18 Pockets: Giopato&Coombes’ Magical Exploration of Light at Milan Design Week 2023.

Giopato&Coombes lighting installation, 18 Pockets at Milan Design Week 2023. Photo by Nathalie Krag.

Giopato&Coombes lighting installation, 18 Pockets at Milan Design Week 2023. Photo by Nathalie Krag.

Cristiana Giopato and Christopher Coombes alongside their magical installation. Photo by Nathalie Krag.

Details of the immersive glass and lighting installation captured by Nathalie Krag.

Photo by Nathalie Krag.

Photo by Nathalie Krag.

A concept mood board by Giopato&Coombes that captures the energy of their Milan show.

“When we put our hands in our pockets finding a little forgotten thing inside, we are immediately transported into a journey of memories: a soft whisper from a loved one, that incredible smell of our favourite food, the warm embrace of a windy spring day, a pleasing melody we learned in our childhood. As the little things, the important ones, dance together between our fingers, we let our thoughts travel to other temporalities with a newfound smile.”

This is the perfect introduction to 18 Pockets by Giopato&Coombes—an immersive lighting exhibition that offered a journey into six years of research during Milan Design Week 2023. Inspired by the poem “Il Cosario”—which narrates how valued objects collected through the years are timeless emotional activators—the Italo-British designer duo’s own pocket of memories is envisioned as an immersive wunderkammer displayed in the Giopato&Coombes Milan Gallery on Via S. Maurilio, 19, where their iconic elements flow in the exhibition space.

“In this choral experiment of light, we recognize components from the previous collections—such as Maewha, Flauti, and Gem—in newfound charming combinations,” explain Cristiana Giopato and Christopher Coombes, the architect and designer couple, who, after working with Patricia Urquiola and George Sowden respectively, opened their studio in 2006 and in 2014 launched their first collection.

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Supernatural Daydreams and Divine Lighting Collections by Giopato & Coombes.

The palpable, all-consuming passion for design from these designers has seen them create some of the most awe-inspiring and original lighting collections we’ve ever encountered...

Trusting the process, the designers let their compositions morph into new, unique, and one-of-a-kind pieces through a system of weight and balance. The lighting elements are composed of different glass technologies co-realized with Venetian artisans. The latest innovative LED lights are held together by a flexible tube, all becoming co-agents of creation. Once again, creative imagination meets research excellence, championing the importance of experimentation for Giopato&Coombes.

As in children’s pockets, entering the exhibition space, we find ourselves immersed in an oneiric realm where everything is valued as a precious treasure. We learn again about the importance of holding into our dearest memories and dreams.

For more information, visit giopatocoombes.com.

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The Making of 18 Pockets by Cristiana and Christopher. Photo by Mattia Balsamini.

Meticulously detailed render of the glass and lighting installation pre-show by Giopato&Coombes.

[Images courtesy of Giopato&Coombes. Photography by Nathalie Krag & Mattia Balsamini.]