Countering the frenzy of Milan Design Week, the LESS NOISE talks, co-curated with Berlin based bookstore do you read me?! in collaboration with MSGM, sought to carve out a space for slower, more conscious reflection. At a time of real and unreal narrators, the talks focus on pivotal projects and the potency of publishing, through intersectional conversations with designers, publishers, authors and editors.
The three conversations are available as part of the Space Between podcast series, which builds on the belief that conversations, bridging across different spheres, can extend our ability to imagine better futures. Across art, architecture, design and fashion, these discussions seek to build knowledge, find commonalities, and inspire new collaborations.
LESS NOISE | PUBLISH AND BE DAMNED with Nacho Alegre (Apartamento) and Lars Müller (Lars Müller Publishers), moderated by Federica Zambeletti (KoozArch).
Safe to say: the internet did not kill the book. We have seen the world transformed by digital media, yet the printed word retains appeal and connotes ideas of enduring importance. But who gets to put themselves out there, and how? In this discussion we focus on strategies to maintain creative agency and independence in publishing.
Read selected excerpts from our speakers: "Drawing Territory: How Do We Represent the Territory?", by Laila Seewang, from "transcalar prospects in climate crisis" (Lars Müller Publishers, 2024); "In the Soup: the pan-Asian patchwork of Peranakan Laksa", by Anna Sulan Masing, from “Penang” (Apartamento, 2024).
LESS NOISE | THE LAWS OF ATTRACTION with Elise By Olsen (International Library of Fashion Research), Giulia Nardi (COSE journal) and Leonard Streich (Something Fantastic), moderated by Federica Zambeletti (KoozArch).
Physical appeal — through materiality and aesthetic — is an undeniable factor for print publications. If ‘content’ can be said to proliferate online, the value of print resides in tangible experience. From fashion and architecture to graphic design: what happens when design capabilities are translated? This discussion considers the aesthetics of printed matter as the expression of appeal and stance.
Read selected excerpts from our speakers: "Trash Fashion! Elise By Olsen on ephemeral messaging", by Elise By Olsen; "Pointing Fingers and a Helping Hand", by Jonah Coe-Scharff, Chase Galis, Sonia Sobrino Ralston, from "Cover Cover Cover" (Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther Konig, 2024); "Table Settings: the thingness of things", by Issey Gladston, from COSE Journal, Issue 1.
LESS NOISE | BREAKING GROUND with Federico Sargentone (Author of Midcareer Writing, Sorry Press, 2024) and Noemi Biasetton (Author of Superstorm, Onomatopee, 2024), moderated by Federica Zambeletti (KoozArch).
How might publications seek to disrupt? What does this mean for their form, content and placement? Publications that aim to disrupt take multiple forms, transferring knowledge from one field to another or approaching translation as a research method; troubling the bounds of patriarchy, or decolonising a canon. This discussion draws from designers and works that challenge systemic or normative expectations.
Read selected excerpts from our speakers: "New! Writing! Now!", by Federico Sargentone, from "MIDCAREER WRITING" (Sorry Press, 2024); "Design and the Superstorm", by Noemi Biasetton, from "Superstorm. Design and Politics in the Age of Information" (Onomatopee, 2024).
Bios
Nacho Alegre is a photographer, publisher and creative director. Nacho is the co-founder of both apartamento magazine and apartamento studios. Apartamento is widely recognized as today’s most influential interiors magazine, an indispensable resource for individuals who are passionate about the way they live. Founded in 2018, apartamento studios is a creative agency based between Barcelona, New York City, Berlin and Milan.
Noemi Biasetton is a design researcher, writer and editor based in Venice. Her academic studies focus on design cultures and visual representation, with a specific interest in how these are deployed within the social and political dimension. Noemi’s practice includes the production of essays and articles, the organization of talks and lectures, and the contribution to research projects for cultural and educational institutions. She is the author of SUPERSTORM. Design and Politics in the Age of Information (Onomatopee, 2024).
Elise By Olsen is an editor, curator and the founding director of International Library of Fashion Research, a cultural institution in Oslo, Norway. Elise also established and edited the youth culture magazine Recens Paper and the fashion commentary publication Wallet. For the past decade she has created exhibitions across contemporary art & fashion, served as consultant for brands & corporations, and lectured at international schools & institutions.
