Miguel Milá

Milá’s curiosity as a young man brought him to shelve his studies in architecture in order to experiment with materials and focus on the practical world of craft. He later founded Trabajos Molestos or TRAMO, together with two architect friends, Francisco Ribas Barangé and Eduardo Pérez Ulibarri, a company focused on the design and production of indoor furniture. The initial versions of the TMC (1958) and TMM (1961) lamps were created here, edited by Santa & Cole, two timeless classics that remain relevant for today’s generations. In the early 21st century, Milá founded his own interior design and design studio, where he nurtured his processes and perfected his technique: “Really and truly, I’m a pre-industrial designer. I feel more comfortable with those technical procedures that allow me to correct my mistakes, experiment throughout the process and maximise my control over it. My preference for fine materials, which know how to age, stems from this idea.”

Outside of the workshop, Miguel Milá participated in meetings with architects and designers, debating on the aesthetics and architectural modernity of the city of Barcelona. Spain’s first industrial design association, the ADI-FAD, arose from these discussions, co-founded by André Ricard, Antonio de Moragas, Oriol Bohigas and Rafael Marquina, among others.

Miguel Milá defines his creative style as a craft-based process, which stems from “having an idea and then removing what is superfluous”. That was the process behind the Cesta lamp (1964) and the subsequent family of desk lamps. He also taught for 14 years, giving classes at the renowned Barcelona-based design schools, ELISAVA and EINA.
In 1987 he was recognised with the first edition of the National Design Award, along with André Ricard, and in 2008 received the Italian ADI’s Compasso d’Oro in recognition of his professional career and contribution to promoting Spanish design abroad. And then there are the six ADI-FAD Awards. Craftsman and industrial designer, Miguel Milá has undoubtedly left his mark on the history of European design.

In 1994, the Urban Division of Santa & Cole, today Urbidermis, commissioned him with a reinterpretation of the Romántico bench. This collaboration gave birth to the NeoRomántico bench (1995). Over time, this family of urban furniture grew, and, in 2011, the aluminium NeoRomántico Liviano (2011) became the first urban space element to receive “Cradle-to-Cradle” environmental certification.

He also collaborated with Beth Figueras to create the elegant modular garden edging system, Robert (2003). Over the years, Miguel began to collaborate with his son, Gonzalo Milá, also an industrial designer, on the design of the Harpo family (2015), or the Inner bench (2020). His most recent collaboration explores the requirements of private-use outdoor spaces, with Basic (2020), a family of elements designed for urban use, but with the softness of residential furniture.