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Credit: Courtesy of Emma Elizabeth

Earlier this month, and for the second consecutive year, Emma Elizabeth corralled a group of her contemporaries for what must surely rank amongst the chicest of excursions.

Elizabeth – a stylist, designer and creative director of Local Design – once again curated and contributed to Local Milan: a showcase of Australian designers exhibiting at that most rarefied of design fairs, Milan’s Salone del Mobile, in the Oratory of the Santa Maria della Passione on a set built of over 8000 white Brickworks bricks.

After an experience she likened to “being at a designer theme park”, Elizabeth spoke to GRAZIA about her most recent of many ventures in the city and at Salone, an extravaganza drawing crowds and cues the likes of which she has never seen in 10 years of visiting. 

The work
“Through producer Designer Rugs, [this year] I launched a collection called Farfalla, taken from the Italian word meaning ‘butterfly’. I speed dated creative director of Moroso, Patrizia Moroso, through an initiative by Hub Furniture in Sydney during her trip last year. The ‘Farfalla’ textile is created by printing the left and right wing of a butterfly, then shredding into thin lines the image and interweaving to create the overall image. I wish for people to push the boundaries and react to the idea of customization allowing the possibility for me to customise a weave for each client.

The show
“The Local Milan exhibition presented by Local Design was received [well] by the national and global design [communities]. We had some high profile furniture galleries come through [and]  some of the designers had their pieces picked up by MINT Gallery in London and BDDW in Milan. The thing about Salone is that you never know what will come of it, the information and imagery from the show trickles on for months, so there are still more exciting opportunities to come from this show.”

EMMAPORTRAIT
Emma Elizabeth pictured in situ at Local Milan, alongside work from her Farfalla collection 
Credit: Fiona Susanto
The DISCOVERIES
“My favourite design [discovery was] Dimore Studio, those boys just know how to nail it: amazing design, incredible music and a subtle smell. My favourite non-design moment was making the designers do karaoke, which they had never done before.

The takeaway
“As the curator of the show, I carefully selected and worked with each of the designers to make a show that as a collective had strength in showcasing the Australian aesthetic and style. Shows like this really drive the world to understand better what Australian style is. I feel this show was a real stepping stone for Australian design on a global level; I hope [it] shapes the way the world perceives Australian design and pushes further support for us to do ever more incredible activations in the future.”

Tile and cover image: Courtesy of Emma Elizabeth