Milan | Discipline

Design brand Discipline got a mention here a few months back as outfitter of Milan’s Pisacco restaurant, still a showcase for some of its signature furniture and lighting. It just shows the two enterprises share a predilection for warm, vibrant interiors replete with natural materials. See the beautiful clean lines of their Bell Lamps by Sybylle Stoeckli, lightweight Drifted stools in wood and cork by Lars Beller Fjetland, functional Day&Night tables by Ichiro Iwasaki, and playful, versatile Tilt ladder with optional shelving by SmithMatthias.

15 or so designers make up Milan-based Discipline: new names join the team regularly and some are duos or trios. Mostly they’re young and come from northern Europe but at least a couple hail from Japan, one from the US, and currently there’s just the one Italian. Some are still planning out a career path, others have already reached a destination or two.

For all their differences, what they have in common is a compulsion to experiment hands-on with shapes and materials, aiming for unorthodox but practical solutions for industrial production. Once they’re there, it’s all about making manufacturing processes sustainable and keeping prices down, so Disciplinarians choose their production partners with care. Discipline designs are for everyday: functional, durable, good-looking, tactile and sometimes quirky. They’re fashioned from wood, metals and glass, but also bamboo, cork, leather and textiles. You can buy them online direct from Discipline, or from stockists the world over.