Draga & Aurel trendsetting at the Lake Como Design Festival

The prestigious Rossana Orlandi Gallery made its debut at the Lake Como Design Festival, where it presented the art-design project LEWIT, a monumental bed sculpture that arose from a creative symbiosis between Draga & Aurel and eclectic architect Giuliano dell’Uva, in collaboration with the Italian textile company Somma1867.

The event took place in the fireplace room (Sala del Camino) of Villa Olmo, one of the lake’s most charming historical dwellings. LEWIT was showcased as a free-standing furnishing item designed and made as a three-dimensional artwork. It merged contemporary taste and aesthetics with explicit references to the artistic avant-garde of the 1960s and 70s.

The bed’s majestic resin and concrete headboard were embellished with metallic details. The basic geometric shapes, contrasting with bare materials, bright, vivid colors, and neon accent lights, recalled works by the great minimalists, from Donald Judd and Dan Flavin to the clever conceptual architectural installations of Sol LeWitt, to whose name the bed paid tribute. In contrast, the cashmere and wool plaid — created as a limited edition for the project by Somma1867 — featured a free, abstract, and “wild” composition by Aurel K. Basedow. His design contained clear references to American expressionism and action painting, in which gesture became form and form came to life through color.

The LEWIT is perfectly emblematic of the other trends coming out of Italy, in theme and color. Pictured above: furnishings inspired by the color and material trends of Milano Fashion Week: 1. Tirreno plaid, **LANEROSSI**; 2. Candy wall light, **VILLARI**; 3. Emma applique, **CONTARDI**, design by Contardi Studio; 4. Calathea armchair, **GIORGETTI**, design by Roberto Lazzeroni; 5. Blade2 H 18 UP, **EDILKAMIN**; 6. Doge chandelier, **VENINI**, design by Napoleone Martinuzzi, 1972; 7. Perspective 01 rug, **ILLULIAN**, design by studio Zaha Hadid Architects; 8. BAIA console, **DRAGA & AUREL**.

In keeping with the festival’s theme “Naturalis Historia,” Draga & Aurel’s work had expressed an encounter between nature, as marvelous as it was powerful, and humankind. The latter was portrayed by controlled rational lines that simultaneously became creativity, brilliance, and boldness (“Wit”), in which light, shadows, depth, and transparency coexisted. Likewise, the colors alluded to the natural aquatic world of the lake, with sometimes subtle, sometimes impetuous shades of blue and touches of the deepest greens.

“We worked with monumental, archetypal forms, drawing inspiration from the great works of nature and humankind, attempting to elevate a household item such as a bed, which in Lewit had become sculpture and performance art,” said Draga & Aurel.