COS to collaborate with ecologic Studio during Salone del Mobile

London-based fashion brand COS will mark its return to this year’s Milan Design Week with the presentation of a large-scale collaboration with architecture and urban design practice ecologic Studio, marking its ninth consecutive installation during Salone del Mobile.

The partners say the installation “seeks to augment the interaction between the natural world and the built environment, presenting an interactive structure that bridges design and science. The immersive experience is brought to life through innovation which incorporates a diverse group of photosynthetic organisms; algae.”

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The work will “explore the concept of circularity with new ways of incorporating biotechnology into the urban realm through the prism of design… while drawing inspiration from the rich history of the Palazzo which will host it and from Leonardo da Vinci’s 16th Century studies on water turbulence which lead to the conception of Milan’s canal system”. The installation itself will remove carbon from the atmosphere, as a result of the photosynthetic process it enables, and will provide the context to investigate the multiple uses and benefits of micro-algae within the Palazzo’s walled garden.

“Sustainability and material innovation have always been at the core of COS,” said Karin Gustafsson, the brand’s Creative Director. “For Salone del Mobile this year our hope was to explore nature’s innovations and how these can be harnessed to offer new ways to live our day-to-day lives while reducing our impact on the environment and our planet. ecologic Studio’s important work displays not only how science and biology can inform and refine our processes, but also be viewed as part of the aesthetic. We are thrilled to be able collaborate on bringing their work to Milan on a grand scale.”

The installation will be open to the public from 21 to 25 April at Palazzo Simberi, Corso Monforte, Milan.