Lars Müller was born in Oslo in 1955 and has been based in Switzerland since 1963. He started his career as a graphic designer in Zurich before establishing Lars Müller Publishers, which has produced some 800 titles to date, spanning the fields of design, architecture, contemporary art, photography and society. The publishing house collaborates with outstanding agents of these disciplines in practice and research. Müller is also a passionate educator and has taught at various universities in Europe, the USA and Japan, and frequently serves on academic and competition juries.
Giulia Nardi is an art director and designer based in Milan. She is founder of COSE, a magazine about forefronting everyday objects through formats which include photography and words, explored through poetry and essays.
Federico Sargentone is a cultural critic and the co-founder of the strategy & creative consultancy Countersubject. Federico’s cultural criticism explores the dichotomies and tensions that animate the mass-niche divide, decoding stylistic codes and languages informing micro and macro trends alike. His writing is regularly featured in international media and his debut book, “Midcareer Writing,” is available worldwide through Munich-based publisher Sorry Press.
Leonard Streich is an architect and one of the co-founders of Something Fantastic, an undisciplinary architectural practice committed to smart, touching and simple architecture. Something Fantastic’s practice includes designing books, exhibitions, furniture, buildings, and urban development schemes. Next to designing, the partners write, teach, lecture, and art direction.
About
LESS NOISE at MSGM is a project conceived by KoozArch at the intersection of design, fashion and publishing, which aims to carve out a space for slower, more conscious reflection to counter the frenzy of Milan Design week. In this context, the book takes centre stage — not only as a design object, but as a vehicle for ideas and research — as the MSGM flagship store in Via Broletto is transformed into a cultural salon, hosting a pop-up of the Berlin-based bookstore, do you read me?! In this reconfigured space, KoozArch and do you read me?! have brought together a careful curation of printed matter, and a chorus of inspiring voices from culture, design and fashion. Their candid conversations will foreground the potency of publishing, between those critical agents who are redefining the field. Quite literally, framing this experience is the Anfibio — the iconic sofa designed by Alessandro Becchi for the historic brand Giovannetti — a symbol of versatility and sharing since its creation in 1970 and re-imagined by MSGM/ Massimo Giorgetti for the occasion.
do you read me?! is an internationally-recognised presence in the world of printed matter. Founded by Mark Kiessling in 2008, the tiny but mighty independent bookstore is known for its inspiring curation and expert perspective on contemporary print and publishing. From its buzzing storefront in Berlin to global collaborations in New York, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Tokyo, Sydney and many more, do you read me?! has established itself not only as a place to simply buy (fantastic) books and magazines, but as a dynamic cultural space fostering conversations across disciplines from art and architecture to photography, design, theory, food and fashion.
MSGM, founded by Massimo Giorgetti in 2009,is one of the most acclaimed Italian brands on the international fashion scene. Drawing from contemporary zeitgeist, its bold colors and prints capture rhythmic accents and dynamic beats. MSGM stands out for its ability to reinterpret the past with a modern, ironic edge while anticipating the future. The brand has collaborated with artists such as Maurizio Cattelan & Pierpaolo Ferrari (Toiletpaper), Nico Vascellari, Massimo Vitali, Norbert Bisky, Todd Bienvenu, Seth Armstrong, and Dario Argento. With the mottos "Never look back, it’s all ahead" and "Lightness is not superficiality," MSGM is present in over 600 stores and flagship locations in major fashion hubs worldwide.
Giovannetti Collezioni, founded in the 1960s, has made history in Italian furniture design with its timeless and iconic pieces. Benito Giovannetti launched the first collections in collaboration with Italian design masters, setting the brand’s signature unconventional style. From early milestones like Bauhaus and Bazaar to the breakout success of the 1970s, Giovannetti established its international reputation. From the 1980s to today, the company continues to produce innovative, original, and functional furniture.
KoozArch is a research studio and platform for critical architectural discourse. Embracing a multigenerational and multidisciplinary discourse, we believe it is necessary to pursue vital questions. What if we inhabited our planet differently? We challenge the historically and measurably extractive nature of architecture, in favour of a more regenerative and accessible form of practice. We engage in the creation, discussion and dissemination of these propositional and planetary futures through our digital magazine, as well as through exhibitions, events, publications and partnerships.
