In what was one of
Guided by the principles of alchemy, the Milan-based design agency, conceptualised an immersive experience that investigated the man’s connection with the matter and the power of symbols. What was most striking about this presentation is Arianna Lelli Mami and Chiara Di Pinto’s signature ability to bring together unusual elements, like rarely-seen colour combinations, a thrilling melange of materials and confident shapes introduced through furniture, lighting and art.
The installation was named after the Arcansistes, who were essentially chemists before the term existed that held the guarded knowledge of formulas to create porcelain and work with materials such as glass and metals. Driving home the theme, the presentation was held inside a large industrial space that was a former gold factory in the early 1900s.
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Reminiscent of a science lab, abstract arrangements depicting alchemic processes give way to more conservative settings which showcase the rituality of contemporary living. For one vignette, Cassina’s sleek Beugel chair is paired with lush baby-blue armchairs by
The most mystical sect of the installation leaned into the rituals of divination, a practice suspended between the rational and the irrational since Renaissance courts and through to Jungian psychoanalysis. A round room on a lower floor hosted Società Mantica, for whom the rituals of tarot are linked to symbols, matter, and discovery. Studiopepe intended for visitors to use the tarot reader as ‘a tool for personal growth’. Veiled by a wispy curtain with soft salt floors and all-white furniture, the room felt like a ‘safe space’ to dive into a little prophetic Q&A.
[Photography © Nick Hughes/ Yellowtrace.]
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