This year the Saloni 2008 have registered
a crowd of visitors without precedence. The official data talk about 350,000
visitors, 200,000 of whom were foreigners. All together a very important
result: almost a third more than the previous year.
Even the number of the exhibitors increased: 2450 firms in a neat surface
of 230,000 square meters.
In a certain way these data could have been foreseen if we consider the
positive trend that this exhibition has shown in the last years. We have
also to consider that this year together with the Salone Internazionale
del Mobile (International Forniture Exhibition), the Salone Internazionale
del Complemento d'Arredo (International Forniture Complements Exhibition)and
the Salone Satellite, we had for the first time the presence of Eurocucina
(Euro-Kitchen) and the TFK space for the household appliances, the International
Bathroom Exposition and the biennale Office Show Room.
Like every year the leading firms
in these sectors have prepared their huge stands, real show rooms, that,
by some exhibitors were distributed in different floors and could dispose
of hundreds of square meters to present their typical sceneries.
Following the tradition we witnessed to hundreds of little events “fuori
salone” (outside the proper salone), the real soul of this event. Among
them we could see a lot of mini cooper driving journalists and special guests
around. The famous architect Zaha Hadid was also there, of course with a
car worth her status, a bmw 7th serie with a hydrogen engine.
But the more visible element of this year's exposition was represented by
the visitors selves: students, architects, businessmen, designers and archi-stars.
Without any doubt an important aspect of this event is the mondane one that
has characterized the whole period, where to be there was more important
than what was there. Events that can provide the chance to find new connections.
The continuous exchange of business cards is the natural consequence. At
end you can get the impression that the salone del mobile is nothing more
than an excuse to spend some days in Milan.
As we do every year, ignoring these feeling, already acquainted with the
space developed by Fuskas and in part tolerant to its aesthetic impact somehow
extenuated by the soiled glass surfaces, we visited the exhibition. The
“organic” ceiling of the exhibition seams to have already lost its charme;
not long after the inauguration has turned rather old: a veil of dust darkens
the glass surfaces and greys the very white structure.
Walking through the different stands the impression we had was not positive.
Of course we know how difficult it is to find your way in the crowd of products
of different kinds and in an exhibition of a such encyclopedic character.
Anyway we had the chance to detect some new “Trends” in the house forniture
field.
The Wengè, that played the main role in the last years,has been sided
by the pop-retro and new-kitch taste in all its declinations, from the pop-ironic
ones to to the super “pimp” version, so loved to the new rich and uneducated
class like the Russian one to be clear.
We haven't missed some signals clarifying the way how some research products
reach the production state.
In the Eurocucina room we did not find a lot of new tendencies. It seams
that the real and only obsession of the producers, requiring incredible
prices, is to make the kitchen as technological as possible, building as
an example drawers that open just with a little touch.
Furthermore, some famous and respected brands as Valcucine and Boffi decided
to snob and reduce their presence in the exhibition on behalf of a stand
of their own outside the main event. The most interesting things we met
by the household appliances in the TFK, a new exhibition space that appeared
this year for the first time, where the house appliance producers exhibit
the result of their researches and innovations. Ecological washing machines
that don't need any detergents, intelligent coffee machines,low power consumption
refrigerators etc.We conclude giving space to an apposite article about,
with the Salone Satellite and its 570 young designers and 22 international
design schools to which we dedicated an article that you can read in this
site.
We left the Salone a little bit disappointed, maybe even embittered because
of the very bad infrastructural net and the infernal parking lot, where
you would get lost even with a compass. We greet Milan hoping not to find
next year the same urban disorganisation in a city that will host the Expo
2015.
Gianluigi D'Angelo- Channelbeta
LINKS:
Sebastien Wierinck - ONSITE STUDIO
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Channelbeta
Information Channel on Contemporary
Architecture |
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[2008-06-10] |
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pictures provided by the author
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