Spinning a yarn: Angela Missoni turns her hand to performance art and craft
Last November, Angela Missoni caught a performance of Romina de Novellis’ La Veglia in the Geneva home of collectors Julie Castoriano Bugnone and Edoardo Bugnone. The performance artist unravelled a web of yarn in the nude for a whole day, as a failed attempt at the liberation of the body. ‘You should be nearly entering the meditation that she is while she’s doing the knots,’ says Bugnone. ‘Listening to these traditional songs from the south of Italy that are sung in the local dialect.’
Raphael Castoriano, the founder of Kreëmart
and Missoni’s friend and art advisor, suggested that the fashion designer bring the performance to New York. The problem, was, she didn't have a house in the city. ‘I said, “No, we’re going to recreate the space”,’ recalls Angela. Castoriano was receptive, and called on his network to help fill the Missoni flagship store with art and furniture, while Angela provided her own personal possessions. Salotto Angela Missoni was born, with De Novellis’ performance inaugurating the space for the first three days. Part of the brand’s 'Surface Conversion' mission to merge art and fashion, the Kreëmart
-presented space will be open by invitation in Missoni’s Upper East Side boutique until 22 April.
Inside Raphael Castoriano and Angela Missoni's installation space, featuring Missoni poufs and a carpet by ABC
‘We wanted to create a salon so people would speak to each other and what you see here – some people talking, some people leaving, coming back,’ says Castoriano, who filled it with work by artists including Tracey Emin and Nir Hod – all practitioners held in Missoni’s collection. ‘My houses are very much alive, always between friends and family,’ she continues.
Upon entering the Salotto, which feels like a bohemian living room, guests are greeted by a photographic work by Mickalene Thomas. Further in stands a sculpture by Josephine Meckseper. Assouline coffee-table books fill the shelves, while exotic rugs cover the floors. Angela added her own trinkets, like vintage Missoni pillows, family photographs and even a Missoni Barbie doll. ‘I have sort of decoration, which is kind of eclectic,’ says Angela. ‘A mix of precious and less precious things – things that are precious for me.’
Both Castoriano and Missoni emphasised the need to keep the gatherings small, thus keeping it to a select group of friends and family. ‘It cannot be a crowded space,’ says Missoni. ‘We need to keep this intimate.’
INFORMATION
Salotto Angela Missoni is on view until 22 April. For more information, visit the Kreëmart website or the Missoni website
ADDRESS
Missoni
1009 Madison Ave
New York NY 10075
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ann Binlot is a Brooklyn-based freelance writer who covers art, fashion, design, architecture, food, and travel for publications like Wallpaper*, the Wall Street Journal, and Monocle. She is also editor-at-large at Document Journal and Family Style magazines.
-
Don't miss Luxembourg's retro-futuristic lab pavilion in Venice
As the Venice Biennale enters its last few weeks, catch 'A Comparative Dialogue Act' at the Luxembourg Pavilion
By Amah-Rose Abrams Published
-
A Berlin park atop an office building offers a new model of urban landscaping
A Berlin park and office space by Grüntuch Ernst Architeken offer a symbiotic relationship between urban design and green living materials
By Michael Webb Published
-
Chaumet’s new book celebrates its most memorable collaborations with photographers
'Chaumet: Photographers’ Gaze' unites jewellery editorials and campaigns captured by major photographers. Co-author Carol Woolton tells us of the ‘addictive' Chaumet archive
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Your new summer sandals, care of Missoni’s first collaboration with Suicoke
Arriving just in time for summer, Missoni has revealed its first collaborative project with Japanese footwear label Suicoke, merging the former’s colourful codes with the latter’s signature performance sandals
By Jack Moss Last updated
-
Sarah Moon brings painterly fashion and dark fantasy to Fotografiska New York
Octogenarian French photographer and filmmaker Sarah Moon shows 30 years of work at Fotografiska New York – spanning fashion and fantasy, mystery and the macabre, it’s dark, painterly and compelling
By Pei-Ru Keh Last updated
-
‘In America: A Lexicon of American Fashion' is coming to The Met
The first of a two-part, year-long extravaganza, ‘In America: A Lexicon of American Fashion’ is organised into 12 sections that seek to define the emotional qualities in American style
By Pei-Ru Keh Last updated
-
Saint Laurent celebrates 40 years of Memphis Group
Memphis Group's milestone birthday is celebrated with a series of colourful furniture installations across the French maison's concept boutiques
By Laura Hawkins Last updated
-
‘A place for the eye to pause’: Ulla Johnson unveils New York HQ
The Manhattan-born fashion designer opens a warmly-hued style sanctuary, created in collaboration with architect Rafael de Cárdenas
By Tilly Macalister-Smith Last updated
-
Es Devlin-designed time-travelling exhibition opens at The Met’s Costume Institute
‘Our aim is to communicate the phenomenon of time as it is expressed through the female form,’ says Devlin of the exhibition she has designed alongside curator Andrew Bolton
By Pei-Ru Keh Last updated
-
Theory A/W 2020 New York Fashion Week Women’s
By Tilly Macalister-Smith Last updated
-
Michael Kors A/W 2020 New York Fashion Week Women’s
By Tilly Macalister-Smith Last updated