From 15th to 21st April 2024, the world’s leading international design event returned to the streets of Milan, featuring the renowned Salone del Mobile program alongside various city-wide exhibitions and events. The festival fosters global dialogue across the design industry and serves as an inclusive platform for inspiration and collaboration.
This year, Vibia invited guests to experience how we design atmospheres of wellbeing through a carefully curated exhibition of our new collections at Lom Dopolavoro, a renovated farmhouse turned restaurant in Milan. We also hosted a private event, “Vibia + Friends”, offering key industry partners and media an exclusive opportunity to explore the exhibition.
“Shaping Atmospheres” showcased Vibia’s latest indoor and outdoor collections installed throughout Lom Dopolavoro’s expansive interior and grounds, which merge traditional materials, such as wood and brick, with new technologies. Designed to evoke different emotions, the focus of each space was on the creation of beautiful, enveloping atmospheres that enhance human wellbeing.
Introducing the concept of “Shaping Atmospheres”, Vibia presented
Plusminus, Circus and Bind, a unique range of conductive systems that bring the right typology of light precisely where needed. These “atmosphere creators” mix accent, reflected and diffuse lighting with gradients of light density and colour to create specific scenes. Designed to facilitate an entire project, they provide total freedom of composition and adapt to any type of space, transforming the exhibition at Lom Dopolavoro into a truly immersive experience.
Designed by Stefan Diez, a system of Plusminus pendants illuminates one of the bars, with additional installations in various social areas. The relaxed arc of each pendant, suspended from a single belt, creates a feeling of informality and connectedness throughout the space. Spherical and conical luminaires provide either soft general lighting or a more direct downlight, depending on the intended activity.
Circus, designed by Antoni Arola, adds depth and dimension to a second bar and dining area. Playing with factors such as the density, direction and diffusion of light, this system highlights certain architectural features, creating focal points and establishing visual hierarchy within the space. For instance, a high-density spotlight draws attention to Lom Dopolavoro’s signature exposed brick walling, while the intense glow of coloured light from a reflector plate creates a sense of enchantment and allure.
Bind, designed by Martín Azúa, allows for careful adaptation to the architectural context, depending on the intended use of space and the desired emotional impact of each scene. The exhibition presented two configurations of Bind: the first allowed for an arrangement of Tempo pendants, illuminating the bar area with a series of nostalgic milk glass ovals, and the second introduced a graphic composition of multiple Slim pendants, suspended vertically over one of the social areas.
Vibia’s
Knit and
Array add depth and meaning to the exhibition, blending lighting and materiality as a means of expressing human emotion. Both collections explore the use of textiles, experimenting with texture, colour, and opacity to understand how material influences the way light is absorbed and reflected.
Suspended over a dining table and within the curve of an arrangement of benches in the central interior, Array, designed by Umut Yamac, immediately captures visitors’ attention. Combining soft downlighting with an alluring upwards glow, the majestic, three-dimensional volumes shimmer overhead, drawing guests into the space. Solid, yet translucent, they are composed of layers of fine thread which influence the visitor’s perception of volume, weight and depth, creating an intriguing spatial experience.
Illuminating the entrance and staircase, Knit, designed by Meike Harde, creates an atmosphere of warmth and wellbeing, engaging the senses to evoke an atmosphere of nostalgia. The design consists of a single knitted sleeve stretched out over a large, curved diffuser. Its tactile nature beckons visitors to gather together, to feel its warmth and to touch its surface. Light seeps outwards through the fabric, bathing the surrounding space in an intimate glow.
Colour can instantly set a mood, convey a feeling or generate a sense of wellbeing. Exploring colour as a source of emotion, the Offset collection, designed by Xuclà, combines an industrial geometric silhouette with 18 unique tones and gradients. Positioned either side of the garden entrance to the exhibition, Offset projects a deep, bold red, creating a moody and seductive atmosphere as night falls.
Today, we revel in spaces that offer a natural indoor-outdoor transition. Architecture and design have evolved to celebrate connectivity with nature; enclosed spaces open up to invite sunlight in, while greenery breathes new life into our living spaces. Whether it’s a living room that extends onto a patio, or a restaurant with alfresco dining, we seek spaces that inspire a sense of freedom and tranquillity.
Out, designed by Víctor Carrasco, offers a romantic response to contemporary integrated living. Its poetic silhouette consists of two cones connected by a rod that bends over in a broad arch. A new typology of floor luminaire, Out provides uniform, glare-free downlighting for maximum comfort. Dotted around the generous terrace at Lom Dopolavoro, the collection creates islands of light in the darkness, illuminating the tables and seating areas with a warm, convivial glow.
Meridiano, designed by Jordi Vilaradell & Meritxell Vidal creates a calm and relaxing retreat on the terrace. Doubling up as additional seating, guests are drawn to its magnetic luminous effect. Composed of a structure of corrugated steel rods, it radiates with a burst of light and shadow that enriches the surrounding environment.
The garden also features several
Wind floor lamps, hidden amongst the trees. Designed by Jordi Vilardell, the diffuser is made from delicately woven fibreglass, producing a uniquely textured surface that invites visitors to mingle and unwind in the comfort of its scattered lighting effect.
Vibia also presented Plusminus and Out as part of the exhibition ‘Appartamento Spagnolo’ at Palazzo Castiglioni. Designed and commissioned by Elle Decor Italy and DWA Design Studio, the exhibition showcased a selection of 18 Spanish companies from the interiors industry.
As visitors explored the palace, they encountered glimpses of modern life spread over five elegant rooms and a luxurious garden, embodying the outdoor-centric lifestyle synonymous with Mediterranean culture.
