Fifty years have passed since the initial project, conceived by Mario Bellini for the Cassina exhibition space in via Durini, Milan. Since then, numerous restyling interventions have been carried out by important names of excellence of the Italian architecture, from Vico Magistretti to Clino Trini Castelli, from Achille Castiglioni to Giancarlo Tintori and Piero Lissoni.
Up to the most recent design of Patricia Urquiola, who took over the artistic direction of the brand at the end of 2015 envisioning the new coordinated image InStore Philosophy 3 and the same that today, on the occasion of Design Week, unveils a new project.
This Will Be The Space, a new interpretation of space, which over time has preserved the original dome of ’68, which Bellini designed in concrete and glass and which over time has always been involved in the various interventions.
The current environments, of 2000 square meters, reinterpret the new language ‘In-store Philosophy 3’, which sees materials and colors to re-create the spaces and define the areas of convivial sharing and work. The entrance, characterized by a path in Venetian-inspired terrazzo floor, leads to a new sculptural staircase that rises to the dome, it is also partially sectioned to connect the new spaces.
Inside, after cleaning up the needless additions of previous interventions, the dome is now covered with a sound-absorbing material; the outside, on the other hand, is covered with copper plates lacquered in green. In the heart a skylight appears as an oculus on the firmament and favors the access of natural light into the showroom.
At the entrance of the dome a walkway made of Ceppo di Gré, flanked by a garden of grasses, leads to the terrace, made of WPC. From the dome you can directly access the new spaces on the first floor, also accessible from the street at the number 18, where there is a reserved area dedicated to customers and the A&D community, as well as the Poltrona Frau Group offices.
