’Where Architects Live’ gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield at the Salone del Mobile

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield at the Salone del Mobile
Francesca Molteni and Davide Pizzigoni's 'Where Architects Live' Salone exhibition interprets the personal spaces of eight of the world's most prominent architects, before we take you inside their private residences
(Image credit: press)

It's unclear as to whether myth-busting was on the original agenda of 'Where Architects Live', a show of installations by Francesca Molteni and Davide Pizzigoni at this year's Salone del Mobile. Molteni's project has evolved over nine months, and initially began as an insight into the personal living space of some of the world's most acclaimed architects.

The curator, director and educator has run the MUSE Factory of Projects since 2003 and has been intimately involved with the Salone for many years. 'We thought it would be interesting to see how the big names of architecture, the ones who are really changing the world, live,' Molteni says. 'Do they rent? Do they just have a place to sleep in? Is it a house or an apartment?'

Even though Molteni maintains that the idea 'wasn't voyeuristic, but the idea of discovering details about the connections between their life and work', potential participants weren't convinced. 'What we discovered was that it was hard for them to open the doors to the public. It was a private world, their only place to be out of public life.'

Instead, what has emerged is a hybrid of new design and personal autobiography. After visiting, filming and photographing the subjects, Molteni and Pizzigoni, an architect and theatre designer, have created eight 10 sq m installations in the Fiera's Pavilion 9. The intention is to create a domestic sphere that draws inspiration from the real homes of each participant, conjuring up their material and spatial qualities as well as the relationship between place, things and life.

And what participants. The involvement of Shigeru Ban, Mario Bellini, David Chipperfield, Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas, Zaha Hadid, Marcio Kogan, Daniel Libeskind and Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai will certainly pique the interest of most Salone-goers. 'They opened their private homes for filming,' says Molteni, 'and we took photographs and sketches, collecting all the elements needed to design the installations.' The result delivers an undeniable thrill as you step over the thresholds of these industry titans.

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'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

The installation features eight 10 sq m spaces that reflect Molteni's findings throughout the nine months spent travelling the world, entering the personal lives and habitats of these architects. This room interprets Tokyo-based architect Shigeru Ban's zen aesthetic, showcasing his organic cut-outs and use of light

(Image credit: press)

Archtiects Live Installation

The intention of the exhibit is to conjure up the material and spacial qualities of the homes, as well as the relationship between place, things and life. This window with a view installation reinforces the cinematic approach of Marcio Kogan's São Paulo dwelling

(Image credit: press)

Archtiects Live Installation

In one corner of the space, Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas' Paris apartment is represented with a series of Jean Prouvé pieces and antique warrior statues that guard the threshold

(Image credit: press)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

David Chipperfield's favoured dwelling - his new building in the Mitte District of Berlin - has been depicted with a playful representation of his affection for the city

(Image credit: press)

Archtiects Live Installation

The architects, including Zaha Hadid, opened their homes for filming, 'and we took photographs and sketches, collecting all the elements needed to design the installations,' says Molteni

(Image credit: press)

Archtiects Live Installation

Bijoy Jain's space represents his reading room, located in the heart of his Studio Mumbai complex, surrounded by ancient trees, craftsmen and many dogs

(Image credit: press)

Archtiects Live Installation

Daniel Libeskind's blank canvas riffs off the fact that the architect regularly changes location

(Image credit: press)

Step inside the exhibition through Molteni and Pizzigoni's film. Production by Muse

Daniel Libeskind

Extending the exhibition, we meet the designers and take a peak into their natural habitats. Daniel Libeskind (pictured) has called seven major cities home since starting his career, the latest being New York.

(Image credit: Davide Pizzigoni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Instead of being just about the space, Libeskind's home is about the objects he takes with him - his books, an Aalto chaise longue, a 1905 lamp - all of which shape his domestic sphere, no matter the geographic location.

(Image credit: Nicola Tranquillino)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

'A big part of home is not just where you lay your head, but who you are and what you have around you,' says Libeskind. 'Those objects become what remains of home.'

(Image credit: Nicola Tranquillino)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

After travelling from Poland to Tel Aviv, the Bronx to Berlin, Milan to Detroit, Libeskind chose New York as his home with his artifacts retracing his journey.

(Image credit: Nicola Tranquillino)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

David Chipperfield has identified his recent studio project in Berlin's Mitte district as his domestic ideal. The architect originally chose Berlin as his base after the city commissioned him to rebuild the Neues Museum in 1997.

