From using natural beetroot dye to shaping marble, designers are deepening their materials expertise. Join to Milan Design Agenda to discover what Ventura Lambrate will introduce this year at iSaloni 2015 fair and Milan Design Week 2015.

This increased interest goes hand in hand with another tendency: the intermingling of the design and fashion industries. Ventura Lambrate exhibitors such as Edelkoort Exhibitions and Craafts draw on contemporary craftsmanship and traditional techniques that are applicable for both furniture and fashion, reshaping both fields.

See also: Milan Design Week 2015 News -Marcel Wanders collaborates with LG Hausys

The untapped potential of materials

The two textile designers of Studio Gutedort have a strong interest in working with unconventional and waste materials. They acquire one of their key materials at the butcher’s, walking away with intestines they’ll use to create leather like pieces. At Ventura Lambrate they’ll also present a research project based on the potential uses of beetroot dye.

In the Burnt Sienna project, Studio Laura Daza works with a yellow pigment that becomes reddish-brown when heated. The artisan colour technique was widely used in the Renaissance, and the contemporary design studio is reviving it.

See also: Milan Design Week 2015 Trends to see – luxurious venetian mirrors

A collaboration between designer Paolo Ulian and Bufalini Marmi has yielded a series of furniture pieces that make use of optimised marble techniques. The exhibition also features the 40×40 collection: marble tiles, cut by a water-jet machine, that can be easily assembled into objects. The special cutting technique means no waste material is left behind.

Dust is the main material in Lucie Libotte’s designs, which re-evaluate a substance that’s usually perceived as dirty. After collecting samples of dust from several households, she’s created a series of vessels, each telling the story of the dust’s original location and explaining its value as a material.

Ventura Lambrate design-fashion merge

With the “implosion” of the fashion world (as trend forecaster  framed it) comes an increased intermingling between the fashion and design industries. As familiar industrial conditions fall away, what remains is designers striving to bring the world the best crafts and most exceptional techniques. During Ventura Lambrate 2015, this emerging phenomenon will be on display at the Via Cletto Arrighi location, which will be specially dedicated to a selection of double souled projects that merge fashion and design, research and craftsmanship, technique and reverie.

‘Edelkoort Exhibitions deepens this development in several designs using pleating, smocking, folding, wrapping, layering, ribboning and draping. The results constitute a hybrid between contemporary creativity and domestic craft. The exhibition’s title, Gathering, underlines a plea for humans to overcome tendencies such as greed and lack of respect.

Craafts is a company specialising in craftsmanship for haute couture. Having worked with names like Prada, Gucci, Celine and Alexander McQueen, Craafts realized that its techniques could also be adapted for the furniture industry. Craafts will display a variety of handmade items featuring diverse techniques and materials in an iron-framework installation.

Dyloan Studio’s practice explores new technologies that can be applied in couture and the design industry. By bringing together companies, schools and designers, they thrive to bring synergy to the two systems.

Keep following Milan Furniture Fair 2015 news with Milan Design Agenda!

YOU MAY BE ALSO LIKE

Milan Design Week 2016 preview: what to see at Ventura Lambrate What to see at Fuorisalone 2016 – Ventura Lambrate announces designers Ventura Lambrate, Milan Design week 2013 Milan Design Week 2015: New Axo Light lamps at Euroluce 2015