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.
'AU3' chair, (detail), 2016-17
‘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.’
'Encounter' structure, 2016-17
'AU1' chair, 2016-17
The collection is inspired by both Japanese scenery and tea ceremonies
'AU3' chair, 2016-17, pictured by Lake Motosuko
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
-
Vestre’s neo-brutalist furniture will bring ‘a little madness’ to Paris Fashion WeekBound for Paris Men’s Fashion Week this month, Norwegian furniture brand Vestre reveals a sculptural bench and mirror created with designer Vincent Laine and fashion creative Willy Cartier – the latest outcome of its risk-taking ‘a little madness’ initiative
-
For its latest runway show, Zegna creates a serene oasis in DubaiThe Italian fashion house took over the Dubai Opera for a S/S 2026 show that proposed a lived-in elegance, drawing inspiration from Dubai’s sunbaked landscapes and Zegna’s birthplace of Trivero
-
Time-travel to the golden age of the cruise ship at Sea Containers LondonThe South Bank hotel celebrates its tenth anniversary with four new suites inspired by period cabin design, from Edwardian elegance to 1980s glamour
-
‘Disabled people have always been here’: a new V&A show centres on disability in designCurator Natalie Kane takes us through five key exhibits from the London show, where design points the way to a more inclusive society
-
Malta’s London Design Biennale installation ‘reclaims death as a moment of reflection, not fear’Wallpaper* speaks with Andrew Borg Wirth, curator of Malta's installation, ‘URNA’, which reimagines cremation rituals
-
11 things that caught our eye at Clerkenwell Design Week 2025The Wallpaper* team bring you highlights from London’s Clerkenwell Design Week (20-22 May) – from public installations to product launches and a biscuit bar
-
‘R for Repair’ at London Design Festival displays broken objects, re-formedIn 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
-
‘Finding quality through the act of making’: Pearson Lloyd celebrates 25 years of designPearson 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
-
Tom Dixon marks his studio's 20 years with a show of design experimentsMushroom, cork, steel coral and more: Tom Dixon showcases an overview of his design experiments as he celebrates his practice's 20 years
-
Porro unveils new London showroom at Coal OfficeLondon 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
-
Vitra unveils new London home in the Tramshed, ShoreditchLondon Design Festival 2022: after a year-long renovation, Vitra opens the door to its new showroom in the heart of Shoreditch
