Milan Design Week 2019: over 40 top designers and manufacturers to showcase Austria ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA presents Austrian Design - Pleasure & Treasure

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1 Press release Milan, 4 March 2019 Milan Design Week 2019: over 40 top designers and manufacturers to showcase Austria ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA presents Austrian Design - Pleasure & Treasure More than 40 top designers and furniture producers from around Austria will be represented at the world s most influential design event, the Salone Internazionale del Mobile/Fuorisalone, which will take place from 9 to 14 April. For the eighth time already, ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA will be showcasing a top-class selection of the latest design products from around Austria parallel to the Milan Furniture Fair. This year, the event will be held in the Sala Reale, which once served as the royal family s private waiting room at Milan s central station. The exclusive location opens its door for the first time in history during Fuorisalone, and will host the Austrian exhibition under the motto Pleasure & Treasure, a concept created by the international renowned and recognised architects Vasku & Klug. From imperial waiting room to design pool The Austrian exhibition will be an extraordinary scenographic experience, promise architects Michael Vasku and Andreas Klug. We are transforming the magnificent Sala Reale, once the waiting room of the Royal House of Savoy, into a design pool. Visitors will have to wade through a sea of foam to find their way to the exhibits. Furniture and interior products from more than 40 Austrian designers and manufacturers are set to be showcased using this explorative approach. Design exhibition illustrates every facet of interior design The exhibition will showcase a wide range of products from the field of Austrian interior design from home accessories such as table mirrors to office furniture, tableware and lighting. The exhibits themselves were selected by a jury of four experts based on criteria such as degree of innovation, craftsmanship as well as formal, aesthetic and functional qualities. The level of the submissions was very high, explained Reanne Leuning, Project Manager and Director of Creative Industries at ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA. We are very much looking forward to presenting the high-quality design objects to a specialist international audience in an integrative and charming way. Sala Reale royal waiting room to open its doors for the first time The Sala Reale in Milan s central station will serve as this year s exhibition venue, despite being rarely accessible to the public. The venue will open its doors for the first time to showcase the Austrian exhibition as part of the Design Week. Working together with design experts, ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA in Milan, Consul Gudrun Hager, visited various locations to examine their originality and assess staging possibilities. It was the exclusivity and complexity of the Sala Reale that captured the imagination: the venue s splendour is

2 combined with urbanity and industriousness thanks to its connection to Milan s central station. The Sala Reale is a hidden gem in a great central location and is a genuine local secret, highlights Gudrun Hager. The venue spans 400 square metres over two floors and will be used to stage our chosen design highlights from across Austria in a unique way. Positioning Austria as a design nation The Salone del Mobile is the world s leading furniture and design trade fair, opening its doors to over 400,000 visitors from 188 countries every year and that s not including guests at the shows of the Fuorisalone, which takes place at the same time each year. The Austrian design exhibition as part of Milan Design Week is thus hugely important, offering exhibitors the ideal opportunity to meet trendsetters and VIPs, to discover potential partners for future cooperation and to identify new distribution channels. With its global appeal, Milan Design Week represents a dynamic stage and source of inspiration for the creative industries, claims Michael Otter, Director of ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA. ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA has been organising the group exhibition since 2010, supporting designers and manufacturers in branching out to an international audience and anchoring Austria as a powerful design nation. The event is supported by go-international, an initiative of the Austrian Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs and the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, in addition to the Austrian Furniture Industry and the Austrian Federal Chancellery. Made in Austria furniture as an export driver Made in Austria furniture design is an important export driver: according to the 2017/2018 industry report by the Association of the Austrian Wood Industries, the Austrian furniture industry recorded exports of EUR 903 million in The most important trading area is the EU, where a 2.2% increase generated EUR million. The most important trading partner is Germany (2017: 5.6% increase to EUR million), followed by Italy (2017: 5.5% increase to EUR 39 million). The German and Italian markets in particular are home to many exclusive and competitive furniture manufacturers. The strong demand for Austrian furniture design on these markets in particular is evidence of the high quality of domestic products, remarks Dr. Georg Emprechtinger, Chairman of the Austrian Furniture Industry. According to the industry expert, the Austrian furniture industry enjoys an excellent reputation thanks to its inventive spirit, precise workmanship, technological leadership and keen sense for quality and sustainability. Note: the figures given in the paragraph above refer to industry and commerce and exclude the supply industry ( parts for furniture ). Austrian exhibitors &9 Design BAKALOWITS Licht Design Martin Ballendat Lena Bauernberger Andrea Baumann Bene BRAUN Lockenhaus Breitwieser BREUER BONO Conform Badmöbel Marco Dessí Thomas Feichtner Füchsl Möbelwerkstatt Irene Maria Ganser Guut H+S Zauntechnik JOKA ka ma interior design Christian Kroepfl LAUFEN Leitner Leinen Lobmeyr Lucy.D Nina Mair MARCH GUT Rainer Mutsch NEU/ZEUG PROLICHT RUGTURE Florian Seidl Soda Designers Robert Stadler TEAM 7 Tischlerei Prödl VERA PURE VITEO Wiener Silber Manufactur Wiesner-Hager WITTMANN Lisa Wolf Wonda ZEISNER Design

