Adaptive Ground

 

VENUE
Marsèll Milano Spiga
Via della Spiga 42, Milan
OPENING
7 April 2025
6-9 PM
ON VIEW
6 April 2025
10 May 2025

 

An installation by Objects of Common Interest inside the flagship store on Via della Spiga, presented during Milan Design Week 2025

 

For Milan Design Week 2025, Marsèll displays an installation by Objects of Common Interest inside its flagship store on Via della Spiga, exploring the relationship between space and material, and showcasing excellence in footwear craftsmanship and innovation in furniture design. Adaptive Ground, the featured installation, engages with the material history of the Via della Spiga space—elements in marble and walnut, and walls clad in Brenta River stone chips—establishing a refined yet essential interplay of textures and forms. The sculptural objects envisioned by Objects of Common Interest are enriched by the extremely sophisticated work of Marsèll artisans, who created cushions, maxi belts, and leather coverings that enhance the final result. Adaptive Ground is part of Marsèll’s ongoing exploration of diverse forms of expression—an ethos that has always defined its identity—in collaboration with some of the most interesting names in contemporary design.

In Adaptive Ground, Objects of Common Interest work with leather—a natural and organic material—for the first time in their career. On the ground floor, they showcase a collection of furniture pieces that carry their signature aesthetic. Playing with the concept of tubular modules, The Tube Lights and Formations seating are reimagined in black or wrapped in black leather for the occasion, reinforcing the idea that design is an evolving conversation between different materials and perspectives. The Atmosphere Lamps, originally presented at the Noguchi Museum in New York, are inflatable sculptures inspired by organic shapes. The basement, in contrast, hosts a site-specific installation that reinterprets the store’s usual layout. The tiered platforms that typically display Marsèll’s Gomme collection serve instead as seating, outfitted with a series of leather cushions. Meanwhile, Marsèll’s footwear is showcased at the center of the room on an inflatable structure, fastened with a white belt crafted from repurposed brand accessories, as if asking to be contemplated.

“Adaptive Ground explores the fluid relationship between structure and softness, presence and transformation. Our ideas expand across the two levels of the space, materializing through formations that negotiate between stability and change.”

—Objects of Common Interest

“Everything is immersed in a rarefied atmosphere, as if moving through a gradual immersion and descent into abstraction, into oneself. Like a steam room, the descent from the ground floor to the underground triggers a progressive change of perception and experience.”

—Annalisa Rosso

BIOGRAPHY
OBJECTS OF COMMON INTEREST is a studio founded by Eleni Petaloti and Leonidas Trampoukis that engages the intersection of art, design, and architecture. The studio explores a diverse range of scales, from sculptural objects and installations to immersive environments and public art projects. Based between New York and Athens, Eleni and Leonidas are also the founding partners of the sibling architectural practice, LOT Office for Architecture. Their work has been exhibited internationally at major art and design institutions and galleries, including solo shows at the Noguchi Museum, Design Museum Brussels, Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, Cycladic Museum Athens, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Québec, Vitra Design Museum, Nilufar Gallery Milan, and Etage Projects Copenhagen. The studio has collaborated with brands such as CC-Tapis, Bitossi, Kvadrat, RIMOWA, Instagram, Max Mara, and Technogym. OBJECTS OF COMMON INTEREST was formed with a focus on creating still life installations, experiential environments, and sculptural objects—anchored by a deep fascination with materiality, conceptual exploration, and tangible spatial experiences. Their work bridges the contrasting influences of Greece and New York, blending cultural narratives into unified forms. In 2023, the studio was commissioned by the Italian Cultural Capital for the main public art installation in Bergamo, Lights On, and has presented public art projects such as the Flatiron Plaza installation in New York. Eleni and Leonidas were named “Designers of the Year” by the Elle Deco International Design Awards (EDIDA) in 2024. Their recognition includes consecutive listings in the AD100 as among the world’s top designers and architects, serving as judges for the Wallpaper* Design Awards in 2023, and being honored as “Designers of the Year” by Wallpaper* in 2022. They also received the Design Studio of the Year Prize at the Dezeen Awards Public Vote 2022 and the Design Prize for Experimentation by Designboom in 2021. Eleni and Leonidas are currently appointed Adjunct Professors of Architecture at Columbia University’s master’s program in Advanced Architectural Design in New York.
CREDITS
Artworks: Objects of Common Interest
Artistic Direction: Martina Uderzo
Installation Views: Alessandro Saletta - DSL Studio
Sound: e/tape