Yinka Ilori debuts 'Chasing the Sun', an immersive work about design and community
- British-Nigerian designer Yinka Ilori and Veuve Clicquot opened “Chasing the Sun” at Milan Design Week, turning Mediateca Santa Teresa into an immersive installation, café and boutique running April 21-26. - The project doubles as a product launch: Ilori designed a limited-edition Veuve Clicquot collection, with sun-themed objects and accessories tied to the maison’s Yellow Label and Rosé cuvées. - The installation was part of Brera Design District’s April 20-26 program and one of several brand-led Milan activations blending exhibition, hospitality and retail. (milandesignweek.org)
Yinka Ilori and Veuve Clicquot opened “Chasing the Sun” at Milan Design Week, an immersive installation at Mediateca Santa Teresa that ran from April 21 to 26. (forbes.com) (veuveclicquot.com) The project paired an exhibition with a Clicquot Café and a boutique selling limited-edition pieces from the collaboration. Veuve Clicquot said the experience was built as a “statement of design” around a luminous, sun-led theme. (veuveclicquot.com) (fuorisalone.it) Ilori, a British-Nigerian designer known for saturated color and public-space work, framed the installation around joy, optimism and shared experience. Forbes described it as one of the calmer stops in a week better known for crowds, launches and constant movement. (forbes.com) (culturalee.art) The installation also served a commercial purpose. Veuve Clicquot tied it to a new Ilori-designed collection of objects and accessories created to accompany its Yellow Label and Rosé champagnes. (veuveclicquot.com 1) (veuveclicquot.com 2) Milan Design Week has become a place where luxury brands use exhibitions to sell a broader lifestyle, not just a product. The official event listing placed “Chasing the Sun” inside Brera Design District and scheduled programming from April 20 through April 26, including presentations, parties and daily exhibition hours. (milandesignweek.org) (fuorisalone.it) That format was visible across this year’s fair. Forbes highlighted brand installations from houses including Gucci and Rubelli, and separately listed Veuve Clicquot’s Ilori collaboration among the designer tie-ups to shop during the week. (forbes.com 1) (forbes.com 2) For Ilori, the Milan project extends a practice that often links bright visual language to public gathering and storytelling. For Veuve Clicquot, it extends a design strategy that uses artists and limited editions to keep the champagne house visible beyond drinks retail. (culturalee.art) (interiordaily.com) By the final day of the fair on April 26, “Chasing the Sun” had landed as both a Milan exhibition and a branded environment built to be lingered in. The pitch was simple: color, champagne and a slower room inside a very busy week. (forbes.com) (veuveclicquot.com)
