culture.
The Salone del Mobile is among the sponsors of the exhibition “Bernardino Luini e i suoi figli”, a major retrospective dedicated to a key figure in the history of Renaissance art in Milan and indeed in Italy, curated by Giovanni Agosti and Jacopo Stoppa, in collaboration with Piero Lissoni.
The exhibition, which will be open to the public from 9th April to 13th July 2014 on the main floor
of Palazzo Reale and in the splendid Sala delle Cariatidi, will document the entire artistic career of Luini and his sons over the course of the 16th century through a selection of more than 200 works.
There will be an exclusive, invitation-only viewing for guests of the Salone del Mobile on the opening night of the show (7 April), confirming once again the integral part that the Salone plays in the life of the city.
This year too, the Salone del Mobile has organised free entry to Milan’s city museums: the Museum of the Twentieth Century, the Archaeological Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Sforza Castle Museums, Palazzo Morando, the Civic Aquarium, the Gallery of Modern Art and the Risorgimento Museum, giving visitors to the Salone, Milanese citizens and tourists alike a chance to view their important artistic, scientific and natural collections.
The initiative will also serve to promote the city of Milan’s upcoming launch of the annual CARD, which provides admission to all the civic museums, aimed at spreading awareness of the city’s cultural offerings and facilitating access to its treasures.
Transportation
For the second year running, an agreement between the Salone del Mobile, Fiera Milano and ATM – Milan’s Transport Agency – means that visitors to the Salone will be able to acquire an integrated ticket valid for public transport on Milan’s urban network and for entry to the trade fair.
Visitors can enjoy another special offer, thanks to an agreement with Trenitalia, which will provide ticket discounts for 230 trains to reach Milan during the Salone. To be eligible for the reduced prices, just show your admission ticket for the Salone.
During the Salone del Mobile Trenitalia will also activate six direct routes for its high-speed Frecce trains and four to and from Switzerland that stop at the Rho Fiera station adjacent to the exhibition grounds.
Discounts
In addition, thanks to an agreement with Sky Team Global Meetings, exhibitors, operators and journalists participating in the Salone del Mobile 2014 will have the possibility of discounts between 5% and 15% on airfare for international and intercontinental roundtrip flights to Milan operated by the airlines belonging to Sky Team. Discounts are valid for flights booked between 3rd and 18th April 2014.
Negotiations are currently underway with Alitalia to offer discounted airfares to/from Milan during the period of the Salone.
For detailed info go to www.cosmit.it
