Second edition of LA RINASCENTE ‘The GREEN LIFE’ event during Milan Design Week

Following its huge success last year, The Green Life event is for those passionate about all things green and eco-friendly, and will take place in all Rinascente stores from 5 to 22 April.

The issues of sustainability and respecting nature are now an integral part of any discussion on design: for this reason Rinascente has decided to give a green interpretation of the Design Week, and to showcase designers and new collections with an installation that takes over the outside and inside areas of the flagship store in Piazza Duomo. The mastermind of the project is Dutch designer Sabine Marcelis.

Sixteen huge century-old olive trees are placed outside between the store and the Duomo to create a real boulevard. Set on platforms, they create a perfect place to enjoy a peaceful moment of relaxation on some of the seats designed by Sabine Marcelis.

The installation pays homage to the incredible Italian greenery and provides a verdant oasis in the heart of the city, sponsored by the Municipality of Milan.

In perfect harmony with The Boulevard, Sabine Marcelis has created 8 moving sculptures for the window displays facing Piazza Duomo. Pale-coloured disks of plexiglass twist and float around the many kinds of plants and trees. The different colours of the plastic plates both reveal and conceal the statuesque nature of the plants, with their overlapping contributing to a constant changing and alternating of colours.

These dazzling effects, continually changing, capture the attention of passers-by, inviting them to stop and see how the scene plays out and to admire all the other window displays.

Another distinctive feature is the extraordinary variety of plants inside the store as well, with an installation in the Design Supermarket and another on the fourth floor, Another exhibition area is to be set up on the sixth floor, where plants supplied by the best Italian nurseries can not only be admired, but also purchased.