Milan Design Week 2022 Gallery

In spite of the May heat, throngs of visitors were exited to begin browsing the 2,000 global exhibitors showing residential and commercial furniture, and this year kitchens as well, in two dedicated EuroCucina halls.

“Let Life Flow,” a very Italian message.

One of many mobile happy hours featuring the Prosecco-fueled Aperol spritz. Companies like Alessi hired famous mixologists to make sure their Aperitivo events set a very high bar. The idea was so popular it caused a serious shortage of ice in the city.

Alexia Audrain, an award-winning designer and cabinet maker from Nantes, France, created a cubby-style chair with inflatable side panels called The Hugging Chair. “The hugging chair is designed for autistic people,” says Audrain. “The inflatable walls put as much pressure on your body as you want, and it helps them reduce tension and anxiety, and to be more receptive to social interaction or learning.

Anna Arpa is fascinated by Japanese wood craftsmanship, and the idea of having a piece of furniture made of just one material.

“These are all waste pieces of wood,” she says, leaning on table made of a colorful, intricate mosaic of small wood chips precisely set at 30-degree angles.

“I get the waste pieces from the artisans and make them this size. There are 10 different wood species, and these are their natural colors. This tabletop is made up around 15,000 pieces of wood.”

It’s based on the study of wooden joinery, Arpa says, no hardware, no adhesives. “These pieces are enjoined.”

Apra isn’t a woodworker. She’s a Milan-born architect that studied in Switzerland and France, and has worked in Berlin and New York.

To find out more about her work: anna@arpi.archi, @atelier_anna_arpa on instagram.

A blue glass table from Glas Italia, designed by Patricia Urquiola. Blues were everywhere, from gentle baby blues to intense cobalt.

Pronounced “cinque vee”, this district housed the ”Show Your Colors” exhibit from Markus Benesch Creates and Curious Boy from the marvelous mind of Markus Benesch.

With the ‘Colorflage’ concept at 2022’s Milan Design Week, Benesch brought to life his playful, colorful ideas in surfaces, interiors, furniture and art.

Benesch pioneered digitally printed laminates with Abet Laminati and has worked extensively bringing out-of-the-box design ideas to major wallcovering brands like Rasch.

Working acrylic perfectly and permanently into wood required years of trial and error, and Benesch has pieces that are several years old and show no signs of material separation.

When asked about his striking double doors, Benesch said, “At Design Week there's furniture and furniture and furniture, and tables, and chairs, so I thought it's maybe it’s time for some doors.”

“This is all part of our ‘Colorflage’ concept. We want people to stop hiding, stop camouflaging, to be expressive, to let what’s inside out. That’s why the theme of our showroom party is “Show Us Your Colors!”

Hermès regularly overtakes a warehouse on Via Palermo to create an experience that’s always, literally, the talk of the town. This year it was four gravity-defying wood-and-paper brutalist “water towers” to express the theme, “Looking for Lightness.”

Designedby Hervé Sauvage and Charlotte Macaux Perelman, the towers glow from within, beckoning visitors to experience celebrations of color and form realized in hand-crafted leather, cashmere and porcelain.

Lexus was also all about lightness with their immersive “Sparks of Tomorrow” installation created by award-winning architect and designer Germane Barnes, with colorful lighting studio Aqua Creations. The centerpiece was a full-size, floating 3D wireframe sculpture of the company’s RZ carbon-neutral electric car, surrounded by prototypes from Lexus Design Award winners and, naturally, a swing.