Following a preview at Fuorisalone 2023, the new Porro showroom in Milan, designed by the brand’s art director Piero Lissoni and located at Via Visconti di Modrone 29, officially opens its doors.
‘It is a space that did not previously exist because it was not a store, and it has a number of interesting features,’ says Maria Porro, head of marketing and communication Porro, citing the building's double heights, with a ceiling height of over six metres. 'They are critical features for us who work with systems.’
New Porro showroom in Milan
High windows framed by steel-clad columns allow the passing visitor to peer into what one would not expect to see in a furniture store, such as theatrical costumes, spectacular headdresses and then paintings, ceramics, sculptures, glass works: ‘Together with Piero Lissoni, we decided to work with very neutral but architectural finishes, much like in an art gallery, where individual objects become protagonists, transmitting warmth and materiality,’ says Porro, pointing at works on loan (and in some cases for sale) from Antonia Jannone gallery, the Alessandro Mendini Archive and the SlowCostume laboratory, among others.
Once inside, a white expanded metal parapet exploits the great heights by defining the limits of a mezzanine while maintaining transparency. At the entrance, an Inlay chest of drawers, with some perfectly matching Wooden sculptures by Matteo di Ciommo on top, welcomes you into the bedroom, which is dominated by the Piero Lissoni's Byron bed.
On the opposite side is the wardrobe area with the Storage Boiserie, the walk-in closet Boutique Mast and two central Acquario chests that serve as an elegant display for the sunny and warm nuances of Ramon Enrich's small paintings on display. On the back, Porro's flexible wardrobe solutions feature long structured dresses, pleated skirts, and an armourette with neoprene wings from SlowCostume, as well as architectural or languid headdresses by designer and artisan Francesco Ballestrazzi.
‘I have a background in theatre,’ adds Porro. ‘We wanted theatrical presences populating the architectures, so we used stage costumes for the wardrobes, collaborating with a costumes design studio from Rome where I worked for many years for dramatic pieces with a strong emotional component.’
Piero Lissoni's Materic Ovale table in solid Latte ash, paired with GamFratesi's Voyage chairs, is the star of the double-height dining room, as is GamFratesi's Kite Sofa and armchairs in the living room and a Piero Lissoni's Ex-Libris in the middle. The space's elegantly playful tone is perfect for what quickly becomes a treasure hunt among the shelves and tables: the colorful ceramics “The Indian Memory Basilico” by Ettore Sottsass, small metal structures by Annalisa Ramondino, Michela Cattai's Venetian glass works. A “Face of the ancestors” by Bruno Munari is hanging in a niche on the side of the staircase, just upon the new Linea storage furniture by Alessandro Mendini, presented by Porro this year following an archive research with Fulvia and Elisa Mendini.
Going up to the mezzanine floor, the art hunt with the sculpture “Neo Malevic” by Alessandro Mendini, and a Snoopy table lamp designed by Achille and Piergiacomo Castiglioni for Flos. In the dining room and office space a Bookshelf System is full of Skira books (from Oliviero Toscani's Imagine, to Angelo Garoglio and Medardo Rosso's Disegno di Luce).
Next to it, the dressing room spectacularly reveal the quintessence of the brand's capabilities: it’s filled with ethereal presences such as long tunic, pleated vest, organza stole from SlowCostume, a straw turban and orchids headdress by Ballestrazzi, and clay sculptures by Sergio Cappelli and Patrizia Ranzo. ‘We chose those with whom we shared a personal or professional story, such as the Mendini Archive and Antonia Jannone's Milanese gallery,’ Porro explains.
‘Corraini, whose space is both a publishing house and an art gallery, suggested Bruno Munari's investigation into faces. The wooden one is known as the “Face of the Ancestors”, and it holds a special meaning for me: it represents the moment when my grandfather tasked Munari with creating the Porro logo.’
Porro
Via Uberto Visconti di Modrone, 29
Milano
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