MAARTEN BAAS’ Milan installation: May I Have Your Attention Please?

Designer MAARTEN BAAS has a long history of causing sensation in Milan. It is not just the designs by his hand like SMOKE or CLAY that create quite a stir- the Dutch designer is in the habit of using big performances to show his work.

MAARTEN BAAS, in collaboration with Lensvelt, is showcasing his latest work by creating an installation titled: May I Have Your Attention Please? BAAS often uses unexpected locations in the city of Milan to provide a backdrop for his performances. May I Have Your Attention Please? is no exception. In Ventura Centrale, he opens the doors to one of the vaults, adjacent to one of Italy's busiest railway stations. The location’s raw décor is transformed by BAAS with an entrance consisting of the best of BAAS: the new book, photography by Erwin Olaf and Anton Corbijn and his jubilee bronze CLAY chair.

In the heart of the warehouse, BAAS by Lensvelt shows an installation of bullhorns which emit a cacophony of whispered voices. “The voices are indistinguishable, they are clips taken from all sorts of sources, and for me they represent the energy of people. I feel like we live in a world where attention is almost as much a currency as money is or power. I don't say it is good or bad. It is just an interesting phenomenon.” The installation is completed by the newest chairs by Maarten Baas, all individual unique chairs, just like the individual voices coming from the megaphones.

“Maarten Baas 101” chairs are especially designed by BAAS for Lensvelt. By tweaking the production process BAAS has managed to create a collection of chairs that can be produced in large quantities but still have their own individual identity. “They are the same, but different. We are also made up from the same parts (arms, legs, a head) but yet again we aren’t identical. These chairs are unique, even in large numbers.”