studio job leaves a love letter to milan on garage traversi

design duo studio job celebrates the rebirth of milan’s historic garage traversi during design week with a pop art love letter to the city. sited on the rationalist facade of this landmark building in the montenapoleone district, ‘oh oh, milano..I love you too…’ brings together the bold and immaginative visual themes studio job has become widely known for. a giant mouth sticking out its tongue appears atop a tableau of vibrantly colored illustrations of bananas, rainbows and peace signs. beneath the motifs, the phrase ‘oh oh, milano..I love you too…’ written in the form a comic balloon boldly faces the city street, contributing to a cheeky, chromatic addition to the milanese architectural icon.

the bold and immaginative visual themes of studio job hit the streets of milan
photo by carmine conte

‘our work depicts the romantic-pop story line of contemporary italian avant-garde,’ job smeets of studio job says. ‘we were inspired by milan and its strong contemporary vibe. we wanted something which could project the boldness, confidence and fun the city is famous for.’

the studio was largely inspired by the site — garage traversi, a beacon of rationalist architecture and one of the first buildings made of reinforced concrete in the milan. built in 1938 by architect giacomo de min, the building sits on an irregular lot and takes the shape of a fan. the two lower floors are described by straight lines and masonry, while the upper six floors — designated for parking — are indicated by curved lines and glass surfaces. while the garage was abandoned 15 years ago, it remained one of the most striking buildings in the montenapoleone district.

the public installation on garage traversi is part of a monumental project focusing on rationalism in milan
photo by carmine conte

the public installation on garage traversi is part of a monumental project focusing on rationalism in milan which will unfold across via montenapoleone. this fashionable and famous street will be enriched with images of the most famous milanese rationalist buildings, curated by alessandro cocchieri.

the studio was largely inspired by the site — garage traversi
photo by carmine conte

forming part of this initiative, ‘oh oh, milano..I love you too…’ is promoted by the montenapoleone district and supported by british real estate firm hayrish. the firm acquired garage traversi early in 2017 through the HITA1 fund managed by BNP paribas REIM with an aim to transform it into the ultimate luxury hub. milan-based architects SPI studio carefully planned and executed the venue’s transformation, highlighting its role as a cultural landmark.

while the garage was abandoned 15 years ago, it remained one of the most striking buildings in milan
photo by carmine conte

‘montenapoleone district is willing to give more space to arts and culture, one of the funding stones of the italian know-how everyone admires,’ guglielmo miani, president of the montenapoleone district says. ‘garage traversi finally goes back into the map of the district, and that’s why we wanted studio job – one of the most important design studisos – to highlight its unmistakable facade with an installation. garage traversi, with its rationalist look, is one of the most representative buildings in milan, as everyone will see in the exhibition on milanese architectures promoted in via montenapoleone.’

garage traversi is set to become the ultimate luxury hub
photo by carmine conte