My MANy Bags News #193

Below: Some fine Japanese designs at the Salon Del Mobile 2010 Pop-up store in Milan by Bottega Veneta and Casa Brutus Magazine, Japan. Akita cedar wood pitchers by renowned artisan Yasutaka Shimizu... This pitcher is a work of art! I love the simplicity and texture created by the wood grain.

Below: Hakone Yosegi-Zaiku box...

Below: Hand-cut Edo Kiriko + Shippo Kiriko glasses glasses...

Below: Wine opener by Mitsunobu Ogino of the Niigata Prefecture design studio Hyakunen-Monogatari (Tales of a Century)

Below: Some of the special edition bags Tomas Maier designed for the Salon Del Mobile 2010 pop up store...

Bottega Veneta Celebrates Japanese Design And Craftsmanship At Salone Del Mobile 2010

Being a true luxury lifestyle brand, Bottega Veneta have always embraced different aspects of design beyond their fashion and accessories collection. Bottega Veneta have already ventured into furniture and homewares, now they have taken their appreciation for all things refine to a next level. A special pop up store will be set up in Milan this April to celebrate Japanese craftsmanship and aesthetics.

Here's the official press release for this initiative by Bottega Veneta:

If you’re traveling to the Salone del Mobile in Milan this April, leave some room in your suitcase. As part of this year’s special Japanese collaboration presentation, Bottega Veneta is featuring a pop-up store filled with unique, pleasing, and travel-ready items. The store’s wares will include special items not readily available outside of Japan, as well as a small collection of Bottega Veneta products designed exclusively for the occasion by Creative Director Tomas Maier.

The Japanese items for sale in the store were selected by Mr. Maier together with Seiichi Kamei, editor-in-chief of the prestigious Japanese design and architecture magazine Casa Brutus. Each object was chosen for its craftsmanship, functionality, design, and relation to Japanese tradition. The objects include hand-cut Edo Kiriko glasses from a third-generation craftsman Yasunori Kimura for Taburo Corporation; hand-cut Shippo Kiriko glasses from the Tokyo-based atelier Glass Forest; Akita cedar wood pitchers by renowned artisan Yasutaka Shimizu; a wine opener by Mitsunobu Ogino of the Niigata Prefecture design studio Hyakunen-Monogatari (Tales of a Century); and a box featuring Hakone Yosegi-Zaiku, a traditional Japanese marquetry technique, by the award-winning craftsman Katsuhiro Kanazashi.

Included in the selection will be four handbags and several small leather goods from Bottega Veneta, all designed exclusively and in limited edition for the event. The pop-up store, located on the fourth floor of Bottega Veneta’s new Via Privata Ercole Marelli headquarters in Milan, is just one part of Bottega Veneta’s week-long celebration of Japanese design and craftsmanship. A highlight of the week will be a showcase of the winning furniture designs from the recent student design competition sponsored by Bottega Veneta in collaboration with Tokyo University. An exhibition of Japanese crafts and a tranquil, inviting tea service complete the exposition.

“Putting together this special Salone del Mobile presentation has been both an adventure and a pleasure,” says Bottega Veneta Creative Director Tomas Maier. “I am a great admirer of Japanese craft and design so it was a privilege to work with Seiichi Kamei of Casa Brutus, and with the architect Manabu Chiba and his students at Tokyo University. We created the store so that those who visit our exhibition can take something small and memorable home with them. Most importantly, I hope they are inspired by the beauty, sophistication, and workmanship of the objects they see.”

Source: Bottega Veneta