La Rinascente

Claudio Silvestrin, Giuliana Salmaso

In the large open space, thought by Claudio Silvestrin and Giuliana Salmaso, on the underground floor of the Milan city a curved niche, like an embrace, encircles the main exhibition hall, taller than the shelves by half their height and it determines the visible horizon, further emphasised by the colour contrast between the vivid hues of the furniture and the ochre of the excavated stone in Giallo Etrusco of the perimeter wall. Stone represents a natural contrast to the finite and limited durability of the objects. Large slabs in curved shapes are used, carved from larger, original forms. They reveal themselves, slightly sticking out from the walls that house them, embellished by the chiaroscuro effects produced by the supplementary lighting system.