Stories Federico Villa, design and the Anthropocene Text by Alessandro Ronchi Photo by Federico Villa Add to bookmarks Bomori Architetti, Roma, photo courtesy Federico Villa The Como-born photographer homes in on design and architecture, as well as exploring the complex relationship between humans and nature Plusultra Studio, near Milano, photo courtesy Federico Villa Villa specialises in design and architecture, photographing iconic objects such as the Artemide lamp and Osvaldo Borsani’s armchairs, or the typical forms of architects’ interiors for leading sectoral publications. The other side to his work leverages “photography as a language for archiving the contemporary through a critical reading of the relationship between the natural and the artificial.” Torre Milano, photo courtesy Federico Villa Are the ski station, seen as an intrusive out of place micro-world, and the submerged bench (caused by rising sea levels?) examples of human invasion and nature fighting back? Then, like still lifes, there are his heaps of cartridge cases, of graphite pencil stubs, allusive of a discourse on raw material extraction and hunting, as if taken from a bottomless natural pit, transformed into an added value not without knock-on effects. Ortalli Verrier Architetti, Bellagio, photo courtesy Federico Villa From the series Pastoral, 2022, photo courtesy Federico Villa From the series Pastoral, 2022, photo courtesy Federico Villa photo courtesy Federico Villa Studio Wok, Milano, photo courtesy Federico Villa Fernweh Architettura, Milano, photo courtesy Federico Villa Studio Wok, Bormio, photo courtesy Federico Villa Artemide 2021, photo courtesy Federico Villa Human Code, Roberto Sironi, photo courtesy Federico Villa Human Code, Roberto Sironi, photo courtesy Federico Villa From the series Pastoral, 2022, photo courtesy Federico Villa From the series Pastoral, 2022, photo courtesy Federico Villa Supercake, near Milano, photo courtesy Federico Villa Ortalli Verrier, library near Milano, photo courtesy Federico Villa Mogu, photo courtesy Federico Villa From the series Pastoral, 2022, photo courtesy Federico Villa From the series Pastoral, 2022, photo courtesy Federico Villa Osvaldo Borsani ADV for Triennale Milano, photo courtesy Federico Villa 5 February 2022 Share
Stories Designing outdoor spaces: parks and playgrounds to (re)discover From the new permanent installation by Parasite 2.0 in Piedmont to the skatepark outside the Centre Pompidou designed by the artist Raphaël Zarka and local architect Jean-Benoît Vétillard Serena Scarpello
Exhibitions Vases, carpets, plates, screens: the barometer of decoration The latest edition of the Salone del Mobile.Milano confirmed the trend towards ornamentation, marking out contemporary living spaces. Celebrating its buzz in the name of expressive freedom. Giulia Zappa
Salone Selection The holiday library. 5 important books to savor tranquilly From Robert Wilson’s chairs to fables about the Castiglioni brothers. From the Compasso d’Oro to Beatrice Leanza’s thoughts and a bookazine on luxury. Essential reading for all those with a passion for the topic. Patrizia Malfatti