• Kia Design
  returns to Milan Design Week for third consecutive year, providing a platform for
  artistic expression and cultural exchange
• Works by
  artists Philippe Parreno and A.A. Murakami curated to reflect the brand’s ‘Opposites
  United’ design philosophy
• ‘Marquee’, ‘The
  Cave’, ‘Beyond the Horizon’ and ‘The Eclipse’ deliver a sensory journey echoing the
  evolution of Kia’s design philosophy
• Exhibition runs
  from 7-13 April at Museo della Permanente in Milan, Italy

Kia Design has introduced the theme of its Milan Design Week 2025
exhibition, Opposites United: Eclipse of Perceptions, in
collaboration with internationally acclaimed artists Philippe Parreno and A.A.
Murakami (Azusa Murakami and Alexander Groves).

This year’s exhibition continues Kia’s commitment to cultural exchange and
creative exploration. Focusing on the brand’s evolving transformation – rooted in
its core cultural values and creative identity – the event sparks conversations that
challenge and inspire both Kia Design and the global creative community.

By bringing together visionary artists such as Philippe Parreno and A.A.
Murakami, alongside Kia Design and other prominent members of the global creative
community, the exhibition aims to offer an interactive experience where visitors can
engage with the ideas, philosophies, and expressions that shape contemporary
creativity.

Since its first participation in Milan Design Week in 2023, Kia Design has
sought to support art and culture by providing a platform for artists to express
their interpretations of the brand’s design philosophy, ‘Opposites United’.
Participating artists collaborate on experimental approaches, expressing the
‘Opposites United’ theme through their works or performances, creating resonant
experiences for visiting audiences.

The Eclipse
A central stage for
performances and talk sessions, ‘The Eclipse’ features tiered seating reminiscent of
the Colosseum, with content projected onto a layered system of shades. In this
space, the audience is encouraged to become active participants, immersed in the
content and interpreting it subjectively, rather than simply remaining as
observers.

Eclipses have held significant scientific, religious, and cultural meanings
throughout human history. These celestial events have inspired us to dream, look
beyond our own existence, predict the future and advance our technologies.

Opposites United: Eclipse of Perceptions uses the
space to embody the story of Kia Design, and its ambition to evolve relentlessly,
through dramatic staging and spatial transformations. The audience serves as
witnesses to a rare and exceptional moment, joining as active participants at each
instance of delight and contemplation.

Philippe Parreno
One of the most
internationally influential French artists of the last 25 years, Philippe Parreno
works across a diverse range of media, including film, music, sculpture, drawing,
and performance.

Adopting languages and codes from a variety of media, Parreno’s work
questions the boundary between reality and fiction, exploring the space where the
real and imagined intersect. Parreno encourages audiences to reconsider how they
engage with the real and the imagined, prompting a deeper reflection on the nature
of experience itself.

Marquee
Located at the exhibition’s
entrance, Parreno’s Marquee exemplifies the cultural vanguard
by revitalising the historical marquee concept in the context of contemporary art.
By blurring the lines between architecture, design, and performance, the work
transcends its origins as a cinema frontage, with the text-free work instead
focusing on light and form.

Ephemeral light, spatial interaction, and performative illumination shape a
dynamic experience, elevating the marquee from a mere object to a reflection on the
evolving interplay of past and present.

A.A. Murakami
Established in 2020 by
Azusa Murakami and Alexander Groves, A.A. Murakami creates immersive installations
that blend science and art. The ongoing Ephemeral Tech series
combines innovative technology with ethereal materials and states of matter to
create sensory experiences and unnatural phenomena.

A.A. Murakami’s work has been featured at the Venice Art and Architecture
Biennales and is part of permanent collections at MoMA in New York, the Pompidou
Centre in Paris, Vitra Design Museum in Germany, and M+ in Hong Kong. Murakami and
Groves’ experimental design practice, Studio Swine, has also received awards at
major global festivals, including Cannes.

The Cave
A.A. Murakami’s
The Cave fuses primal and technological elements to highlight
humanity’s enduring creative impulse. A large-scale automaton with robotic limbs,
representing cutting-edge technology, interacts with ancient instruments crafted
from replicas of ancient animal bones. The juxtaposition represents relentless
exploration, with the limbs emerging from a pool of water before activating bellows
to blow air through the instruments, creating an ethereal soundscape that fills the
space.

The immersive red light and still water environment push sensory
boundaries, reflecting the work’s concept as a meditation on life’s defiance of
entropy and sparking intellectual curiosity. The installation poses profound
questions about the endurance of human creativity and meaning in the face of
existential uncertainty.

Through its ephemeral performance, The Cave
underscores A.A. Murakami’s pursuit of capturing a unique moment – not by
replicating the past or present, but by relentlessly combining and reimagining
elements to forge a new path.

Beyond The Horizon
Beyond
the Horizon is the second work by A.A. Murakami featured within
Opposites United: Eclipse of Perceptions. The display showcases
giant, amorphous bubbles emerging from hanging automata and transforming into
clouds. Pushing the boundaries of traditional sculpture and installation, the work
explores ephemeral, performative, and interactive dimensions.

The use of mechanical devices to create organic, ever-changing forms
reflects a willingness to experiment with unconventional materials and technologies,
a hallmark of creative risk-taking. The unpredictable nature of the bubbles –
sometimes random, sometimes synchronised – introduces an element of chance,
embracing the inherent risk in working with dynamic, uncontrolled systems.

The immersive environment, with its elevated walkway, hazy atmosphere, and
floor covered with a thin layer of water to make it reflective, further amplifies
the viewer’s experience, creating a sense of wonder and encouraging interaction with
the artwork’s unpredictability.

Opposites United: Eclipse of Perceptions runs from
7-13 April at Museo della Permanente in Milan, Italy.

Ends

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