MILAN (ITALPRESS) – MINI returns to Milan Design Week, bringing to Palazzo Borromeo d’Adda in the city centre the immersive installation “A Garden of Curiosity” fruit of long-standing collaboration with Paul Smith. The work combines the distinctive use of Paul Smith’s color with meticulous attention to the details typical of MINI, inviting visitors to explore and fully experience the playful world of design.“ MINI has British roots, just like Sir Paul Smith. This is the starting point, but then there are many other things in common that have the two brands. On the one hand the love for design, for the most curious and playful aspect that wants to carry out the world of design and therefore from this point of view we find ourselves in this exceptional location where this concept of seeing the design in its most playful side takes its own shape”, said Federica Manzoni, Head of MINI Italia, emphasizing how the installation intends to “stimulate the fans of the brand, but in reality all the visitors, to go beyond that Beyond the threshold opens the green space created by MINI and Paul Smith, composed of paths lined with plants and herbs, which lead to open platforms and cubic installations. The iconic Paul Smith Signature Stripe walks through the garden as a recurring design element. Architecture, textures, esoon colors blend harmoniously, creating a complete sensory experience. The Colour Theory Room is a visual meeting point between Paul Smith’s distinctive color palette and the colors of the new MINI Paul Smith Edition. Visitors can have color samples on an interactive wall, creating compositions that constantly change throughout the day with every new personal intervention. In line with Sir Paul Smith’s philosophy, the wall also offers the opportunity to freely experiment different color combinations. The Listening Room expands this experience through voice recordings by Sir Paul Smith, stressing the importance of color theory. A further open platform invites visitors to live the space with all the senses, giving a moment of pause away from the frenetic rhythm of Milan. Crossing the courtyard to reach the installation, visitors immerse themselves in the history of MINI and Paul Smith. Here you can discover three cars born from the collaboration between the two brands, started in 1998: the Paul Smith 40th Anniversary Mini, the MINI STRIP by Paul Smith and a MINI Cooper of the last edition. All cars combined with attention to small details as an element of innovation and design.“Let’s say what was the first car developed in collaboration with Paul Smith: the Paul Smith 40th anniversary MINI. In that case we have 86 lines, 26 colors, so the perfect interpretation of what is Paul Smith’s pattern – Manzoni explained – then we arrive at the edition in which exactly the details are making the difference. Let’s start from the color, the green color Nottingham Green, which represents Paul Smith’s love for his origins and has been reproduced on the livery of the car”. Nottingham Green embellishes some details such as mirror caps, octagonal radiator grille and wheel trims with Paul Smith signature. Further elements reflect Paul Smith’s distinctive style, contributing to express the essence of this MINI Edition, which interprets the concept of “classic with a twist”. Another visible creation is the MINI STRIP by Paul Smith: presented in 2021 and based on MINI Cooper SE, reduced to the essential according to the principle of “less is more”. The minimalist design focuses on construction and functionality, with the aim of representing a responsible and innovative design approach for its time. -photo xh7/Italpress – (ITALPRESS).
