To follow up on earlier coverage of Driade’s show presence at Salone, I want to point everyone’s attention to centerpieces by Mann Singh, a designer with his hands in a bit of everything.

Working in mediums as diverse as brass, wood, felt, bamboo, and clay and creating objects as dissimilar as vases, lamps, miniatures, chairs, and purses, Mann Singh truly embodies what he learned at the National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad, where “the focus on learning by doing was mind altering.”

Kanchar Centerpieces. Designed by Mann Singh. Manufactured by Driade.

The kanchar centerpieces, made of silvered brass, focus on organic shapes such as flowers, leaves, and coral. Arranged alone or in groups—a triad makes a powerful statement—the kanchar line works particularly well with modern design, due to its use of negative space. The individual parts that make up the centerpieces are fused together, leaving open areas that transform these would-be bowls into works of art. Consequently, the kanchar objects avoid the heaviness and opacity of more traditional ornamentation.

Additionally, they invite light: the spaces offer pathways through which light may tunnel; and the material reflects light. Like so much of the furniture featured at the Salone del Mobile, the kanchar centerpieces demonstrate self-evident construction. We see the individual pieces that compose these bowls in the same way that we see the sleek legs in the Shift by Bjorn Meier Designs and in the cushions of the Beautiful Backside collection by Nipa Doshi. The kanchar line fits east and west, uptown and downtown. If it could work its way onto movie sets, it might appear in the Tyrell Corporation office in Blade Runner as seamlessly as in the Kittredge’s central park apartment in Six Degrees of Separation (sharing screen time with Kandinsky, no less).

Visit Driade’s website in the future, as Mann Singh’s centerpieces have not yet made their way there.