The Monocle Minute

Ibirapuera is São Paulo’s answer to Central Park. Once a swampy wetland far from the historical centre, the 158-hectare park has matured alongside Latin America’s largest city and now finds itself ensconced among innumerable high-rises (writes Bryan Harris). Look out of the window as you come in to land at the city’s Congonhas Airport and Ibirapuera appears as an emerald island in a sea of grey. In a metropolitan area that is home to more than 20 million people and precious few green spaces, the park is an oasis.

But tensions are brewing within Ibirapuera’s tree-lined borders. Almost five years after a private company took over the management of the park as part of a concession agreement with the city government, some residents are unhappy with developments. Despite the considerable investments in the site during this period – new restaurants, bathroom facilities, sports grounds, you name it – concessionaire Urbia has been criticised for privatising what should be a public space. And, unfortunately for the company, its most outspoken critic is one of the city’s public prosecutors.

In a formal complaint made late last month, Silvio Marques lambasted the park’s management for “transforming it into an open-air shopping centre, with exclusive spaces for companies that can pay a fee or rent”. He went on to not only criticise the “the excessive exposure of brands… [and] sale of alcoholic beverages” but threaten to bring criminal charges against Urbia. It seems that the prosecutor was most riled by the creation of a co-working space in the park by financial company Nubank. In his missive, Marques raised the possibility of revoking the park’s concession.

That would be a mistake. Today, Ibirapuera rivals the world’s greatest urban parks. This was simply not the case five years ago. Before the concession, the park was – to put it mildly – shabby. Food options were limited, bathrooms dilapidated and amenities few and far between. The transformation since then has been astounding. Ibirapuera is now one of São Paulo’s few bona fide tourist attractions, with a number of restaurants, cafés and even a sunset bar in which to enjoy a chopp (beer). Ibirapuera is packed these days and that speaks volumes. If visitors would like a reminder of what could have been, they only need to cross the street to see the broken pavements and peeling paintwork of the city-government maintained Ayrton Senna Plaza. Ibirapuera has left all of that in the rear-view mirror.

Bryan Harris is a Latin American columnist based in São Paulo. For more opinion, analysis and insight, subscribe today.

There’s a palpable sense of anticipation every year in Milan as the city gears up for what is, without doubt, its biggest event (writes Ed Stocker). In the design world, there might be more international chatter about smaller trade fairs, such as Copenhagen’s 3 Days of Design or Paris’s Matter and Shape, but Salone del Mobile, which officially kicks off tomorrow but has been hosting preview events since last week, is still the big daddy.

As always, it promises to be a whirlwind week in which the aperitivos and parties are just as vital as events on the trade-fair floor. This year, Salone has secured a stellar line-up of contributors. They include artist Robert Wilson, whose “Mother” project is at Castello Sforzesco; Es Devlin, whose beautiful “Library of Light” is in Brera; and film director Paolo Sorrentino, who has contributed the installation “La dolce attesa”. Around town we’re keeping an eye on Alcova’s “VOCLA – Design by Night” pop-up; 6:AM Glasswork’s Piscina Cozzi show; David Rockwell’s Casa Cork; Muji teaming up with 5.5; and Beni Rugs’ collaboration with Studio KO. We could go on...

Monocle’s editors and reporters will be on the ground throughout the week and our design editor, Nic Monisse, will also be hosting two evenings of sparkling conversation. The first, organised with Cupra and featuring discussion with leading creatives, takes place at Corso Como 1 tonight. It is followed on Wednesday evening by a drinks reception in partnership with DesignSingapore Council. I’ll also be moderating Salone’s inaugural Euroluce International Lighting Forum towards the end of the week. As ever, there’s plenty to illuminate – and we wouldn’t want it any other way.

For more details about attending these events, visit monocle.com/events and tune in to Monocle Radio throughout the week to hear updates from Salone del Mobile.

The Chiefs, Monocle’s annual leadership conference, hosted by our editorial director and chairman, Tyler Brûlé, lands in Jakarta later this month. Ahead of the event we’ll be introducing a few of the speakers who will be sharing their insights and business acumen with our audience.

