IKEA × Airlite

Paint that cleans the air — 21 artists, one campaign, Neve's contribution for IKEA and Airlite.

IKEA × Airlite is a project created by artist Neve in 2016 for IKEA Italy and Airlite, involving customized anti-pollution furniture for a charity auction and a billboard illustration.

A collaboration between IKEA Italy and Airlite — an anti-pollution paint that neutralizes smog through photocatalysis — bringing together 21 street artists united against air pollution. The project ran across two fronts: a billboard advertising campaign featuring Neve's work, and a series of IKEA furniture pieces customized by Neve using Airlite paint, subsequently auctioned for charity. The billboard campaign, titled "21 Street Artists Uniti Contro L'Inquinamento" (21 street artists united against pollution), ran on 10–11 June at IKEA stores. Neve's contribution — a large-scale portrait of a woman rendered in his signature pencil style, overlaid with the "IKEA ♥ Earth" mark — appeared on outdoor advertising panels outside IKEA. The image merges Neve's hyperrealistic drawing approach with the messaging of environmental responsibility. The furniture customization used Airlite directly on the wood surfaces. Neve painted a flock of birds in flight across a dining table and matching chairs. On the table: the birds are rendered in warm color — orange, amber, cream, and black — energetic and multidirectional, filling the surface like a scatter of motion. On the chair backs: individual birds painted in monochrome, white and grey on the dark wood grain, the texture of the wood becoming part of the image. Each piece was unique; the set was subsequently donated and auctioned for a charitable cause. The use of Airlite as the medium is integral to the work: the paint itself purifies the air in contact with it, making the surface of the furniture an active environmental gesture. The birds — symbols of freedom, air, migration — reinforce that reading without illustrating it.