Foundation
Spazio Krizia, Peep-Hole, 2017
In 2017 Formafantasma during Salone Del Mobile has been invited to occupy and re-open the Milanese venue Spazio Krizia1, after several years of vacancy. The space has previously hosted presentations from designers such as Ingo Maurer and Ron Arad.
Formafantasma presents a selection of objects from their 'Delta' collection, developed for the gallery Giustini / Stagetti Roma2, and a series of experiments with light, developed for Peep – hole3, an independent art centre in Milan. Presented as a companion to the launch of the studio’s first industrially produced objects with the lighting company Flos, 'Foundation' offers a deeper insight into their thinking. The show is conceived as a display of studies and the groundwork for current and future developments in the field of lighting.
While the finished objects are formally developed and define a new, more industrial direction for the studio, the experiments (concisely named by the designers as 'tests' and numerically divided) demonstrate the duo’s intuitive and research-based process. These tests, designed as three – dimensional sketches, are instinctively yet carefully assembled, using stationery (pencils and erasers) and standard industrial materials (steel rods, bricks and insulation material).
LED strips are left visible and unfiltered, embracing the punctuated light as an opportunity, rather than a limitation. The result is a meticulous investigation into the components of light – reflection, shadow, colour, space – and the use of optics, mirrors and glass to shape it. Elements that at first appear sculptural, reveal a specific intent on closer inspection. Responding to the lack of colour saturation during the winter months, the designers created three objects that cast brightly – tinted reflections on walls, through the layered dichroic glass.
Another object, fitted with a crystalline, polycarbonate lens suspended under a LED light source, is designed to cast a perfect round reflection on the floor. When using the very symbol of sculptural materials – bronze – the designers apply its most essential characteristics: weight and reflectiveness. In this way, 'Foundation' highlights the studio’s consistent focus on rethinking object typologies through material investigations.
Notes, References and External Links
1. Spazio Krizia is one of the most prominent locations of the ‘Fuorisalone’ (the independent design scene that grew as a alternative to the furniture fair), the space hosted presentations from designers such as Ingo Maurer and Ron Arad.2. Giustini / Stagetti was founded in Rome in 2009 by Roberto Giustini and Stefano Stagetti. The gallery specializes in both twentieth century Italian design and in International contemporary design.
3. Peep – Hole Art Center was a contemporary art institution operating in Milan from 2009 to 2016, with an articulate program of exhibitions, publications, lectures, and conversations.
– FF x Peep-Hole. Anno Tropico is an exhibition created by Formafantasma for Peep – Hole. The show reflects the designers’ interest in the functional and expressive qualities of light, presenting a series of works made with different techniques and materials, together with a site-specific installation that shifts their experimentation onto an architectural scale.
Contributors
CONCEPT, DESIGN Andrea Trimarchi, Simone FarresinDEVELOPMENT Daniele Misso, Nicolas Veschaeve, Jeroen Van Der Gruiter, Francesco Zorzi, Thomas Missé, Lorenzo Capparucci, Johanna Seelemann, Simon Ballen
PHOTO CREDITS Misar Pasquali, Johanna Seelemann
SPECIAL THANKS Cristiano Seganfreddo, Maria Cristina Didero, Bruna Roccasalva, Vincenzo De Bellis
Literature
Wallpaper*, Formafantasma shed light on their design process and the studio’s bright futureTL Mag, Foundation by Formafantasma
Fuorisalone, Foundation. Formafantasma allo Spazio Krizia
Artribute, Formafantasma, Foundation, 2017. Photo credit Masiar Pasquali
Designboom, Studio formafantasma's experiments with light at milan's spazio krizia
Designo daily, Report, Anno Tropico
Frame, Natural growth – 5 milestones of Formafantasma
Living Corriere, Formafantasma allo Spazio Krizia
Elledecor, Allo spazio Krizia l'installatione luminosa dei Formafantasma
Spike, Studio Formafantasma: The Avant-Garde of a post – industrial Aesthetic
Artribune, Formafantasma. Il must – see del Fuori Salone è una monografia sulla luce
Domus, The Foundation poetic
Dezeen, Formafantasma presents lighting designs that exploit geometry, colour and shadow
Intramuros, Intranumeros 191
Domus, Anno Tropico
Living Corriere, Formafantasma: Anno Tropico
Artwort, Peep-Hole prestenta Anno Tropico – L’installazione di Formafantasma che plasma la luce
Dezeen, Light is bent, refracted and projected at Formafantasma's Anno Tropico exhibition
TL Mag, Anno Tropico by Formafantasma
