Sabine Marcelis Introduces Her Jelly-like Creations to The Shores of Lake Como

MILAN — Dutch-New Zealander designer Sabine Marcelis’ profile continues to rise as she unleashes her futuristic, spatial design spirit into the world of home and forges projects with fashion brands like Dior and Fendi.

On Sunday, the Italian hospitality industry experienced her distinctive design sense. Until Sept. 21, her new installation entitled “Jelly Floats” will be on view in the pool of the Lake Como Edition hotel, running concurrently with the ongoing Lake Como Design Festival.

Her latest project is full of whimsy and consists of a curated collection of sculptural, translucent donut-shaped floaties. Known for her exploration of this iconic shape across rugs, lamps and bowls, Jelly Floats marks her first foray into inflatable, translucent forms — bringing her design language into an entirely new medium.

Marcelis told WWD that the jellies are made of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) in hot pink. “It’s quite a contrast to the natural vista surrounding the pool. I love how this project is just all about providing a bit of fun to the visitors enjoying the pool. Design doesn’t always have to be so serious,” she said, emphasizing the relevance of smaller events like The Lake Como Design Festival and the events, like her own, that surround it.

“It’s the first time for me visiting the festival and I am very much looking forward to seeing what else will be on show. I love satellite and smaller design weeks. I recently visited design weeks in Vietnam, Bali and Mallorca where smaller events were held. I think these events can be very surprising and easier to manage than the larger ones,” she said.

Earlier this month, Marcelis work was featured at the Miss Dior exhibition in Shanghai at the Fosun Foundation. Marcelis showcased alongside six Chinese artists, including Ai Jing, Chen Ke, Liang Yuanwei, Liu Shiyuan, Zhou Li and Daishi Luo, as well as Japanese artist Haruka Kojin, French artist Ingrid Donat and American artist Judy Chicago. The creative spoke at the February edition of Paris’ Matter and Shape during its Jil Sander Design Talks. Marcelis, along with Cloud, the multidisciplinary practice founded by Paul Cournet, was commissioned by Design Space Alula to design the scenography for its exhibition at Milan Design Week 2024.

The seventh edition of the Lake Como Design Festival will also run until Sept. 21. Key exhibitions include a tribute to Italian architect and designer Aldo Rossi. Entitled “Architecture by Fragments” the showcases was curated by Chiara Spangaro in collaboration with the Fondazione Aldo Rossi and will be hosted in San Pietro in Atrio exhibition space, which was formerly a church. Elsewhere, Rossi’s contemporary, Ico Parisi is also the focus of the first inaugurating the new headquarters of the Archivio Design Ico Parisi: a showcase of large-format paintings from the series “Crolli edificanti – Tavole di provocazione” (Italian for “Edifying Collapses — Provocative Tables”), with works never before exhibited in Como and created during the 1970s and 1980s.