The 5Vie district, born ten years ago on the initiative of Emanuele Tessarolo and Ernesta del Cogliano, will once again preside over the city’s historic centre during Milan Design Week. Squeezed between Corso Magenta, Sant’Ambrogio and the Colonne di San Lorenzo, the district reaches as far as Santa Maria delle Grazie, pushing on to San Vittore and then touching on Piazza Cordusio and via Spadari, maintaining its epicentre in the info and press points at 14 Via Cesare Correnti and in the historic SIAM headquarters at 18 Via Santa Marta.
“Design for good” is the evocative title of this year’s edition, which emphasises how the projects on show, ranging from design d’auteur and collectible design, high craftsmanship, art and new forms of expression, have been selected because, in different ways, they deal with profound topics such as spirituality, the relationship with one’s historical roots, the bond with nature, the ability to find a common and universal language, and the drama of incommunicability.
5Vie curates and produces some of the events on show, a feature that distinguishes this from other districts. «This year’s title, Design for good, represents a sort of provocation and puts the human being at the centre», says Ernesta del Cogliano. «What we want to tell as a district is the vocation to creativity and the concept rather than the object itself».
Six exhibitions curated directly by 5Vie and presented at SIAM in Via Santa Marta 18. These include the installation Human mandala by Sara Ricciardi, a real human mandala composed of a series of real bodies arranged in a circular formation, and accompanied by mystical sound from eight circular dolby surround speakers, which will help create an ascetic and contemplative atmosphere. «With Maria Cristina Didero», continues the founder of 5Vie, «we have, on the other hand, developed a project that brings back the spirituality of the Orthodox tradition». This is the exhibition A future for the past, a homage to the precious legacy of Tinos marble, conceived by the Greek duo on∙entropy, alias Zoe & Niki.
«Also at SIAM», Ernesta del Cogliano continues, «we created a group exhibition-event curated by Sara Bologna, entitled Prendete e mangiate, a large table representing the place where people most easily let go and can have more sincere exchanges». Also on display in this setting is Lebanese designer Richard Yasmine’s project, Silent Hollows, which celebrates the relationship between human beings and nature, with an installation composed of mirrors of various sizes, tables and wall lights, recreating a celestial setting.
Among the other exhibitions scattered throughout the district, the Istituto francese di Milano has invited Constance Guisset to present an exhibition on her work at the Palazzo delle Stelline, Corso Magenta 63 where, in a festive setting, visitors are invited to venture into a colourful fog to discover the objects on display, touching them and trying them out. Fondazione Cologni will once again bring to the monumental spaces of Palazzo Litta, five exhibitions dedicated to the dialogue between know-how and design thinking. While, the multidisciplinary design studio Draga & Aurel will present, in the spaces of the Rossana Orlandi gallery in via Matteo Bandello 14, a scenographic installation made with transparent Ray lamps.
Finally, in the other pole of the district, at Via Cesare Correnti 14, in an elegant 1930s mansion, six international studios will reinterpret the Artemest catalogue presenting their personal visions of living; while the Emirati association Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council presents Echoes of Alchemy, an exhibition co-curated with Mr.Lawrence, which presents Irthi’s collaboration with Studiopepe and the creative duo Casalinghe di Tokyo, offering a daily Coffee Experience to immerse oneself in an authentic Arabian atmosphere between 2pm and 6pm.
On Wednesday 19th, the day on which the events in the 5Vie district will remain open until 10pm, the most pop event of the Milanese design week is back again this year: the street parade dedicated to creativity organised by Seletti. The rendezvous is on Wednesday at 6 pm in Piazza Castello: you will parade through floats, music and performances for the party in Piazza Affari until midnight.
