Daniel Arsham and Kohler Bring “Divided Layers” to Palazzo Courtyard During Milan Design Week

Daniel Arsham and Kohler Bring “Divided Layers” to Palazzo Courtyard During Milan Design Week

In 2022, artist Daniel Arsham and the manufacturer Kohler teamed up to bring his artistic touch to Milan Design Week. His large-scale, immersive installation Divided Layers took over the Palazzo del Senato's courtyard, inviting guests to walk beneath its organic forms.

These stacked panels, which form a tunnel, were inspired by the collaboration between Arsham and Kohler, known primarily for its plumbing fixtures and faucets. Similar to the 3D-printed layers of the limited-edition sink he produced, each panel on the installation represents a layer of clay that forms the sink. However, rather than use these layers to form a solid structure, here Arsham plays with negative space.

Subtracting, or carving away, is a recurrent theme in Arsham’s work, and it's fascinating to see it translated to such a large scale. Complementing the structure is a shallow pond that acted as a mirror. This reflection adds a new dimension to the installation, allowing visitors to contemplate the maleability of space.

“Each layer acted as both a fragment of matter and of time, so that walking through the work felt like crossing thresholds not only in space, but in dimension,” Arsham wrote on Instagram in a recent post looking back on the piece. “This was sculpture as architecture, an environment to inhabit rather than an object to simply observe from the outside.”

“Beneath the structure, a pool of water mirrored the opening above, extending the space into infinity and dissolving the boundaries between real and imagined, present and future. It asked viewers to reflect on how we occupy space, and how design can create a sense of movement through histories both ancient and yet to come.”

The installation marks the culmination of a fruitful collaboration between Arsham and Kohler, demonstrating that creative thinking and functional products can coexist harmoniously. Divided Layers went on to win the 2022 Fuorisalone Award for its impact and has made a lasting impression well beyond its week-long installation.

In 2022, Daniel Arsham and Kohler teamed up to bring Arsham's artistic touch to Milan Design Week.

His large-scale, immersive installation Divided Layers took over the Palazzo del Senato's courtyard, inviting guests to walk beneath its organic forms.

The panels were inspired by the 3D-printed layers of the limited-edition sink he produced for the American firm.

“Each layer acted as both a fragment of matter and of time, so that walking through the work felt like crossing thresholds not only in space, but in dimension.”

“This was sculpture as architecture, an environment to inhabit rather than an object to simply observe from the outside.”

Daniel Arsham: Website | Instagram

All images by Jeff Stasney. My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Kohler.

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READ: Daniel Arsham and Kohler Bring “Divided Layers” to Palazzo Courtyard During Milan Design Week