Miguel Milá. A Life in Design

Santa & Cole presents the exhibition “Miguel Milá. A Life in Design” at its Barcelona gallery, open to the public until January the 28th 2023.

The lighting editor Santa & Cole curates the exhibition Miguel Milá. A Life in Design, at its Barcelona gallery, open to visitors until January 28^th, backed by Apartamento’s recently published book on the life and work of the Catalan designer Miguel Milá.

The exhibition, not intended to be a retrospective, seeks to give a fresh and renewed vision of Miguel Milá’s figure, whose relevance transcends temporality, demonstrating the characteristic closeness and friendliness of the designer.

The exhibition is an expression of the campaign Santa & Cole has undertaken to connect with new audiences and disseminate the figure of Miguel Milá and his prolific activity as a designer. David Martí, the editor of Santa & Cole, declares: “We have been editing Miguel Milá’s designs since 1986. Together we have generated a collection of 31 designs, available in our catalogue, and now we would like to internationally introduce the figure of Milá and all his work.”. Independent and global editor of long-lived products, with roots in Belloch (Barcelona), Santa & Cole was founded in 1985 by Javier Nieto Santa, Nina Masó and Gabriel Ordeig Cole.

The Galería Santa & Cole, its headquarters in town, is a dynamic space that hosts temporary exhibitions of its art, design and book editions, as well as presentations, colloquiums and other events so that the material culture they defend can be experienced in all its expressions.

The exhibition includes four of his most iconic designs: Cestita (1962), TMM (1961), M68 (1962) and FAD (1974), which are still just as relevant decades later. These designs are produced by craftsmen with noble materials to endure over time, being able to tell their own stories.

Also present at the exhibition is the book Miguel Milá. A Life in Design, written by Kiko Gaspar and with an introduction of the well-known English designer Jasper Morrison, published by Apartamento The book reviews Milá’s most emblematic work, produced within the period of 1956 to 2021, with archive photos and drawings, as well as photos taken at Milá’s home by the photographer Nacho Alegre.

On the basis of this editorial project, Santa & Cole commissioned the creative studio Apartamento Studios, an independent cultural magazine based in Barcelona since 2008, for a broader project, the result of which is this exhibition curated by the duo together with a series of audiovisual pieces on some of his designs as well as on Milá’s career.

The Santa & Cole Gallery space includes the projection of a video made by Apartamento Studios, accompanied by current designs by the author, original versions and sketches that show other creative facets of Milá.

The exhibition will be itinerant and will tour around Asia, the United States and South America.

Miguel Milá, a Spanish designer

Miguel Milá represents Spanish design like no other. Member of the design pioneer generation of the 1950s, he has seen some of his furniture and lamps become true classics. Santa & Cole has been publishing its products since the company’s beginnings and today they are sold in more than 80 countries.

His work has been based on bringing tradition up to date, avoiding fashions and conventions, taking care of the development process and ageing of his pieces as an added value, where aesthetics and beauty are a consequence of the search for functionality and emotion. 

The objects he makes are pieces within his hand’s reach. They do not respond to or create new uses, but rather make an existing use easier and more comfortable. They help improve the user’s response without creating new needs.

Milá’s objects are the expression of the triumph of an ingenious man over an engineer. This means that certain components of his objects fulfil several functions, and respond to various uses. Thus, the cable of the TM family becomes in turn its switch.

Miguel Milá. A Life in Design

December 1st 2022 – January 28th 2023

Santa & Cole Gallery, c/Rosselló 256, Barcelona