Tastemaking brands

In an era in which brands and the creative industries are grappling with the potential impacts of generative AI, taste is emerging as a critical element that differentiates humans from machines - and brands from each other. OpenAI’s president Greg Brockman dubbed taste “a new core skill,” on X earlier this year, and it’s been called “the only moat” amidst the “AI flood.” Against this backdrop, being part of events that set the aesthetic agenda is proving attractive, as the array of big tech brands buying up tables at this year’s Met Gala underlined.

At the Salone del Mobile fair in Milan in April - ostensibly focused on furniture and interiors - a host of brands outside those spheres showcased installations to cement their cultural relevance.

Perhaps one of the most unexpected brands on show was McDonald’s, which collaborated with curator Nicolas Ballario to exhibit POOL. Ti sblocco un ricordo (I'll unlock a memory for you), described as “an immersive exhibition…that intertwines contemporary art, memory and pop culture.” Centered around a giant ball pit, the work took inspiration from Damien Hirst and artist duo Vedovamazzei.

Conceived to celebrate 40 years of McDonald’s in Italy, the installation also encompassed an exhibition that charted the brand’s history in the country. McDonald's Italy managing director Giorgia Favaro told Dezeen that the installation captured how the brand has become part of “collective culture,” allowing visitors to “move through it, recognize it, and reconnect with their own memories.”

A long, sleek, white hallway stretches into the distance, with its entire floor transformed into a vibrant ball pit. The pit is overflowing with countless red, yellow, green, blue, and white plastic balls. Recessed lighting illuminates the clean, minimalist walls and ceiling, creating a playful yet modern aesthetic. — POOL by McDonald's. Courtesy of McDonald's.

Veuve Clicquot, meanwhile, took a dopamine-drenched approach in its exhibit with British-Nigerian artist Yinka Ilori, dubbed Chasing the Sun. Ilori created a “luminous and uplifting world,” rich with the artist’s signature texture and color. The installation marked the launch of Ilori’s design collection for the house, which spotlights pieces such as The Sun Holder, a champagne bucket crafted in a 3D knitting technique to showcase the artist’s hand-embracing-sun pattern.

Meanwhile, luxury fashion brand Jil Sander sought to counter “an era of distracted, fragmented reading shaped by algorithms,” with its Reference Library installation, paying homage to the “slow, full attention” that a book represents. Conceived by Apartamento editor-in-chief Marco Velardi and Jil Sander creative director Simone Bellotti, the exhibit was set in a shadowy space that spotlighted 60 books chosen by 60 creatives. Describing the installation to The World of Interiors, Bellotti likened it to a “search engine made by people…I like to think of it as natural intelligence.”

A tapestry in a classical style, depicting several figures in dark robes gathered around a vibrant red garment on a stand. The background features intricate patterns, trees, and arched architectural details.

A classical architectural courtyard featuring a lush garden filled with numerous light-colored flowers and green foliage. The garden is surrounded by a multi-story building with an arched colonnade on the ground floor and rows of windows on the upper levels.

Two women in light-colored suits stand in an immersive room with walls covered in vibrant red, orange, and yellow swirling, molten-like patterns. Reflections of the women and the patterned walls extend into the distance, creating a sense of depth

A woman in a light-colored outfit stands beside a two-tone white Range Rover, which is parked in a brightly lit, minimalist tunnel. Abstract art pieces are displayed on pedestals along the tunnel walls.

Gucci Memoria by Demna. Courtesy of Gucci and Range Rover Traces, courtesy of Range Rover.

Also making a splash was Gucci’s Memoria exhibit, held in the city’s 16^th century Chiostri di San Simpliciano. Curated by creative director Demna, the installation displayed 12 mock Renaissance-style tapestries, each translating “a defining moment in Gucci’s history into a richly composed tableau,” the brand says. Among them were tableaus depicting Demna himself, Madonna in a Tom Ford-era Gucci look, and squabbles between the Gucci heirs in the 60s and 70s. In a contrastingly futuristic outing, Range Rover teamed with spatial designers Storey Studio to create its installation Traces, celebrating the brand’s personalization service. The piece showcased immersive film and visual art experiences, ending with the reveal of the Pearl of Tay, a one‑of‑a‑kind Range Rover bespoke commission “inspired by the freshwater pearl of the River Tay in Scotland.”

The Intelligence Take

While some backlash emerged regarding brands overshadowing the Salone’s traditional furniture focus—one journalist dubbed it a “brand week” rather than a design week—the influx of brands illustrates how being perceived as at the forefront of aesthetic taste is becoming a key differentiator, regardless of product. As Kyle Chayka noted in The New Yorker, writing about how Silicon Valley is chasing taste, the word “has become as much of a tech-world cliché as “disruption” was in the twenty-tens.” In an era in which AI is encroaching on aesthetics, aligning a brand with the sense of discernment of events like the Salone is proving to be a major draw.

Main image: Gucci Memoria by Demna. Courtesy of Gucci.