COME ARCHEOLOGI - LIKE ARCHAEOLOGISTS

To mark Milan Design Week 2025, Stilnovo unveils ‘Come Archeologi’ (‘Like Archaeologists’), the project curated by new Art Director, Russo Sgarbossa, in the brand's Milan showroom, which opened last November in Via Boccaccio 15A. A tribute to the history and evolution of design, a novel layout explores the link between past and present, by recovering and reinterpreting historical elements to offer new visions of contemporary living.

The historic lighting company is currently undergoing a period of growth and renewal, while retaining a strong connection to its roots and long history: an invaluable legacy of inspiration and knowledge. Hence the title of the project which reflects the path chosen by Stilnovo, reminiscent of the role of an archaeologist: rediscovering historical products from bygone eras, studying their technology and functionality, in order to revamp them and create new languages and codes for inhabiting spaces. An invitation to discover and reinterpret the secrets of a bygone society, showcasing them in a contemporary key and rewriting the way rooms are conceived.

Missori, the new collection of decorative lights designed by the interdisciplinary collective Park Associati for Stilnovo, thus fits seamlessly into this context. The collection stems from design research that rethinks modern Milanese styles with a contemporary feel. The collection consists of a complete range of light fixtures: pendant lights, modular layouts and floor lamps. A hallmark feature of the design is the balance between classic elegance and modern design: a modular metal structure is combined with elegant fluted glass diffusers, conjuring up a sophisticated, timeless visual language. The result is a versatile and spectacular collection, an instant classic, in which materials and light interact to create sophisticated atmospheres.

Stilnovo’s showroom is transformed for the occasion into an old-world space where the lights interact with the marble that punctuates the rooms with shades of pink. The Rosso Lepanto marble finish produced by the historical Veneto company, Margraf, becomes a backdrop and stage to some of the most iconic Stilnovo products. One in particular, Halley, the table lamp designed by the German designer, Richard Sapper, exactly twenty years ago is a tribute to a product that marked an important chapter in the history of lighting, retaining all its innovative appeal. To mark the occasion, the lamp takes centre stage in the creative photos taken by Mattia Balsamini who, together with the Art Director, Russo Sgarbossa, has developed a visual and conceptual project, capable of recounting and showcasing a historical, yet innovative and contemporary product in a new light.

“Come Archeologi” is not just an exhibition, it is an invitation to explore, discover and connect the past with the present through a new and modern-day interpretation of design and its languages.