3 Launch of the online exhibition portal The new portal presents all the exhibitors who have participated in the Austrian showcase since The online exhibition catalogue thus provides an overview of the most prominent Austrian furniture designers, interior designers and manufacturers. The current exhibition Austrian Design - Pleasure & Treasure is already online. Jury 2019 The 2019 jury is made up of representatives from various sectors and creative institutions: Anna M. Del Medico, design journalist; Michael Holzer, Creative Region Linz & Upper Austria; Katja Silbermann, favourized.de; and Bettina Steindl, Kultur Perspektiven Dornbirn Events and accompanying programme Austrian Design - Pleasure & Treasure Austrian design exhibition in Milan 9-14 April 2019 Daily from 10:00 am - 9:00 pm, free entry Stazione Milano Centrale Sala Reale Piazza Luigi di Savoia Milan Press Day Monday, 8 April :00-6:00 pm Austrian Business Cocktail Thursday, 11 April :30-10:00 pm Invitation only! Austrian Design Exhibition an initiative by ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA The prestigious Austrian exhibition during the Designweek in Milan has been organised since 2010 by ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA, and represents a unique opportunity to present high-quality products in the interior design and furniture sector to an international audience. The participation of Austria at the Milan Design Week strengthens Austria s reputation as a "design nation" and underlines the great innovative abilities of its companies and creative trendsetters. High quality, innovation and trendy design have always been elements of the previous outstanding Austrian exhibitions, as recognised by several important Design Awards (if Design Award 2015 in the Gold category; red dot Award 2015 in the Communication Design category; German Design Award 2016 in the excellent Communication Design category).

4 The event is supported by go-international, an initiative of the Austrian Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs and the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber, in addition to the Austrian Furniture Industry and the Austrian Federal Chancellery. Salone Internazionale del Mobile and Fuorisalone Milano: Milan Design Week The Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan is regarded as the world s leading trade fair for the furniture and design industry. This year marks the 58 th anniversary of the international furniture fair. More than 430,000 visitors from all over the world will make the pilgrimage to Milan during the Design Week to be inspired by new trends and innovative interior design pieces. The fair will transform Milan into a hotspot of contemporary design, offering established companies and designers the perfect opportunity to network and open up commercial opportunities. The Fuorisalone has developed around the Salone, having being held in parallel to the international furniture fair since With numerous installations, exhibitions, design presentations and events spread all over the city, it is regarded as the true heart of the creative metropolis. The next Milan Design Week will take place from Tuesday 9 to Sunday 14 April Vasku & Klug creators of the Austrian Design Exhibition The exhibition concept and theme Austrian Design - Pleasure & Treasure was developed by the multi-award winning Viennese studio Vasku&Klug, also responsible for designing past Austrian exhibitions in Milan entitled Confession of Design (2014) and Austrian Design Pioneers (2015). Architects Michael Vasku and Andreas Klug impress international audiences with their innovative and creative staging concepts as evidenced by their numerous awards, including the prestigious red dot Award, the if Design Award and the German Design Award. Powerful, design-oriented partners from the local economy support the exhibition with their products Kaindl, one of the world s leading manufacturers of laminate flooring and processed derived timber products, is providing panels for the exhibition architecture. PROLICHT, a globally successful manufacturer of architectural lighting fixtures, is supporting the exhibition by providing lighting products. VITEO produces high-quality outdoor furniture in small series, and is providing the seating for the outdoor area of the Austrian showcase. Wolford, the market leader for exceptional European skin-wear, is supplying the outfits for the hospitality team. Press photos are available to download via flickr: Photo credit: ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA/Marko s Photography

5 Follow us on social media austriandesign_salonemilano advantageaustriait AUSTRIA_IN_IT AUSSENWIRTSCHAFT AUSTRIA Further inquiries EVENT ORGANISER ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA Wiedner Hauptstrasse Vienna T E reanne.leuning@advantageaustria.org W PRESS OFFICE AUSTRIAN DESIGN EXHIBITION Pleasure & Treasure Marzia Bestetti Ma&Mi T /81112 marzia.bestetti@maemi-pr.com / austrian_design@maemi-pr.com