DKO Directors, Koos de Keijzer and Michael Drescher elbowed their way through the (mostly) well-dressed throng of humanity to provide a highlight reel from the world’s largest and most esteemed furniture fair, Salone del Mobile.
Launched in 1961 and covering over 210,000-square-metres at Rho, the Salone del Mobile attracts enormous crowds to its vast fair. Showcasing 2300 leading international furniture companies and drawing over 370,000 guests from around the globe, attending as a guest is simultaneously overwhelming, inspiring and let’s be frank, emotional. Salone del Mobile is the total package with the combined beauty of Milan, the Italian innate hospitality and a prodigious and profound quality of design.
However, one does require a strategy to navigate through the intensive week, and thus formulated, this is a snapshot of thoughts from Koos de Keijzer and Michael Drescher.
From Koos de Keijzer
Powering through the week, Koos de Keijzer summed ups the highlights in three words.
Comfort. Naturalism. Integrity.
Natural, or naturalness seemed to be a recuring thematic, a strong bent to organic placemaking using stone, timber, wool and natural fibres and no more Rietveld and Modrianesque displays of colour. In retrospect there was very little gloss and most surfaces were a paired back matt.
Everything screamed comfort and please touch me and it felt like the days of uncomfortable modern furniture might be over! I spent all day ohhing and aghing sitting on beautiful sexy sofas. There seemed an intrinsic authenticity about pieces that were highly refined with references to history but still outlandishly contemporary.
A perfect expression of this was evident in Molteni & C.
Molteni & C
Molteni chose to showcase their collections from their own majestic Palazzo Molteni conveniently situated on Via Manzoni. Continually evolving from their genesis of modular fitting systems for kitchens, wardrobes, libraries and more, Molteni & C provide bespoke fittings and furniture for leading luxury brands around the world, including Louis Vuitton, Cartier, and Bruno Cuccinelli.
Furnishings were sleek with sotto voce wardrobe systems where every detail is profoundly considered and luxury is apparent in the tactility of materialism, with new glass and metal details that gently responded to the touch of a hand. Or in the case of a specified jewellery drawer in the bedroom, a digital fingerprint-controlled security system.
Always experimenting with new materials, a standout from Molteni & C was an onyx kitchen system with integrated and seamless onyx carved sink and the merest suggestion for hotplates on the island bench indicated by simple dots. Understated luxury was expressed in the detail of wall panelling in living chambers and the Yabu Pushelberg designed Theo bed.
Minotti
Returning to the actual fair at the Fiera Milano fairgrounds, the unanimous standout exhibition by popular vote was the extraordinary Minotti pavilion.
Elegantly dispersed design over two levels with inspired 1960’s Mad Men Don Draper vibes paying homage to the genesis of the brand, the Minotti 2025 collection was a collaboration of five design visionaries, Giampiero Tagliaferri, Hannes Peer, Nendo, Studio MK27 and GamFratesi.
Described as five different ‘atmospheres’ each expressed the Minotti signature style with low sofas, inspired outdoor collections, Iranian travertine and immaculate artisanal expertise and refined understatement. Minotti sofascapes were elegantly arranged on thick, lush Mongolian sheepskin (like walking on money!) while the authenticity of new materials shone through with ceramic, leather and wool. The new Riley sofa became a leading actor and is a handsome new addition to the famed Minotti sofa family.
B&B Italia
At B&B Italia, the iconic Tufty Time 20sofa celebrated its 20th anniversary. Designed by Patrizia Urquiola the Tufty was originally launched in 2005 and the sofa system boasts a contemporary chesterfield aesthetic, much like the shape of a giant chocolate bar and a padded welcoming refuge. The 2025 version is a classic in its own right with additional centimetres added for back support, more upholstery padding and new fabrics.
FLOS
Disclaimer. Big Flos fans reporting here.
FLOS is currently flourishing under the new appointment of Executive Chairman Piero Gandini who is highly regarded for his leadership at FLOS and his contributions to Italian design.
