#MilanoDesignWeek18: Interview with Elena Salmistraro

Timberland collaborates with Elena Salmistraro, ambassador of Brera Design District 2018, to create an installation that sees as undisputed protagonist the tree, which has always been the brand's symbol, declined, however, from a feminine point of view. The installation is part of the global 'DO NOT CALL ME' Timberland campaign, which focuses on the universe of today's women, strong, intelligent, but also maternal and sweet, ready to break all the clichés.

From 17th to 22nd April 2018, Piazza XXV Aprile.

#1 Hello Elena, designer and ambassador of Brera Design District 2018. What should we know about you? How did you get here and where did everything starts?

About me there is really little to know, I think I am a very normal person, without particular anecdotes to tell. How I how I came up to this point , sometimes I ask myself too, everything happened in a relatively short space of time; the first time I took part in the Fuorisalone with self-produced objects was in 2012, I presented a papier-mâché sofa "Deux âmes" and a collection of ceramic objects "The Lankies's family", from there between highs and lows moments began my career, and I must admit I'm very proud of everything I've done.

#2 Through this installation began your first collaboration with the well-known brand Timberland. The art that meets fashion, the design that is realized in its many facets: how did you manage to find and then create a balance between what is your world and what is the Timberland's reality?

I must admit that it was all very simple and natural, I have a purely artistic education, and also for a few years at university I studied fashion, so I found in front of myself worlds that I know and love. Immersing myself in the Timberland reality was very exciting, I discovered their versatility and their courage to get involved and to accept the challenges, we talked, reasoned and developed an idea in full harmony, it was fantastic and I hope that the work is also an expression of this.

#3 You are a great supporter of women, of their strength, of their pure expression: how they are represented in Daphne - project designed that you created for Timberland - and what do you hope visitors feel in front of your work?

Dafne is also part of the campaign launched by Timberland #dont'call me, which wants to underline a very important concept for me, namely that there are no labels, there is no universal woman, women exist and have billions of nuances, aspects, of features. So I only hope that the visitors will find some of themselves in Daphne.

#4 This "tree" has also an heart... explain it better.

Exactly, Dafne has a beating heart, just embrace the tree to feel and see the energy, but I will not reveal anything else to avoid spoiling the surprise.

#5 How long were the design and construction times of the installation?

I must admit that most of the time was spent to focus on the concept and develop it in all its parts, Dafne is full of symbolism and quotations, from the mirror flooring that wants to represent the thousand facets of the female character, to the acorns that wrap and protect as the embrace of a mother, but also the silhouette that follows the sensual and provocative forms of a diva. Then the craftsmen were very good and they really did a great job in accomplishing everything in almost three months, a truly record-breaking job.

#6 What do you see in your artistic future?

I only hope to confront myself with new challenges always, experiences that keep my passion for this wonderful job alive.