Grid lock: Adrian Cheng co-designs Shigeru Uchida’s final work at Salone del Mobile
Adrian Cheng, Hong Kong founder of the K11 Art Foundation is a regular at Art Basel and biennales but his presence at Salone del Mobile is a first. And he has arrived in style. Pitching up in the glass greenhouse at Art Deco Mecca, Villa Necchi Campiglio, he is launching a five-piece collection of furniture by the late Japanese architect Shigeru Uchida. Cheng and the legendary architect, who passed away last November, co-designed the pieces, which are inspired by Japanese tea ceremonies.
Their collection, entitled 'Khora', consists of seats and tables attached to woven or gridded screens that cast patterned shadows. They are handmade by craftsmen using Japanese bamboo and chestnut, and incorporate traditional lacquering techniques and washi paper.
‘I see them as museum pieces, reserved for collectors and institutions,' says Cheng. ‘For the time being, they’re not for sale.’ After Milan they will travel to Tokyo, and then on to Hong Kong, before Cheng finds them all appropriate homes.
Cheng and Uchida met in Hong Kong, where Cheng owns swathes of real estate and is credited with bringing art to a younger audience by exhibiting it in his shopping malls. Over the course of his 50-year career, Uchida created buildings and interiors, hotels, and boutiques among them stores for Yohji Yamamoto, and the futuristic Kobe Fashion Museum.
‘It’s my first foray into furniture design and Uchida’s last, so "Khora" holds particular significance to me,’ says Cheng. ‘It’s such a great honour to have worked alongside the master Uchida-san. Architecture-wise, since founding K11, which is partly a museum-retail concept, I’ve had many opportunities to be involved in the design process of buildings and space. There will definitely be more furniture in the future.’
INFORMATION
'Wander from Within' will take place from 4 to 8 April, at Villa Necchi Campiglio. For more information, visit the website
ADDRESS
Villa Necchi Campiglio
Via Mozart 12
20122 Milano
Italy
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Emma O'Kelly is a freelance journalist and author based in London. Her books include Sauna: The Power of Deep Heat and she is currently working on a UK guide to wild saunas, due to be published in 2025.
-
Don’t miss these artists at 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair 2024
As the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair returns to London (10-13 October 2024), here are the artists to see
By Gameli Hamelo Published
-
‘Celebrating the Capitol’ marks Chandigarh’s modernist legacy
‘Celebrating the Capitol’, an exhibition of photographic work by architect Noor Dasmesh Singh, opens just in time for the famed modernist Indian city’s anniversary
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Focal launches Diva Utopia, wireless speakers for aesthetically minded audiophiles
Focal’s felt-clad Diva Utopia speakers bring high-fidelity wireless sound to a huge range of audio applications
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
‘R for Repair’ at London Design Festival displays broken objects, re-formed
In the second half of a two-part exhibition and as part of London Design Festival 2022, ‘R for Repair’ at the V&A displays broken objects, re-formed
By Martha Elliott Last updated
-
‘Finding quality through the act of making’: Pearson Lloyd celebrates 25 years of design
Pearson Lloyd’s show ‘Change Making’ reflects on past designs from its archives, showcasing the influences on and evolution of the studio, from furniture design to the NHS
By Martha Elliott Last updated
-
Tom Dixon marks his studio's 20 years with a show of design experiments
Mushroom, cork, steel coral and more: Tom Dixon showcases an overview of his design experiments as he celebrates his practice's 20 years
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Porro unveils new London showroom at Coal Office
London Design Festival 2022: industrial architecture meets pure geometries in the new Porro showroom, taking over a space within Tom Dixon’s Coal Office to showcase the brand’s systems and furniture
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Vitra unveils new London home in the Tramshed, Shoreditch
London Design Festival 2022: after a year-long renovation, Vitra opens the door to its new showroom in the heart of Shoreditch
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated
-
Mudlarking beside the River Thames inspires The New Craftsmen’s makers
London Design Festival 2022: The New Craftsmen’s new collection, ‘Claylarks’, features work from a group of creatives inspired by a River Thames mudlarking expedition
By Mary Cleary Last updated
-
One tree, ten designers: SCP presents The One Tree Project at London Design Festival
London Design Festival 2022: SCP enlisted ten British designers to create furniture and objects from a felled ash tree from founder Sheridan Coakley's Hampshire garden
By Francesca Perry Last updated
-
London Design Medals 2022
London Design Medals 2022 are awarded to costume designer Sandy Powell, architect Indy Johar, researcher Joycelyn Longdon and photographer Sir Don McCullin
By Rosa Bertoli Last updated