Porro – Salone Internazionale del Mobile Press Release 2019 New Items

Space solutions, furniture families, systemic projects and objects of desire, which surprise for the impeccable lines, the unusual mix of functions, the never experimented combination of materials and the new space reserved for color. For the improvement of the systems and the expansion of the collections, #porro widens the horizons and creates in 2019 a bridge between the two worlds, industrial and artisan, combining rationality and imagination, technological avant-garde and manual finishing, for a house that knows how to evolve year after year year and anticipate the needs of its inhabitants, and encourage their passions.

Guiding us in the discovery of the new #porro scenarios, once again Piero Lissoni, designer and art director of the brand since 1987, the creator and principal interpreter of the brand's style.

A leading figure of the current creative imaginarium recognized for the authority of his way of planning in the world, Piero has always been linked to #porro, which was among the first brands to capture his talent, and where he finds that freedom of thought, that impeccable level of execution, and that meticulous attention to detail that permit him to create some of his most iconic pieces for the company, such as the Ferro table from 1994, the Spindle chair from 2000, and the Ex-Libris bookshelf unit from 2011.

“For me, working with #porro is a sort of daily adventure, it’s a bit like starting over each time, it’s a kind of creative paradox and at the same time it is such a beautiful industrial model that each day there is something new to do, to change, or to invent. It’s a company made up of so many human beings and intellectual mechanisms that then transform themselves into objects, into things you can touch.”

This energy and understanding are still so strong as to bring Piero to put his signature on the upgrade of the systems and almost all of the 2019 collection, where he does the lion’s share of the work: pieces born of a constant, daily dialogue of the designer with the company. #porro and Lissoni, two complementary views of the project: two sensibilities, those of the tailor and designer, involved in delineating the brand of the contemporary era together since 1989, which from the third generation onward has specialized in systems. Two points of view, one single vision.

Piero Lissoni imagines the 2019 #porro home in an open way: the walls disappear and the furnishings become architecture and the matrix of the spaces, thanks to the hybridization of the existing systems with new functions, adapting them to new lifestyles emerging in the world. The System bookcases and equipped walls elevate themselves to double height to leave the “living strip” free, an empty space that is almost contemplative, obtained through the new Frame Grande Luce module, to be given as a gift to the desired use: to display a painting, welcome seated get-togethers, surround a piano, or to allow the landscape to enter through the window, as new permeable solutions demonstrate, allowing to #design one’s own home without setting constraints and supporting one’s passions.

Elegance rhymes with looseness in the new compositions of the Modern container system which has been freed from the constraints of modular construction and is the outcome of the mixing and matching of one’s own preferred colors and materials, such as the new vibrant arancio zucca lacquer which debuts in 2019, achieving solutions that are different and personal each time in the name of liveliness and lightness, the latest expression of the inexhaustible talent of Piero Lissoni.

A bestseller and the emblem of Porro’s ability to personalize, the Storage closet system is lightened, replacing the 24x45 mm upright with a new 25x25 mm profile with an airy sensation that provides more internal space. The new profile also makes possible the perfect integration between Storage and Storage Air, enabling the free alternating of completely transparent glass modules with others that are partially or completely enclosed, in an interplay of solids and voids which is different each time. The Hinged Storage closet is embellished by the new Oslo handle entirely crafted of wood: carved out by careful woodworking in order to remain perfectly flush with the door, giving us a clean profile and showing the extreme confidence #porro has with its favorite material.

Furthermore, for lovers of light wood, the new cherry whitemelamine finish debuts, whose silky feel simulates closed pore white-washed cherry wood, recalling its grain but attenuating its rosy coloring in a more neutral tint which enables it to marry the contemporary interiors better.

This year’s work also embraces the study of new industrial furnishings addressed to the worlds of the home and of contract where the brand is playing an increasingly leading role. Among the new products the is one of the cornerstones of the brand, the tables. The new Pascal system of tables represents the perfect synthesis of structural quality and project content. Pascal is distinguished by the visual lightness of its die-cast aluminum wing-shaped legs which is connected without interruption with the horizontal supporting structure on which the top rests, available in a variety of materials, creating an interplay of superimpositions and double thickness. Produced by the industrial soul that has enabled the attainment of unprecedent lengths, it is at the same time a sculptural piece of a plastic nature which modulates its look to adapt to the most diverse uses. Rigorous and essential for the office, elegant and seductive for contract, but also a master key for the home, with its ability to match its Iron painted metal leg with a top in solid wood, marble or ceramic: Pascal is a theorem to unfold in all its possible conjugations.

