SEM Showroom Opens in Milan.

After debuting at Milan Design Week 2018, Milanese brand SEM (Spotti Edizioni Milano) has opened its first ever showroom. Whilst design store Spotti Milano has been in Milan for over thirty years, SEM was born in response to a growing demand for exclusive Italian design in both the local and international market.

Styled by Valentina Cameranesi and Enrico Pompili, the 250 sqm interior is both a sales and exhibition space for clients to get a firsthand look at SEM’S multi-faceted offerings. Current featured collections include Pivot by Giacomo Moor, Futuraforma by Marcante-Testa, Check by Elisa Ossino, and Gold and Rose Gold by Paolo Rizzo. The space is configured to best display the attributes of each collection while encapsulating SEM’s philosophy of blending project culture with industrial logic.

Hanging canvases in alternatively soft and bold colours by Kvadrat fabrics divide the showroom into various sections, whilst strategically guiding the visitor’s eye throughout the space. A bookcase of carefully selected vases from Collezione Massimo Minini adds a component of delicate detail amongst the chic-yet-stark display area.

Varnished red brick floors give a dramatic contrast to the bright white walls and ceiling. It’s an almost trippy perspective as if you’re traversing across a wall that should be vertical. Mirrored platforms elevate certain pieces both literally and figuratively, while others are best displayed standing on a white platform, or simply on the brick floor.

Pivot by Giacomo Moor takes inspiration from the pivoting mechanism of doors. Each structure is made of minimalist tubular iron, enriched by fossil elm shelves, lacquered containers, and brass-etched doors with colourful patina.

Futuraforma by Andrea Marcante and Adelaide Testa dramatizes the concept of custom furniture commissions with bold hybrid objects. Duale brings two distinct tables together, one with a laminate surface, the other with white Lasa marble. Their size is imposing when combined, and the structure reconfigured as a pastiche of red mahogany, steel, painted iron and black MDF.

Inspired by the chromatic contrast of a checkered pattern, Check by Elisa Ossino features textured grid surfaces, dashed through to expose the wood grain. Ossino contrasts soft grey tones with pops of vibrant colour, courtesy of tubular iron coated with liquid rubber.

Gold and Rose Gold by Paolo Rizzo recalls the traditional, jewel-like furnishings of Italian upper-class households. Rizzo uses 24-carat gold-plated supermirror steel and glossy pink metallic alloy to create an eye-catching sideboard, chest of drawers, tables, and lamps. Interior drawers panelled in mohair velvet add an extra opulent touch.

[Images courtesy of SEM. Showroom photography by Delfino Sisto Legnani. Product photography by Mattia Balsamini and Silvia Rivoltella.]