"I Saloni" Recession Style

Notwithstanding the dark skies of global economy the big kermesse of "I Saloni" has started with incredible numbers:
2.723 companies represented (more than 400 were not able to participate and will need to wait for next year) about 12.000 new products, 300.000 visitors expected. (Unfortunately some hotels have raised their prices up to 5 times more...so many European operators commute using low-cost airlines, cheaper than spending a night in Milan!)
Italy and Milan remain the center of production where major designers still come from around the world, for the human dimension of the process, the skills of artisans, the culture and the technology.

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A Milanese designer involved with Flos, Cassina, Artemide, FontanaArte, Flou,  Rodolfo Dordoni has presented new pieces for seven different companies at Salone 2009: light, beds, tables and furniture systems that will inhabit the house in a crisis time.

Asked what he expects from Salone 2009 he said:
"what everyone was waiting for, less wanted to be in the spotlight, less illusions, less exaggerations...more value to concreteness. Lately we were going too far from reality, we showed for years an impossible, unrealistic way of living". Recession, he said, could be a healthy rethinking, in fact rationality has returned. We need more attention to the human being and cut excess and waste, form and function are very important but so is the economy of the production.

from an article by Lia Ferrari

 No more Wow effect, now in front of a piece of design we need to say "I like it"
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Tyler Brule' is a frenetic globetrotter, observer of trends, writer of "Fast Lane" page on the Financial Times and founder and director of "Monocle" magazine.

In an interview he said that Milan this week is a place for meeting and confrontation, a big forum and immense bazaar of creativity. Times of recession revolutionizes  customs and habits so the game of business cannot be won with emails, Fed-ex, Skype and that is why, he said, he sent more than usual colleagues to the Salone 2009.
"A melting pot of architects, designers, professors, journalists and people passionate about style all reunited in the same place: the immediate commercial and creativity benefits of Salone probably will have an effect more important of what we saw at G20 Summit held in London a few weeks ago".

From an article by Alessandro Cannavo'
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In times of recession some examples of rational thinking:
For people that can't have the luxury of a walking closet Flou proposes a new wardrobe with multiple modules and customized compartments.
Antonio Citterio's new pieces are inspired by solid concreteness and rigorous realism.
Tom Dixon's collection has an emblematic name: "Back to basics - Utility" and he says:
"There is a need for honesty and usefulness in contemporary design"

From an article by Francesca Taroni
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Design today is determined to find the spirit of its origins: innovation and research.

A contemporary chandelier, assembly not included...by Paolo Rizzatto (four Compassi d'Oro) and Francisco Gomez Paz for Luceplan.
"Hope" is modular, economic, light, easy to transport, eco-compatible, ready to be used with different light sources.
Rizzatto says: " To me design serves to solve emergencies of our time: ecology, economy, practicality"

From an article by Mara Bottini
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So now we have Hope!

You may also like to read:
"I Saloni" directly from Milan
"I Saloni" (The Satellite Salone)
Salone del Mobile 2009, Milano