Miamina Project
In 1983, the architectural studio Salvati & Tresoldi from Milan created the Miamina armchair for Saporiti Italia.
It is a “tribute” to the Tripolina, the folding seat made of wood and fabric used by the British Army in African campaigns during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Saporiti Italia developed an innovative steel tube structure with an advanced joint made of spheroidal graphite cast iron, which supports a colorful seat made for Saporiti Italia by Ottavio and Rosita Missoni.
The Miamina was first presented at the Saporiti Italia showroom in Miami, from which it takes its name.
The armchair achieved great commercial success and became the subject of a series of interesting research and communication developments in the years that followed and continues to be influential today.
In April 2024, the Lombardy Region financed the renovation of the EV-K2-CNR laboratory, and Saporiti Italia once again supported the project, presenting the original 1990 Miamina EV-K2-CNR in Milan, at Palazzo Lombardia, alongside six new versions created by students from the Polytechnic University of Milan and the Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation, who were awarded scholarships.
Among the awarded projects was a Miamina created by students from the Polytechnic University of Milan, featuring a transparent fabric filled with waste, symbolizing the need to respect nature, especially in fragile environments such as high-altitude glaciers, by both local populations and international mountaineering expeditions.
In 2023, Saporiti Italia organized an exhibition at the ADI Design Museum in Milan on its work with the Salvati & Tresoldi Studio. The Miamina armchair was the absolute protagonist of the exhibition, both in its historical versions and in a new interpretation by artist FoscaMilano, who created twenty special editions dedicated to the “Saporiti Cities,” which were sold in a charity auction by Cambi Aste.
In 1990, the Miamina was the star of an important scientific and cultural event sponsored by Saporiti Italia. Ardito Desio, the famous geologist, explorer, and organizer of the first ascent of K2 in 1954, asked Saporiti Italia to design the interiors of the scientific laboratory promoted by the CNR (National Research Council) in Nepal, at the base camp for Everest and K2 expeditions, located at 5,050 meters above sea level.
Saporiti Italia sponsored the project and created a special edition of the Miamina, the EV-K2-CNR, for the laboratory in Nepal, designed by one of the world’s most famous graphic designers, Bob Noorda.
