“I came here for an architecture exhibition at the end of last year when it was open for a few days and asked about renting the space,” says Francesco Palù, co-founder of Milan’s 6:AM Glassworks. That makes the process of turning this venue into the brand’s Design Week site sound much easier than it was. monocle meets Palù for a preview of 6:AM Glassworks’ showcase of its eclectic work to date in the basement of the rationalist Cozzi swimming pool in Milan. We’re at the entrance of its public washrooms, which were inaugurated in the 1950s and have long been out of use. Architects, engineers and administrators are gathered around as someone drills into the ceiling to check that the lights that the brand plans to hang will hold.

Established in 2018, 6:AM has made a name for itself by taking the traditional skills of Murano’s glassmakers and translating them into contemporary design pieces. Palù, who is from Parma, met the brand’s Venetian co-founder Edoardo Pandolfo when they worked for architect Andrea Caputo. After they both left, Palù needed help sourcing glass for a project for Locatelli Partners and asked his friend to work his Venetian contacts – and the idea for 6:AM was born. 

The Cozzi show, entitled Two-Fold Silence, is 6:AM’s first solo exhibition (the practice was part of a group show at Dropcity last year) and features lighting, furniture, objects and site-specific installations. “This is all about giving an idea of a story and the direction that we want to go,” says Pandolfo of the curation and the decision to use the swimming-pool space.

The entrance to the washrooms, featuring a sea-scene mosaic and a ceiling border of seahorses, will be installed with dark curtains and a large ceiling light featuring a series of Murano-made cubes inspired by Bauhaus Atrax lights that the pair saw in Berlin. One or two objects will be placed in each of the 17 showers, from the Sistema wall light featuring stainless steel and appliqué cast-glass to the 5/10/12 table in coloured glass. “It’ll be a bit of a labyrinth where you can get lost,” says Pandolfo.

With low lighting, a soundscape of Mediterranean sounds by Milan’s Invernomuto and a whiff of palo santo in the air, Two-Fold Silence promises to be one of the highlights of Fuorisalone. “As an emerging brand, we have to do cool things,” says Pandolfo.