(Image credit: Ingrid Von Kruse)

German office

This site not only includes the practice's German office, but also a grandly-scaled residence on the upper floors.

(Image credit: Semon Menges)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

The apartment is sparsely furnished with mid-century Italian designs

(Image credit: Davide Pizzigoni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

The apartment is built from concrete blocks with large windows overlooking the street and courtyard.

(Image credit: Simon Menges)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Within this courtyard Chipperfield has also designed a canteen. It's a place where locals can meet along with his studio's staff.

(Image credit: Ute Zscharnt)

Marcio Kogan

Marcio Kogan still lives in the first building he designed back in the 1980s - a cheerfully chaotic space on the 12th floor of a São Paulo block.

(Image credit: Romulo Fialdini)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Inside, every surface is filled with mementoes: be it a book, toy, piece of art or traveller's ephemera.

(Image credit: Marcio Kogan)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

'My apartment is not special,' he explains from his office in Brazil, 'I don't have time for me. But I have a huge collection, just to create a story of my life.'

(Image credit: Marcio Kogan)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

The internal staircase mimicks the pattern of the building's raw bricks

(Image credit: Marcio Kogan)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

When the roller shutters are lifted, the building's windows frame the view over the city; like huge panoramic screens for an architect who dreamt of the cinema.

(Image credit: Marcio Kogan)

Mario Bellini has a similar relationship to the power of objects as aides-memoires

Mario Bellini has a similar relationship to the power of objects as aides-memoires

(Image credit: Davide Pizzigoni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

His current home is part of a large 19th century mansion reworked by the late Italian architect Piero Portaluppi to which Bellini has added a library tower that threads through the two storeys, rising up nine metres and containing thousand of books.

(Image credit: Davide Pizzigoni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

'[The library tower] is the symbolic heart of my house,' the architect says. 'Whenever I go up, I have to go through all my books, my records, my objects, my works of art. It's a rewarding journey for me.

(Image credit: Davide Pizzigoni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

In Paris' Place des Vosges, Massimiliano Fuksas (left) and partner Doriana (right) share an airy, Parisian apartment.

(Image credit: Moreno Maggi, Carlo Gavazzeni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

'We've never designed a home for ourselves from scratch,' she says of their Paris residence, 'but we opened up the space.'

(Image credit: Aki Furudate)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

The home includes original Jean Prouvé furniture and artworks from Fontana to Paladino.

(Image credit: Aki Furudate)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Shigeru Ban's Tokyo home was designed with a monkish simplicity

(Image credit: press)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

When creating the property in the late 1990s, Ban's central challenge was to avoid pulling down a single tree from Tokyo's Hanegi forest, and to instead build the house around them

(Image credit: Hiroyuki Hirai)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Ban's home stands immobile within this tranquil Tokyo district, fitted out with the bare minimum of furnishings: 'a round table, a Terragni chair and masses of light'.

(Image credit: Hiroyuki Hirai)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

From an aerial view you can see the holes where the trees are encouraged to 'grow' through the architecture

(Image credit: Hiroyuki Hirai)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Architect Bijoy Jain's home in India is also the base of his practice, Studio Mumbai.

(Image credit: Studio Mumbai)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

His home is immersed within the countryside of Alibag, some 30 kilometres from the centre of Mumbai.

(Image credit: Francesca Molteni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

The house has been designed by Jain to capture the light and shadows of each day.

(Image credit: Francesca Molteni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

A large swimming pool melds seamlessly with the garden's ancient trees.

(Image credit: Francesca Molteni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Paired-back and tranquil, the house reflects the atmosphere of a meditation space

(Image credit: Francesca Molteni)

Zaha Hadid

Zaha Hadid describes herself as a gypsy of no fixed abode.

(Image credit: Brigitte Lacombe)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Her memories lie in her childhood home in Baghdad, however she now lives in an open-plan space in London

(Image credit: Davide Pizzigoni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Some of her early designs, inspired by the revolutionary Russian artist El Lissitzky, adorn these walls.

(Image credit: Davide Pizzigoni)

'Where Architects Live' gives us a glimpse inside the homes of industry titans from Zaha Hadid to David Chipperfield

Skylights and large windows allow light to flood into the space - no matter the weather outside.

(Image credit: Davide Pizzigoni)

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Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House. He is also the host of Wallpaper’s first podcast.