From 18 to 23 April, hundreds of orchids will decorate the Dutch pavilion Masterly during the Salone del Mobile in Milan. The ‘Salone’ is the world’s leading international design fair, with presentations in the exhibition centre and throughout the city of Milan. Masterly showcases a complete and varied design field with relevant work by architects, furniture, textile, construction and accessories companies, designers, artists, craftsmen, galleries and vocational schools for design and interiors. Orchids Info has once again been selected to showcase a lavish assortment of the highest quality Dutch orchids.

Queen Máxima to opening Masterly

Her Majesty Queen Máxima will attend the official opening of the seventh edition of Masterly on Tuesday 18 April. In the Palazzo Giureconsulti – next to Milan’s famous cathedral – curator Nicole Uniquole has brought together the beautiful collections of over eighty Dutch interior designers and companies.

Her Majesty Queen Máxima | Photo: RVD Jeroen van der Meyde

Nicole Uniquole: ‘It is a particularly great honour that Her Majesty Queen Máxima is visiting Masterly this year. The Netherlands is one of the biggest players during Milan Design Week and the fact that the Queen is paying an extensive visit to Milan underlines for me the importance of Dutch Design at home and abroad. In addition, I am very happy with Masterly’s new location as a new setting for the collections of more than eighty Dutch designers and companies’.

Nicole Uniquole | Photo: Renata Dutree | Couturier: Edwin Oudshoorn | Make-up: MUAH

The Palazzo

Masterly – the Dutch in Milano is situated during the Salone del Mobile at Palazzo dei Giureconsulti, known as the Palazzo with the Tower. It is the city’s most elegant, iconic and centrally located venue, literally a few steps away from Piazza del Duomo. Five hundred years of history add inestimable layers and value to the spaces. The vaults, monumental staircase, stucco, decorations and historic light have been preserved in the various presentation rooms. The Palazzo is the exclusive domain for Dutch design.

Orchids and design: a perfect match

Watch the aftermovie of Masterly 2022 here:

Masterly takes place from 18 to 23 April Palazzo Giureconsulti in Piazza Mercanti in Milan, Italy. More information can be found at: www.masterly.nu.

Every year the grand courtyard of Palazzo Francesco Turati in Milan is a sea of flowers. It’s a great tradition which the Milanese and visitors eagerly look forward to. Masterly The Dutch in Milano thereby combines design and floriculture during Salone del Mobile, the world’s biggest design trade fair for interior design. From 7 to 12 June, approximately 1,000 orchids will grace the courtyard of the Palazzo in Milan.

We talked to Nicole Uniquole: international design curator, concept developer and exhibition maker. Nowadays Nicole is world-famous for her masterly exhibitions, in which she combines contemporary design with the works of Old Masters. Her professional practice has an inimitable way of interweaving different worlds.

Nicole Uniquole

Nicole creates high-profile exhibitions such as Dutch Design – House of Orange at Oranienbaum Palace, Royal Showpieces at Het Loo Palace and Masterly © – Dutch Pavilion at Salone del Mobile in Milan.

Could you tell us more about Masterly, where we are displaying the orchids?

Masterly presents a complete and varied field of design with relevant work from architects, furniture, textile, construction and accessories businesses, designers, artists, craftspeople, galleries and vocational colleges for design and interiors. The location is the historic Palazzo Francesco Turati, with a fabulous courtyard surrounded by arches and a roof terrace with a view of the Duomo. We have decorated this Palazzo with 1000 radiant orchids from the Netherlands.

In Milan, you are bringing together Dutch art and floriculture. How do you think the two are linked?

Both disciplines attach great importance to knowledge, skill and artisan craftsmanship. So they are inseparable.

This year you have opted for orchids. Why?

Lombardy and Milan suffered greatly at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. I would like to cheer up the inhabitants of Milan with a fabulous orchid as a comforting flower and as a metaphor for a long and happy life that makes you cheerful again. The elegant orchid is the perfect plant for this.

What is your personal relationship with flowers and plants, and specifically the orchid? Do you have a favourite orchid?

I don’t personally have green fingers, but the modern, elegant decorative orchid requires little care and lasts a long time. I love true nature, and have no interest in fake flowers. I also prefer orchids that flower several times a year.

As a lover of art and design, you’re bound to have a few tips on combining plants and art in an interior. Could you tell us something about that or offer any advice?

Flower painters have long been a source of inspiration.
The concept of Masterly The Hague presents art and design whereby the designer has been inspired by a historic painting. I could easily imagine designers creating a work based on one of the 25,000 different orchids, and then displaying them together in your own home. A jewel with a story for your interior.

More information about Masterly: www.masterly.nu.

From 18 to 23 April, hundreds of orchids will decorate the Dutch pavilion Masterly, during the international design fair Salone del Mobile in Milan. Masterly is the showcase of Dutch design and is located in the Palazzo Giureconsulti, a stone’s throw from the Duomo. Orchid Netherlands has once again been selected to exhibit a rich assortment of the highest quality Dutch orchids. That orchids and design go together perfectly becomes clear as soon as you enter.

The power of contrast

In the classic white décor of the palace, orchids (arranged by Sand and Spijker in Delft) strongly attract attention, complimenting the design pieces in the room. Hundreds of long-lasting orchids are incorporated in no fewer than four metre-high installations with Elho baskets, and in arrangements with classic Royal Delft porcelain vases. The presentation of a rich assortment of Phalaenopsis and exclusive orchids impressively adds colour and life to the iconic Palazzo Giureconsulti.

Orchids and design: a perfect match

Not only does the Netherlands offer excellence in art and design, but also in orchids. They are works of art from nature that can be enjoyed for a long time. That’s why curator and initiator of Masterly Nicole Uniquole, once again chose orchids as part of the exhibition. “The concept of Masterly showcases art and design. Traditionally, floral artists were a source of inspiration, so the orchid cannot be missing from Dutch design. The modern, elegant orchid is like an ornament with a story for your interior,” says Nicole Uniquole.

Orchids for Milan

As orchids have a much longer shelf life than the week of the exhibition, all plants are traditionally distributed on the last day of the event. This is a huge success every year. In large numbers, residents of Milan come to the distribution moment to receive the orchids with open arms and enjoy them at home for a long time to come.

Masterly takes place from 18 to 23 April Palazzo Giureconsulti in Piazza Mercanti in Milan, Italy. More information can be found at www.masterly.nu.