Natural stone brand SolidNature celebrates its second year in Milan, this time with a fully independent showcase titled Beyond The Surface. 

The installation will guide visitors through an immersive dreamscape, designed by Ellen Van Loon and Giulio Margheri from renowned international architectural studio OMA, which draws a parallel between the formation and quarrying of stone, and the process of dreaming. Just as the creation and working of stone requires time, skill and effort, the same applies to achieving dreams. SolidNature’s goal is to inspire and motivate visitors to dream and push the limits of creativity. 

From the 17th to the 23rd April 2023 SolidNature will take over a space in Via Cernaia 1, right in the heart of the Brera district, occupying the property’s vast underground level and garden. In order to realise their vision, ​ SolidNature have once again commissioned long standing partner OMA to design and curate the space.

David Mahyari, CEO of SolidNature says: “Time is such an important factor within the narrative of this year’s installation. We live in a fast-consuming world that demands instant gratification. We are used to attending instantly to our needs and desires. But when it comes to achieving our goals and dreams, this takes time. ​ It is a matter of discipline, patience, lots of failures and lessons. The same can be said about working with stone. It takes thousands of years to create a piece of stone as it is. ​ Where sand, trees, mud and other matter go through processes like pressure or even earthquakes to eventually become an outstanding piece of art.”

The visitor will experience the story of stone’s geological formation from earth’s metamorphosis to the high-tech stone finishing machinery used today. The journey will unfold over seven different rooms, ​ starting with a monumental staircase guiding the visitor to the underground level. At the bottom of the staircase, the experience starts by taking the first steps into a narrowing corridor of thinly cut translucent onyx slabs which will direct the viewer through, symbolising the initiation and compression of stone but also the narrowed focus of our day-to-day lives. 

Once through this, the visitor is greeted by a dramatic and unfamiliar space. The confrontation room will encompass the feeling of breaking out of reality to enter a sense of the unknown. In this space enormous cubic marble, granite, onyx and travertine monoliths hang from the ceiling and represent gravity and the formation of stone.

The journey continues into the revelation room, covered from floor to ceiling in pink onyx and showcasing the material in all of its finishing stages, from untreated stone to scored, hammered and polished. This room represents the place where dreams are born encouraging viewers to envision the endless possibilities of their imagination. Two pivoting onyx walls lead the visitor to the dedication room. Here, a stark contrast is immediately revealed as the space is enveloped in green marble where stone working processes are explored through a series of sensory vignettes and where dreams slowly become reality through hard work and dedication. 

Room five refers to patience and the passing of time with a series of sliding panels of different stones and colours - encouraging the viewer to design their own composition of the space inspiring the imagination. This space showcases the endless possibilities and potential of stone and how everything comes together at the right moment. 

Room six represents the reward and the experimental stage of the stone working process where the visitor will be able to select a precious fragment of stone to take home as a memento of their journey. Viewers are then led out of the ‘dream world’ past the seventh room dedicated to more informative content and back into reality as they enter the garden, a paradise of ideas where the imagined possibilities of stone are transformed into finished sculptural design pieces. The group show displayed in the garden will present designs such as tables, seats, a lounge and a bar designed amongst others by designer Sabine Marcelis and renowned Iranian artist Bita Fayyazi. This final collection of objects shines a light on stone’s new function encapsulating the designer’s own dreams in a variety of outcomes. 

With Beyond The Surface the beauty of SolidNature’s materials is portrayed in all its stages inspiring visitors and highlighting SolidNature’s desire to push boundaries and reinvent the limitless ways in which natural stone can be utilised.

“For this year’s exhibition I am excited to get a chance to motivate people to dream, looking at the world through the lense of SolidNature. I am usually terrified of my own dreams. The scale, work and discipline required to bring them to life would be enough to hold me back keeping me in my comfort zone. However we all know that magic never happens within the comfort zone and I hope that Beyond The Surface will inspire visitors to take the plunge and believe in their dreams.” David Mahyari, CEO of SolidNature