Milano, via Solferino 11, in the heart of Brera. A typical Milanese apartment building with wrought-iron balconies. from the courtyard with its ivy and wisteria you go up the stairs to the world of Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran, alias DIMORESTUDIO.
To meet Emiliano Salci and Britt Moran is to throw wide open the doors on the most contemporary and updated design ever and, at the same time, on history, on the famous Maestri and on the 50s and 60s, their staple reference and inspiration.
“We don’t just sell a piece of furniture, we sell a world!”, exclaims Emiliano Salci during our encounter several weeks before Salone del Mobile. Two creative spirits and personalities who converse and support one another: Emiliano more talkative and extravagant, Britt more behind the scenes in this conversation but his presence is attentive and precise; he lets his “colleague” be the spokesperson for their creative synergy.
“I always say we are the only studio that at every single Milano Design Week proposes itself as a company. We really invest a lot of energy and time but at this point we feel kind o obliged to do it, since the public’s expectations of us are increasingly higher. And they look to us to get the latest colors and moods for the coming year. We feel a bit obligated, but actually I love it, it gives me an amazing boost, besides, of course, a lot of fatigue”.
And Britt Moran: "That’s true, but Salone is also the occasion where Emiliano really is able to do whatever he likes, and from that week new contacts and projects always spark off”. “But we have a budget!”, they remember in unison, “which is a challenge that keeps you grounded”.
This year their Salone is sensational. It doubles, no, rather triples up. Emiliano and Britt are not only presenting the new DIMORESTUDIO collection, but they are also presenting DIMOREGALLERY, separately for the first time. And on top of that, they are debuting with a Limited Edition collection of 9 pieces.
Let’s proceed in an orderly fashion, as Emiliano explains: “We are two realities: on the one hand, DIMORESTUDIO is a forge of design and interiors and on the other hand, DIMOREGALLERY, which is a gallery that sells historical and contemporary pieces signed by others”.
DIMOREGALLERY, Miart and the first time at the Fuorisalone.
These are the most hectic days ever for Emiliano and Britt. They are not only in the final rush toward Salone del Mobile that is officially inaugurated on Tuesday the 17th (although Fuorisalone starts already on Monday) but also because they are on stage with DIMOREGALLERY at Miart, the contemporary and modern art fair of collectable design that starts tomorrow Friday 13th in Milano until Sunday 15th.
“Miart is out latest offspring. We are present with DIMOREGALLERY and we have decided to bring the classical and historical pieces and a very few ones of famous designers. we are presenting furnishings from a typical middle class home of the 40s: furniture with unusual wood inlays and striped upholstery. We are introducing a new designer, Ilaria Bianchi, whom we discovered and who will bring to Miart three of her contemporary pieces, but inspired by historic names such as Josef Hoffman and Carlo Scarpa”.
“DIMOREGALLERY – continues Britt Moran – was founded in 2008 as a very small space in our personal passion as collectors and attitude to do research. In 2014 we have decided to focus on the construction of a gallery in the real meaning of the word, by selecting artists and putting together a collection of historical pieces”.
Emiliano goes in depth: “Our selection is all emotional, beyond the trends of the moment, even though at times we get very close to what’s up at the moment. We have Gio Ponti, whom everybody is currently talking about, but we have selected him with a particular style and image: we propose only what we would place in our own homes. We have a lot of designers, from Achille Castiglioni to Vico Magistretti, Gae Aulenti, Gabriella Crespi… Osvaldo Borsani, for whom we are organising an exhibition in May. And then the French, Charlotte Perriand, Jean Prouvé… And Paul Levance, Alvar Aalto…”.
Miart closes and Salone del Mobile opens up.
Right after Miart, DIMOREGALLERY goes back on stage at home in via Solferino to officially present itself at its first Design Week. “Up to now, we have always kept it on the side to leave the room for DIMORESTUDIO. This year we have decided that DIMOREGALLERY would have its own identity. We will present the Transfer installation: each room will have a inner room like a tent and each of them will be furnished with historical pieces, and scenes from everyday life. There won’t be any contemporary design at all, but only important pieces randomly mixed up like we usually do,” explains Emiliano". And there's also a room set up like a warehouse where they imagine a hypothetical collector might store his archives.
DIMORESTUDIO at Salone del Mobile: Perfectly Imperfect and Limited Edition.
We are in via Solferino 11 again, still on the 2nd floor but this time we go up the staircase on the left: we enter in the DIMORESTUDIO apartment: in the spotlight the extended furniture collection Progetto Non Finito (Unfinished furniture, ndr), that this year honors the theme Perfettamente Imperfetto (Perfectly Imperfect, ndr). “Furniture”, Emiliano recounts, “which was inspired by the Italian middle class of the 60s and 70s that travelled back and forth between Rome and Milano. The posh drawing rooms / literary salons of that era, with the first modernism pieces to arrive in Italy, using super-precious materials.” And on stage are bright shiny brass combined with glossy and opaque steel; stainless steel; surfaces lacquered with dense non primary colors; then bamboo and Viennese cane.
And these novelties will be unveiled in an “emotional shell: every room will be cocoon-like and with only a single object at center stage”.
And last but not least: a totally brand-new project and space. This Salone del Mobile marks also the debut of the Limited Edition collection: “Actually super limited”, Emiliano jokes, "9 examples and each of them is a unique piece. We took old pieces of furniture, took them apart, and rebuilt them adding other materials, above lacquered them in bright colors. And bright shiny brass, bronze metal and steel. It is a nice production, but it’s a collection very important, one that I very much believe in. For this first time, I thought it up, but I would like for Britt to sign it for next Salone. I would really enjoy comparing our two visions; we are famous for our mix, where I am for sure more modern and he is more classic, and together we become DIMORESTUDIO”. And Limited Edition by Emiliano Salci x DIMORESTUDIO will be showcased a just few steps away, in a six- window temporary store in via Solferino 22 (open until May).
We would like the Salone would be more curated.
The conversation moves along to the Milano Design Week.
“I do hope that a step backwards will be taken because lately i have seen a little bit of everything with no sense, too chaotic,” Salci declares. “We would like it to be more thoughtful, more design”, they say in unison, “and then we would love to finally see a new designer, and some support for the emerging talents, not only Italians, but from all over the world. We would love to see an effort on the part of the city to give more room and visibility to young designers and we don’t even want to talk about prices, they are crazy these days, both for location, and hotels and restaurants. everything in town becomes so expensive. We miss the new Achille Castiglione, the new Vico Magistretti of today who unfortunately are no longer with us. We miss figures like them and it would so great if Milano invested in new names”.
Miart, Milano – until Sunday 15th April 2018
DIMOREGALLERY – “Object” section, stand O04
Fuorisalone – April 16th – 22nd April 2018
DIMOREGALLERY, Transfer – via Solferino 11, righthand staircase, 2° floor
DIMORESTUDIO, Perfettamente imperfetto – via Solferino 11, lefthand staircase 2° floor
LIMITED EDITION by Emiliano Salci x DIMORESTUDIO – via Solferino 22
