In 2022, an exhibition space was inaugurated in Milan in a place in the city that was inaccessible for a long time: one of the old tollhouses, which were placed at the sides of the city gates. Hence the name, Caselli 11-12, which corresponds to the progressive numbering of these monumental and at the same time intimate buildings.
The gallery carries out research into contemporary design, seeking out little-known names and grouping them into thematic exhibitions that can also be viewed online in a sort of marketplace.
The new chapter in this exploration and proposal is Makers 2, open until the end of June, which continues the discourse begun with the first exhibition last December.
Makers 2 carves out its own field of investigation within that territory where furniture production and sculpture meet, grafting practical functions – seating, storage, lighting, etc. – into objects that in terms of vocabulary or materials is much closer to the work of art than to the industrial product. The exhibition triggers new connections between traditional and non-traditional materials.
It is a transversal anthology bringing together 39 international designers, architects and artists who here explore new perspectives on the concept of creation, working with classic materials such as ceramics, glass, stone and metal; but also milk, eggs, paper, cement and wax.
The exhibition investigates the themes of fragility and strength in furniture and sculpture, where realism and abstraction share the same environments. Through projects that create a sometimes surprising short circuit between form, material and function.
Curiosity and doubt tease the visitor in front of materials that disguise their true nature through a trompe l’oeil effect, changing the memory we have of a particular object or material. What we believe to be fragile is actually robust, and what we perceive to be soft, is rigid.
The heterogeneous approaches displayed in the exhibition break down the limits of each material, inviting us to reconsider our perception of furniture and sculpture.
Participating designers: Agglomerati, Analog Glass, Wendy Andreu, Apparatu, George Baggaley, Balzer Balzer, Maria Bang Espersen, Henry Baumann, Ilaria Bianchi, Bureau Barbier Bouvet, Heloise Colrat, Corpus Studio, Jojo Corväiá, Danny Cremers, Daria Dazzan, Destroyers Builders, Max Enrich, Arnaud Eubelen, Chris Fusaro, Gianmarco Guarascio, Illya Goldman Gubin, Gonzalez Haase AAS, Hadge, Charlotte Jonckheer, Alexander Kirkeby, Lab La Bla, Lotto Studio, Max Mila Serra, Lucas Muñoz Muñoz, Studio Rocha, Tessa Silva, Tipstudio, Maria Tyakina, Remy & Veenhuizen, Kick Veldman, Robert Wallace, Wknd Lab.
For all photos, except where otherwise indicated, @ Piercarlo Quecchia – DSL Studio