In the night area, instead, the new Byron bed debuts, conceived for a home or a hotel. The headboard in cherry white wood splits to create a base, where rest the upholstered sommier and two wide feather cushions, on which to linger to read or chat. A visual delicacy enhanced by the soft capitonné bench, for which the accessories completing its #design act as a counterpoint: the decorative trays in metal and the headboard metal frame, contrasting decorative elements which convey an authenticity with an antique flavor.

Craftsmanship is not forgotten by the Offshore series of containers by Piero Lissoniwith floating colors, evoking abstract painting and unleashing the vintage flavor of oriental furniture. Made of ash wood with 45° shelves, the result of a careful manufacturing process, these sideboards are distinguished by their doughy finish obtained through repeated manual steps thanks to which the grain, first darkened with black tones, surfaces in fascinating colors from red to blue. The opening mechanism is also unusual, thanks to an inset handle, an entirely metal-plated hole which rediscovers tactile sensations.

In addition, existing products are being presented again and transformed, creating real families: from the new oval version of the Jeff table by Gabriele and Oscar Buratti, to the larger size of the Kite Sofa couch by GamFratesi that makes it the protagonist of the living area and the Frank chair by Piero Lissoni that changes its proportions to become a club chair, perfect for waiting and relaxing.

Finally, simple geometric forms matched with the richness of the materials characterize the style of Nicola Gallizia, a Milanese designer with whom #porro began to collaborate for the 2019 collection. The small Lullaby lounge chair, with its unusual configuration and inclination, evokes the comfort and the act of cradling. Its immediate and pleasant-sounding name is almost onomatopoeic: the “L” recalls the shape of the wooden legs, while “U” identifies the couch on the floor plan, in addition to recall a rocking motion. Small object of desire with an off-plan shape that captures the gaze despite its small dimensions. Lullaby reveals sophisticated details behind its apparent simplicity, such as the small supporting foot in champagne painted metal, the ash solid structure and the covering in soft light blue fabric. This is a particular homage by #porro and the designer to the Bauhaus and its diktat of reconciling functionalism and formal purism, in an ideal fusion of artisanal artistic creation and industrial production.

PORRO @ SALONE INTERNAZIONALE DEL MOBILE

Fiera Milano-Rho, PAD 7 STAND D15-E14

Enclosed in a glass perimeter, with a floor of black painted wooden planks and lime effect walls, the Porro set up at the 2019 Salone designed by Piero Lissoni appears as a great contemporary villa with internal gardens that narrates a free project approach, with a single constraint: that of quality. Completely covered by Porro’s systems, the walls seem to vanish and the furnishings become architecture in a journey that is surprisingly rich in glimpses and changes in scenery, where the alternating of solids and voids is the main thread connecting always diverse and tailor made compositions.

In the first living area, enlivened by Palladio coffee tables with tops in different marbles combined in a divertissement of shapes and colors, one can sit comfortably on the Kite Sofa couches in their new larger 2.4 meter long version and on the Kite armchairs by GamFratesi in woven ivory fabric with a timeless charm in the name of the sophisticated elegance.

 On the side, the new Offshore cupboard by Piero Lissonienchants with the high formal quality and the surprising colors. Resting on a triangular foot, it is presented in the low version articulated in 4 enclosures with an unusual 45° connection between the side and the top and in the new carminio ash finish, result of a precious handcrafted workmanship of the surface making the natural grain of the ash come to the surface in a vibrant and unprecedented red coloration.

On the wall, a large window is framed by a Modern + Load-it double height composition designed by Piero Lissoni and Wolfgang Tolk, where the Modern base and suspended top in eucalyptus are combined with the upper Load-It bookcase with steel shelves and wall panels, in which a Modern hanging element inserts itself with its rosso cina lacquered drop-leaf door and 4 vitrines, equipped with enlightened transparent shelves and rosso cina backs.

