Nika Zupanc
Nika Zupanc pours poetic disruption into a world of design and interiors. Her products and installations challenge the rational, sober and utilitarian by giving voice to the intuitive, eclectic and intimate. Nika Zupanc’s works bring inspiring reports from the outer frontiers of technologies, materials and possibilities. Her product design collaborations include distinguished design companies such as Moooi, Qeeboo, Ghidini1961, Sé, Natuzzi, De Castelli, Moroso, Bosa, Scarlet Splendour and Dior.
Since emerging at the Milan Design Week she has been closely watched by the industry and the press, describing her work as everything from “punk elegance” (Elle USA) and “techno chic” (BusinessWeek) to “larger than life” (Clear magazine) and Zupanc as “the real star” (The Wall Street Journal). Her Longing cabinet for Italian company Decastelli was part of the Tracing identity project, which was awarded with prestigious special Salone Del mobile award 2017. In 2018, Zupanc was awarded with Best German design award for Crystal lamp, designed for italian brand Contadi lightning and in 2019 she was selected as the Best International designer of the year, by Spanish magazine Interiores.
In the last few years, Zupanc has become one of the most closely-watched designers at Milan Design Week: not just for her stand-alone products but also for her installations, including Love Me More, curated by Rossana Orlandi. There’s a touch of theatre and Film Noir in her work, and somehow her pieces make the user feel like an actor. As for Zupanc, explanation is unnecessary. Her visual language comes from deep within and is about “communicating the things that cannot be told.”