Next up is An Chieh Chiang, who has spent the past decade reviving Lojel, a suitcase business launched by his grandfather in 1989. The Taiwanese product-design graduate has squeezed a lot into that time. Lojel led the industry in 2017 with its first top-opening hard-shell suitcase. Two years later it became a standalone corporate entity, distinct from the family’s main luggage business. It is now headquartered in Hong Kong, where Chiang is based. The 42-year-old’s most consequential decision has been to start selling directly to consumers. Monocle meets him at a shop opening in Bangkok to unpack his brand and the wider luggage industry.

How’s business?
When I took over Lojel in 2014, it was turning over $3.5m [€3.3m] in our three legacy markets: Singapore, Hong Kong and Indonesia. This year we’re targeting $40m [€38m], split evenly between distribution and direct sales.

Why streamline your suitcase range from 12 collections to two?
The decision came from listening to our customers instead of just relying on what distributors told us. That led us to our design-for-repair initiative. Having fewer collections means that we can standardise and re-engineer parts to increase repairability. Replacing a broken wheel is much simpler these days. We promote “Buy less, buy better”.

You now make most of your products in Indonesia.
We were lucky. Our factory near Jakarta opened before the US-China trade war. The idea was to have two production bases; now 80 per cent of our products are made in Indonesia and 20 per cent in mainland China.

You can buy your ticket to The Chiefs here or contact our head of events, Hannah Grundy, at hg@monocle.com for more information.

Rome has long been seen as the birthplace of the sweet life, so it’s no surprise that the city provides the platform for the launch of a new premium rail service (writes Ivan Carvalho). The La Dolce Vita Orient Express is spearheaded by Italian hospitality brand Arsenale and French hotel group Accor, and will offer overnight excursions to destinations across the Bel Paese. Itineraries include visits to Tuscan vineyards and a trip to Matera via the Transiberiana d’Italia train, which traverses high plateaus and mountains in Abruzzo.

Trains run from Rome’s Ostiense station, which hosts an upscale lounge for arriving and departing passengers. The rolling stock are Trenitalia Intercity models from the 1970s and 1980s that have undergone a chic interior revamp by Milan-based Dimorestudio. “It marks a revival of one of travel’s most exciting periods,” says La Dolce Vita Orient Express CEO Gilda Perez-Alvarado. Each train has 31 sleeper cabins, a restaurant car and a lounge bar complete with a live band. Come to think of it, a little hair of the dog would keep us on the right track post-Salone.

New Orleans-based studio Trahan Architects has designed the US pavilion for the World Expo 2025, which starts in Osaka on Sunday. The firm’s founder, Trey Trahan, tells Monocle about the allure of building in Japan, the approach to designing such an emblematic structure and how he brings a sense of accountability to his work.

What draws you to Japan?
I have been travelling to Japan for about 15 years and I collect Japanese art. I have always been intrigued by how the country approaches space, particularly through the layouts of its temples and gardens. The West can learn a lot from these contributions to humanity.

What was the starting point for your design for the USA pavilion?
The US was provided with an exceptional pitch near the water in the Expo’s East Gate. We wanted to build something that felt like a continuation of this open public space. We were also inspired by a 1933 essay called In Praise of Shadows, in which writer Junichiro Tanizaki speaks about the importance of natural light. This inspired us to create a mirrored image of two triangulated buildings with an open plaza and an arching bridge. We wanted to capture a sense of Times Square and its artificial lighting. As you move through the pavilion, the space becomes more natural, more meditative.

How do you portray American values through your work?
There’s a strong sense of openness, accountability and respect for urban environments and natural ecology. It’s a privilege to represent the US and to design the pavilion – but also to be here celebrating the work and values of other countries. Though we experience some of that in the US, particularly during Mardi Gras in New Orleans, nothing is on the scale of the World Expo.

From Prada’s new trainer to Paris’s sharpest shirts and handcrafted Japanese menswear, Monocle’s team has crunched the numbers, travelled the world and is now ready to unveil this year’s top 25 designers, products and brands. Plus: our trusty Concierge takes us on a tour of Tokyo, we visit Brazil’s leading garden designer and talk to the man who runs the show at Eurovision. Smarten up your style with Monocle’s fashion special – out now.