On the opposite side, in the niche covered with the Wood Cover custom paneling system covered in fabric, two Modern new generation compositions play on the alternation of solids and voids, inserting themselves between two rosso antico painted metal shelves in a musical score of eucalyptus containers with avorio lacquered doors, embellished by interiors in multiple wooden essences, which are to be discovered with use.

Beyond the Groove bench by Piero Lissoni in natural hemlock, an exercise in simplified geometry, the second living area presents the low Ferro table by Piero Lissoni in the sculptural bronze version and two Curry couches by Piero Lissoni with their peculiar trapezoidal shape, presented in a new light conjugation with black stained oak structure and ecru fabric covering.

On the wall, the System bookshelf in eucalyptus by Piero Lissoni + #porro Research Centre constitutes an original architectural presence running from the floor to the ceiling while experimenting in different uses. A chest with drawers is topped by the new 3 meter large Frame Grande Luce module, on which a 70 cm deep shelf offers a strip where one can sit, place the television, or rest a painting and objects, thanks to a double void covered in ecru linen fabric that leaves room for the living space. The equipped wall continues above, with a first strip of enlightened vitrines and 5 more levels of shelves to place one’s collection of books and objects in full view in an orderly fashion.

The continuity of the gallery is interrupted by an Ex-Libris vitrine by Piero Lissoniwhich acts as a transparent filter for the dining room. Here the Materic table by Piero Lissoniis presented in the new larger 2 meter diameter with round top in the new Paonazzo marble, characterized by distinct grey-green speckles, resting on a tapered black stained ash base and surrounded by the decorative Frank chairs by Piero Lissoni with their shell-shaped backrests and seats covered in light blue velvet. Two Offshore sideboards by Piero Lissoni, in carminio ash with triangular cross-section legs, are instead presented in the L.100 cm high version, ideal to store dishes, glasses and cutlery, with a square front divided into 4 compartments with a geometric appeal.

A floor to ceiling Modern composition for the dining area designed by Piero Lissoni + #porro Research Centre once again plays on the emptying of the central strip embellished by a Paonazzo marble back. The lower area with a suspended chest of drawers in black stained hemlock, with a marble covering top, is separated by the upper hanging elements in black stained hemlock, including 4 vitrines with transparent glass doors, enlightened transparent shelves and a marble back, where small spotlights are inserted to illuminate the worktop.

In the study area a Modern + Load-it composition by Piero Lissoni and Wolfgang Tolk focused on the delicate visual effect of wall panels in the natural caneté texture used vertically here and horizontally there, with a Modern writing top in black stained hemlock and with two points of color: the Modern hanging element with glossy lacquered drop-leaf doors and 3 vitrines with transparent glass doors and enlightened shelves with lacquered backs, all in the new arancio zucca finish, a vibrant color which is the result of Porro’s ongoing research on finishes.

The journey continues with a System 4.5 meters high floor to ceiling composition in teak creating an architectural background next to the stair: a fun random arrangement that, thanks to areas without backs, gives life to peekaboo suggestions that recall Shoji, the dividing walls in typical Japanese homes.

Entering into the lowered area, two Ex-Libris vitrines by Piero Lissoni enclose the winter garden, where to relax on the new Frank club chair with its soft shell-shaped back and solid, sturdy metal legs that gain momentum thanks to their variable cross section.

Delimited by wide Shift sliding doors painted with a lime wall effect, which are used both on the entry and on the exteriors, the Storage Boiserie exposes ecru linen fabric covered backs and new accessories in eucalyptus: the drawers with unbroken glass tops, the inclined shoe racks, the freestanding drawer unit, the enlightened shelves and a new large solid wood shelf.

The true heart of the home is the very large Storage Dressing Room in the new cherry white melamine finish, reproducing cherry wood grain but attenuating its rose color with more neutral hues. The new square 25x25mm cross section further lightens its structure, creating an airy and roomy sensation and making the integration between Storage and Storage Air possible, as well as the alternation between completely transparent glass compartments and others which are partially or completely closed by doors. In the name of the utmost experimentation, the 2 transparent glass corners with uprights in the new cuvée finish, a module with glass back designed to enable to admire the winter garden, or the combination of glass sides with back in the new cherry white melamine finish. In the center live two Hub central drawer units by Gabriele and Oscar Buratti in eucalyptus, which alternate wood and glass drawers on one side and on the other wood drawers and a bench solution in sand colored leather with a chest where to sit to calmly contemplate one’s wardrobe, the heart of the home and a must-have item from the Porro’s offering.