In the FLOS pavilion, aside from nearly collapsing under the human crush and the heat of so many lights (and what is with Italy and no ventilation?!) FLOS flexed with its light as art (or is that art as lighting?) approach.
In particular, a new wall sculpture product, MAPP by Erwan Bouroullec, asks you to mould the surrounding crushed paper into a look of your own choosing. Genius.
Vibia
Edra Palazzo Durini is the historical home of Edra during Salone del Mobile, where the contemporary design of the product is brilliantly juxtaposed against the traditional beauty of the palazzo. This year, Edra showed outdoor versions of On the Rocks, Standard and Sherazade with new stone materials, resistant, durable and glamourous, simultaneously.
While DKO Interior Director Michael Drescher noted three distinct themes this year at Salone.
Earthy Neutrals with accents of deep rich colour.
There was definitely a feeling of calm and warmth when walking into some of the installations and showrooms this year. I felt this last year, but even more so this year, and I think this is due to where the world is right now – that we need more of this feeling of warmth, of calmness, of tranquillity. The accents to these neutrals though were deep rich colour, usually in a gloss finish. The injection of colour reminding us that no matter how a neutral palette calms, we still need colour to make us feel a sense of passion. A beautiful example of this was the likes of Molteni and C’s new showroom in the heart of Milan and Poltrona Frau.
Rich colour and 1970’s revival.
The feeling of the 70’s was apparent across multiple brands, installations, and showrooms. Walking into each, I felt immersed in colour from earth palettes to bold rich colours – colours which take you on a journey, which are there to make you feel something. Vibrant collections, combining forms from the past with the present. Iconic designs were revived, with the use of retro colour combinations and historic fabric patterns. The brands that induced these feeling the most were Cassina, Knoll and Minotti.
Connection to nature.
A connection to nature and how the textures and colour of the natural world we live in make us feel in a space was also explored. Both the Muuto apartment and the Orizzonti apartment by Zanellato/Bortotto (both in Brera), explored this in such a moving way through the narrative of seasons and landscape.
Walking into each room of the apartments, you could feel a sense of exactly the season the designer were exploring. From light to deep rich colours, thick woven textiles, handmade ceramics, to evocative wallcoverings. The apartments made you think about the past, the present and the future, and how we are connected to the world in which we live but also to how we can observe the world.
As this year was Euroluce, there was much talk about lightning. As Australians, we were incredibly proud of Articolo, Rakumba and Ross Gardam.
Big Glow by Rakumba is a stunning soft, warm glowing light which marries Australian wool with plant-based compostable fibre. Not only beautiful, its interior glow and direction illumination, alongside the acoustic benefits makes it extremely practical.
The moment you first see Swivel by Articolo, is the moment you want to touch it. The sample on show was a mixture of metals and leather. When touched, to simply explore the materials, there is an understanding of its delicate movement, the gentle click as the adjustable light moves to its multiple positions.
There was complete admiration for Solace by Ross Gardam, glass blown pieces, and this is another example which pushes the boundary on traditional techniques. The complex shape, transforming as you move around it, showed its beauty and also its individuality, as each light is slightly unique.
In summary, not only is Salone del Mobile an inspiring design experience, but immersed in the city of Milan it takes the sublimity of iconic design to an exalted level.
And on another note, the newest addition to Milan’s central CBD heart is Casa Brera, Milan’s new design hotel which is a work of art by powerhouse designer, Patricia Urquiola. Offering three restaurants, 101 rooms and 15 suites and a rooftop pool, it is an inviting experience and the hottest new go to spot for tired design lovers in search of respite.
Milan not only breathes but positively pulses with design, from the streetscapes to the fashion as art that the city takes so seriously and, without a doubt, Salone del Mobile is inspiring and energising on every level.
Koos de Keijzer is a member of the 2025 INDE.Awards jury.