On the occasion of Milan Design Week, the artist and the Japanese design studio present a new collaboration and the Official Italia met Daniel Arsham to chat about how this completely disruptive design combo was born.&nbsp;

The multidisciplinary artist <a href="https://www.lofficielibiza.com/search?query=daniel+arsham" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daniel Arsham</a> and the Japanese design studio nendo collaborate giving life to Break to Make, the result of a creative dialogue that lasted over four years. The American artist, fascinated by the creative production of nendo, transforms each form with humour and playful complexity, creating new functions following a process of deconstruction: from a shape similar to a bathtub an armchair emerged, from a tall and square a console. A collaboration based on a poetic approach and the superimposition of two opposing perspectives: on the one hand the desire to revise present objects as <a href="https://www.lofficielibiza.com/art/art-world-scandals-mona-lisa-banksy-anna-delvey" target="_blank" rel="noopener">artefacts </a>of the past and on the other a designer who creates present objects that anticipate the future, as nendo states. The result of the collaboration, which unites the past, present and future, prompts the viewer to rethink their perception of chronology, movement and space. The preview of the collab takes place for a selected audience of about ten editors, where Oki Sato and Daniel Arsham welcome the journalists, with whom it is possible to chat freely about the project and the <a href="https://www.lofficielibiza.com/ibiza/fashion-pop-ups-ibiza" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Salone del Mobile</a>, which was a reason for meeting with Oki and which sealed the start of the project.
L'OFFICIEL ITALIA: You met four years ago, why did the collaboration only see the light in 2023?
Daniel Arsham: It took about 4 years of communication, but then it all happened within a couple of hours during a Zoom Call. I've worked a lot in collaboration with many different designers and artists, and the process is often very different. In this case, we met initially. This was before COVID in Tokyo. I visited Oki's office. And we started talking about a potential collaboration and we were very focused on a material at first, how our interaction was going to be done because of COVID, that didn't allow us to communicate directly. And so we had the simple idea that we would focus on the differences between the two studies' approaches. Nendo is very concerned with precision and perfection and order, whereas mine is about decay and a kind of chaos and disorder. And so I said to Oki "why don't you develop some designs of objects that could take on various functions?" A coffee table or bench could be created from a larger piece of matter. This stool obviously derives from a section of this table and therefore I have broken parts of it to create a new function, which derives from the main piece. And so I created all the prototypes, which were originally made in foam and if you see it in the film (see below) it was all created as all the breaks were done during this time. The final material is plaster, as if it were a mould.
LOIT: Will these furnishing accessories go into production, will it be possible to buy them?
DA: Each piece will be reproduced and there are different shades or colours. Yes. So there will be one of each: pink and white, blue and grey.
LOIT: What do you like about the Salone del Mobile?
DA: I've been coming here for 10 years for the Salone and I've made many friends here in Milan, which for me has always been just a place where you can see all the new design innovations. I've showcased my work here many times, and have always enjoyed coming to see the work of heritage brands like Memphis Milano. Design has its own fascination, I think growing up in the States made me realize how much more attention is paid to art in my country, there isn't a real community of design enthusiasts. It has always been in Milan. Here I also want to say that the first time I saw Nendo's work was right here in Milan.
LOIT: What does Daniel Arsham do when he's in Milan?
DA: I came a day early to come and see Inter play, even if we lost it was a good experience. And then I would say that it is impossible not to meet at Bar Basso, it is the place where I meet friends from all sectors. It seems that it has always been the community's favorite meeting point.
The "Break to Make" collab is presented in conjunction with the Salone del Mobile with an installation at nendo's <a href="https://www.lofficielibiza.com/design/alcove-2023-interview-with-joseph-grima-and-valentina-ciuffi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Milan</a> headquarters in via Pinamonte da Vimercate, 4, from 18 to 23 April.

Break to Make: interview Daniel Arsham on the occasion of the collab with nendo

Break to Make: interview Daniel Arsham on the occasion of the collab with nendo

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