The dining room revolves around the imposing Ryoba table by Piero Lissoni, with its triangular brass painted legs and 4 meter long cherry white top, composed of solid wood boards selected and matched by a master woodworker. It is surrounded by impeccable Voyage chairs by GamFratesi in black leather with black stained ash structure, while on the wall the glance is captured by Gap bookcases by Carlo Tamborini in rosso antico painted metal, a strong aesthetic signal that acts both as a bookmark and as a source of light at the same time.

The protagonist in the bedroom is the new Byron bed by Piero Lissoni in which the cherry white wood base slants, outlining a high headboard on which the sommier and two large fabric cushions rest, with decorative elements in wrought iron, accompanied by Hub bedside tables by Gabriele and Oscar Buratti in various finishes.

 The Hinged Storage closet in black sugi melamine with 32s heat treated oak displays new Oslo handles entirely made of wood and carved with careful woodworking skills, in the name of visual cleanness. Among its modules, an ecru fabric covered vanity niche injects itself, dedicated to personal care, with Load-it shelves in burnished brass and mirror wall panels, and a Modern suspended shelf in solid wood.

On the side, the Offshore chest of drawers by Piero Lissoni are exhibited in the version with exterior in blue open pore painted ash and interior in natural maple, while Boutique Mast, the new generation system which plays dual roles as walk-in closet and container, is presented in a daytime composition that separates the bedroom from the entryway, accessorized with reduced thickness shelves and a large shelf in cherry white wood.

A hanging Modern composition is composed of a large suspended vitrine in eucalyptus with scenographically illuminated carta da zucchero lacquered interiors opening up the garden behind it, in dialogue with the Load-It composition with rosso antico painted panels and shelves presented on the opposite side of the wall and interrupted at the same point, creating a visual bridge between the two spaces.

In the dining room, the new Pascal table by Piero Lissoni makes its debut with wing-shaped die-cast aluminum legs connected uninterruptedly with the horizontal supporting surface on which the solid black stained ash top rests. All around it, upholstered Pioggia chairs move with their black stained ash structure and the carta da zucchero fabric covered upholstery.

The result of the project research of #porro, the Domo composition for the day area alternates full-height compartments enclosed by tortora lacquered doors with push openings and black sugi interiors, along with a new ingredient: Bento, the black painted metal box with a wax finish and an integrated light with a chimney effect, which enables the interplay of solids and voids and creates enlightened backgrounds up to 3 meters long.

Across from it, a Modern sideboard narrates Porro’s expertise in materials and the taste of combining them. Raised up on its T-shaped metallic foot with black stained caneté doors with a dense vertical line #design and a top in Paonazzo marble, it creates an industrial product that appears to be a unique hand-crafted piece.

The night area unfolds beyond the Offshore chest of drawers in white open pore painted ash, with interior in natural maple. Lightly suspended with its welcoming and inviting shape, the Makura bed by Piero Lissoni in wide weave natural linen fabric is presented with the blue, orange and ivory Offshore bedside tables by Piero Lissoni.

A seasonal Hinged Storage closet in eucalyptus alternates compartments enclosed by glossy carta da zucchero lacquered doors with the new Block handles painted in tune with the doors, to a vitrine and the new metal box Bento: two marks, one horizontal and one vertical, interrupting the continuity of the colored surface.

On the corner,the Sidewall bookcase by Piero Lissoni in the new arancio zucca laquer goes with the new Lullaby lounge chair by Nicola Gallizia, a small object of desire with an out of the ordinary shape that captures the glance despite its small size.

Finally, in the niche covered by a linen fabric Wood Cover paneling system, the Boutique Mast walk-in closet returns in the night version, with uprights and hanging racks in burnished brass, a wide side mirror and Modern elements and tops in a pale moon finish, in the name of the utmost visual lightness and freedom of expression.

On the floor, the carpets from the Enigmi collection by Elisa Ossino in collaboration with Kashtall complete the scene, rereading the tradition of Berber master artisans in a contemporary key.