ALAIN GILLES UNVEILS NEW COLLECTION @MDW 2024

Images courtesy of Alain Gilles Studio

Cross, Padiglioni, Pi, Elements, One, Louver, Gem, Edge, Customade

This year during the Milan Design Week, at the Salone, Alain Gilles Studio launched several new collections for Bonaldo, Illulian, Milla&Milli, and Varaschin. And, let’s start digging in about these collections!

Alain Gilles

CROSS LOUNGE CHAIR – An Oversized Character
The Cross lounge chair is a piece of furniture full of contrasts, where structure and soft upholstery create a discussion. It has an oversized character, with unexpected proportions and generosity. It takes its cues from historical pieces while being a modern and graphic piece. Materials: Powdercoated metal, upholstered cushions, removable cushioned armrests.

Cross lounge chair

PADIGLIONI Dining Table – Wood & Marble Version
Our sculptural Padiglioni table that was launched last year by Bonaldo in full wood is now available with table tops in ceramic, or stone/marble. Materials: Natural Oak wood, Travertine stone (different marbles are available).

Padiglioni dining table

Pi Chair – Opposites Attract
The “Pi” chair is the result of two different worlds coming together. On the one hand, the project is very rigorous, on the other hand, it’s full of generosity and warmth.

Pi Chair

The chair is defined by a rigorous and graphic structure in solid wood, with a multitude of straight and parallel lines that echo each other. But this almost monachal structure is complemented and almost contradicted by bold curves and volumes that make the chair generous, welcoming, and comfortable. Materials: Wooden structure, upholstered cushions.

Presented by Coulisse | INK

ELEMENTS Side Tables – Materiality & Ballance
The Elements side tables are about materiality, or the discussion between materials combined to create a whole, and balance, as the collection plays with the notion of stability and instability.

Elements side tables

The collection combines simple and honest materials, chosen for their basic characteristics. The warmth of the wood is balanced by the marble or concrete base. The tables with their narrow bases are only stable because of the weight, but the weight itself gives the impression that it could just roll over and cause the table to fall. Materials: Wood, concrete, or marble weight.

Console ONE – An Unexpected Architecture
The architecture of the Console “One” is unexpected, unique, and in some ways imperfect. It is composed of a stack of elements that were not made to fit together as if each element had moved unexpectedly. They are placed as if they were not in place anymore as one would expect them to be, as if they had drifted from their original position. Materials:  Various veneered wood options.

Console One

LOUVER Dining Table – Perception & Repetition
The Louver dining table is all about perception and repetition. It has an architecture that reveals itself little by little, appearing to be more or less open, depending on the angle from which you look at it.

Louver dining table

Its three characteristic legs behave a bit like vertical blinds on a window, or louvers. They give the impression of being in motion, allowing more or less light to pass through, depending on whether the base is viewed from the side or directly from the front. As a result, the legs appear either light or massive. Materials: Veneered wood

GEM RUGS – Like a Collage of Gemstones
Officially launch our full Gem Collection for Illulian in Milan. Different shapes create different dynamics in a space and adapt themselves to the shape of our room. The Gem rug collection for Illulian is about an unexpected encounter, it is directly inspired by the beauty of some small gem samples. This initial inspiration gave birth to a composition that behaves like a collage where two contrasting elements seem to discuss with each other and where the roundness of one element is highlighted by the sheer hardness and angularity of the other shape. As in a collage, one piece appears to be on top of the other, as if the two elements were stacked on top of each other. This results in a collection of rugs with a unique design language with two different pile heights that further reinforce the idea of one element being placed on top of the other as if they were separated and could move freely one over the other. Materials: Hand-knotted rugs in silk and wool, made in Nepal.

Gem rug collection

EDGE Stool & Console –  Solid Wooden Pieces in Croatian Oak
The whole “Edge” collection for Milla & Milli is based on a dialogue between opposites. On the one hand, the humanity and softness of the curved lines of the tablets, and on the other, the rigidity, minimalism, and architectural feel of the legs. This juxtaposition creates a visual tension within the pieces that makes them very recognizable and iconic.

Edge Stool & Console

The collection is also very much based on the logic of the connection between the horizontal and vertical elements of the pieces, as well as the contrast between the different elements in the pieces is also visually highlighted by the different finishes used on the legs and top. The vertical elements, legs, and columns, are sanded very deeply, giving them a very rough and matte texture, while the horizontal elements, the tabletops, are smooth and polished. Although the same solid oak is used throughout the collection, the pieces appear to be made of two different materials.

These pieces can be seen as a capsule collection with a common identity, but also with enough diversity to make them rich and interesting on their own. Materials: Massive Croatian oak wood available in different stained finishes.

CUSTOMADE Table –  A Taylor-Made Vision
The Customade table, as its name hints, is very much a table that can be tailor-made to the customer’s precise needs and specifications. For an outdoor table, this is a unique proposition that Varaschin wanted to be able to offer. From a design point of view, it is a challenging task, especially if you want the table to have a unique personality, work in very different sizes as well as in an extendable version or a coffee table version, and offer the possibility to be used with a large array of different tabletops. Materials: Aluminum structure, ceramic or HPL table top.

Customade table