The Molteni Group has refurbished its Molteni&C Dada flagship store in Madrid, thereby consolidating its long-standing partnership with Concepto DR, leaders in prestigious home furnishings and a benchmark for design in Madrid. With the Madrid opening, the Molteni Group has taken a significant step in its ambitious plan to requalify its own distribution network.
Internationally renowned designer and long-term Molteni&C partner Patricia Urquiola was patroness of honour at the inaugural evening.
The showroom is located in calle Castelló nº 7, the Salamanca quarter, one of Madrid’s most elegant; it was named after José de Salamanca y Mayol, marquis of Salamanca, who promoted and commissioned its construction in the 19th century. The quarter has become one of the Spanish capital’s main shopping districts, as well as one with the highest standards of living in Europe. It is also Madrid’s main luxury triangle, centred around upmarket streets,such as Serrano, Claudio Coello and Ortega y Gasset.
The flagship store is housed inside what was once an old warehouse. It features large spaces and high ceilings. The space is designed as a huge loft, reached through a wide corridor. The design has encompassed both the original flooring and also the exposed ceiling with its zenithal lighting system. The end result is a neutral space that successfully highlights the various Molteni&C and Dada design projects.
AMONG THE BESTSELLERS PRESENT IN THE FLAGSHIP STORE
• GLOVE Design by Patricia Urquiola; The Chicago Athenaeum Good Design Award 2007. Technological structure with built-in padding is held taut by a light metal structure. This idea has produced a whole range of unconventional seating solutions, chair, chair with arms and armchair: flexible aerial surfaces at the service of comfort. Leather or fabric.
• GLISS-UP Design by Patricia Urquiola. Gliss-Up is the first entirely suspended bedroom system. In her approach to wardrobes, Patricia Urquiola overturns the traditional concept that simply stands units on the floor; they are instead suspended to the wall. The space below is now freed up for use in other ways: for instance, with large shelves, these too suspended, to provide a space for drawer units, baskets and original design accessories.
• DIAMOND Design by Patricia Urquiola; Red Dot design award, Best of the Best 2005. A range of tables with wrapped and folded feet like a delicate origami. The square or rectangular tops are available in glass or wood, the support structure is either shiny aluminium or glossy lacquered.
• BOW Design by Patricia Urquiola. Some simple lines on paper and the decision to intersect two curved surfaces: the outcome is this little gem designed by Patricia Urquiola. Either as a small table or a bedside table, Bow has fun interpreting several roles in the home. Its intriguing design makes use of the bent plywood technique to create a shape that is totally rounded, with no corners or joins.
MOLTENI&C COLLECTION
• CHELSEA COLLECTION Design by Rodolfo Dordoni, The Chelsea collection of chairs and armchairs is enriched with three new components: a sofa, a low-backed armchair and a pouff. These items complete a project by the Milanese designer that has received widespread acclaim since its launch in 2014. Textiles and leathers from the Molteni&C collection enrich the project, making it unique and timeless.
• FULHAM Design by Rodolfo Dordoni, Fulham Road, in the heart of the city of London, gives its name to the bed that the Milanese designer has created for a comfortable and regenerating night’s sleep. The wooden base, available in a range of colours to match any bedroom decor, makes the bed the protagonist of itself. The wrap-around textile or leather headboard provides a cosy and relaxing niche; a bench to be placed at the foot of the bed completes the project.
• FILIGREE Design by Rodolfo Dordoni. Filigree is a range of fixed size and extendable tables. Die-cast aluminium frames underpin tops enhanced by a wide range of finishes. The technological devices adopted play a key role with telescopic extension systems, thin reinforced tops and dedicated surface treatments for each type of material used. Fixed size rectangular and square versions and one extendable rectangular version enhance the design with functional features.
• REVERSI XL Design by Studio Hannes Wettstein, Reversi XL is a new version with a deeper seat (112 cm) compared to the Reversi’14 successfully presented at last year’s Salone. A modular sofa, attentive to the latest trends for soft divans with generous armrests, cushions and hi-tech padding. Reversi XL can be combined with all the elements of Reversi’14, thereby extending the modularity of the original design and increasing its suitability for complex furnishing projects.
• SEGRETO Design by Ron Gilad. Even in these modern high-tech times, when data and information can be conveniently stored in tiny USB devices, we still have a physical space in our homes in which to keep and file away documents and objects we consider important. No more old-fashioned desks with drawers, compartments for files, cabinets protected by intricate locks: their place is now taken by a triangular unit to suspend from a wall at any height, its bottom section opening up to reveal its secrets. Inside are tiny shelves and drawers in which to file away documents, letters, small books and other objects that need to be safely stored for retrieval at will.
• SWEETDREAMS Design by Ron Gilad. The Sweetdreams bed, presented last year as a multimedia installation, has joined the Molteni&C collection. This design, featuring slender, well-proportioned forms, was deeply inspired by tradition, and the art of cabinetmaking played an essential role in defining the profile of the high, upholstered headboard and the bedframe supported by tall feet at the sides. Sweetdreams is an evocative design, focused on transmitting wellness deriving from tranquillity that can draw on our bodies’ relaxing, regenerating energies.
DADA
• VELA Design by Dante Bonuccelli. Vela is a timeless classic, now available in Dante Bonuccelli’s updated version. Doors are a mere 13 mm thick, slim to the point of imperceptibility. Technology is cutting edge but discreet and includes an intriguing new mechanism that allows doors to swing open. In the new version of the collection, handles have become a graphic feature emphasizing the horizontal lines of the surfaces and underlining the horizontal lines of the worktops. Countertops present slender, overlapping lines that conceal the manufacturing technology. PanelIing materials include Eucalyptus essence.
ARMANI/DADA
• CHECKERS Design by Giorgio Armani, This project is based on the theme of the open-plan kitchen, conceived for big spaces with large-scale kitchens in linear, corner or wall configurations. This work area of the house is interpreted using formal, sober and essential design language, highlighting the elegance of the composition. Precious natural woods, exclusive lacquers and textured, multilined back-painted glass are combined with the natural stone worktop. The use of materials enhances the smooth surface of the furniture, giving it a 3D effect, emphasised by the compositional use of LED lighting in the bottom of the wall units and under the worktop. Framed by the structure, the set-back wall units acquire a refined and minimal look.
For more info, visit www.molteni.it