The annual Salone del Mobile furniture fair in Milan in April was a more subdued affair than previous, as the poor economic climate took a toll. But streamlined budgets did not translate into less interesting or less boundary-pushing products. On the contrary, it looked like emerging designers and established companies had spent time, money and energy on research and development, particularly in the kitchens and bathrooms sector, which is always looking to find new ways to make us use these essential spaces.
One of the most impressive kitchens on show came from the Campana brothers. Modelled on a Swiss army knife it's functional and versatile, incorporating washing, cooking and dining areas. It includes three retractable hardwood-panelled sections covered with smooth eco-friendly silestone quartz.
The trend for interesting and often natural materials continued with generous use of glass, wood and stone; there were even some Smeg refrigerators covered in denim. Perhaps the brand that best exemplified this was Minacciolo with its 'Natural Skin' kitchen covered in knotty pine panels. The company's Min? kitchen had everyone excited by its industrial good looks. Their booth was one of the most original, too; several walls were made out of wooden crates filled with ripe, red tomatoes.
Italian kitchen manufacturer Elmar's new Cross Island interpreted the trend for blending kitchen and living areas, but in a more unusual and elegant fashion. Centred on an incredibly slim steel trestle table with an integrated hob and sink, it put forward the kitchen as a place where you cook and eat but also work.
Perhaps the most futuristic kitchen came from Italian brand Toncelli, which incorporated Samsung's touch-screen technology to present the angular and glossy Prisma kitchen. Its gleaming worktop has an integrated touch-screen computer, perhaps not a surprise given that kitchens are becoming spaces to work and hang out.
In the world of bathrooms, Japanese design studio Nendo's collaboration with Bisazza Bagno was a poetic exploration of the power of boxes within boxes. Nendo design director Oki Sato's idea was to conceive a space that was intimate and lent itself to meditation and communion with oneself. The result is a minimalist range of rectangular bathroom pieces and accessories (vases, clocks, shelves and mirrors) made out of larch wood and ceramics and is suitably unadorned and calming.