Heritage, legacy, iconic designs. All these defined the best design brands that were showcased at the Pure Atmosphere, a dedicated space that focused not only on individual products but on the interaction of all the furnishings in living rooms, dining rooms and bedrooms, right at the heart of this year’s IMM 2019 in Cologne.
Exhibitors at the Pure Atmosphere included Molteni&C, Lapalma, Moroso and many more influential brands that seemed to offer hints of their own history and visual language reflected by their products that were presented in an atmospheric and compact presentation. These three brands shared their own stories and brand philosophy in each of their pieces in the collection as we saw a take on their brand’s own culture, personal signatures, and refreshing interpretations of good designs.
Innovating and Revisiting Iconic Pieces
Innovation at present has seen brands like Lapalma, revisiting their iconic pieces in the past such as their Lem Stool designed by Shin and Tomoko Azumi, in warm colors of orange, red, cherry and burgundy.
Francesco Rota, Lapalma’s art director since 2013 changed the direction of the brand radically when he shared to ArchiExpo E-Magazine during the event that he “pushed the company to share their Italian origin in their pieces.”
Photo credits: LEM Lapalma. Courtesy of the brand.
“The major market of Lapalma was Germany. Steel and wood were mostly used for their products and I thought that in order to make a higher turnover and at the same time, respecting Italian origin, I broadened the collection from stools to counter tops, chairs, tables, and upholstered sofa pieces were added in the collection of Lapalma.”
At Pure Atmosphere, Lapalma showed a keener presentation of their iconic items, highlighted in individual spaces that catch the attention of anyone to catch a glimpse of each of their pieces presented. The new collection had a color palette of warm colors that include red, brown, cherry, and orange combined with oak wood and metal finishes in black and white that give that striking look.
In regard to the choice of a warm color palette for their new collection, Rota shared that “they like coherence between the wood material and the warm colors, as this communicates happiness”, a state wherein Lapalma is at right now, having great success with the German market who have shown much attention to their pieces with an Italian touch.
An Ergonomic Grip
Vincent Van Duysen designed the vast 700 m2 space dedicated to Molteni&C at Pure Atmosphere. Living and dining rooms were well connected and joined their spacious Hi-Line Frame kitchen, designed in a simple linear design, embellished with the new Frame Door made of titan aluminum and pewter and boasting of a door with a top that has been designed to have an ergonomic grip. The bedroom area was also showcased at their space, with their latest products, Gliss Master and Master Dressing highlighted and arranged in different finishes and materials.
The elements presented from their new collection were built from innovative materials that Van Duysen used to enhance their furnishings and kitchens. Flooring in dark and light wood defined each of the individual spaces and high-quality materials such as bronze, glass, and unfinished metal were used in creating the furnishings and finishing in the new collection.
