The countdown to the 2025 edition of Milan Design Week is officially on. As we monitor the weather forecast (so far, an umbrella seems wise) and finalize our sneaker lineup, we’re also tweaking our schedule to try to squeeze in a few last events. While the week’s main attraction — Salone del Mobile, the annual furniture extravaganza playing out across the city’s fairgrounds — will command most of our attention, there is no shortage of offsite programming to check out in the city, too. Officially, these exhibitions and installations fall under the umbrella of Fuorisalone, which this year adopts the theme “Mondi Connessi” or “Connected Worlds.” Sure enough, early teasers suggest that many designers will be focusing their attention on exploring either the relationship between past and present, the dynamic between technology and the physical world, or the tension between industrial manufacturing and the environment.
Oh, and if you’re a Canadian who will be headed to Milan: we’re planning a 10am breakfast reception on Wednesday, April 9, at Salone, and we’d love to have you attend — please RSVP! In the meantime, here is our itinerary for next week’s offsite festivities.
1
Library of Light by Es Devlin
Coinciding with this year’s Euroluce exhibition of new lighting designs, Salone del Mobile is partnering with the Milan publishing house Feltrinelli to shine a light on classic literature at the Braidense National Library — one of the largest public libraries in Italy. Staged in a courtyard that links the library to the Pinacoteca di Brera museum, the installation is designed by none other than Es Devlin, a British artist known in part for the spectacular sets that she has envisioned for stadium tours by Adele, Beyoncé, The Weeknd and U2. Measuring 18 metres in diameter, her glowing, rotating sculpture will be composed of rounded shelving stocked with more than 2,000 books.
LIBRARY OF LIGHT: Pinacoteca di Brera, Via Brera, 28
2
Alcova
Known for its edgy, experimental spirit, Alcova seems to be settling into a more stable, domestic lifestyle — at least, sort of. After years of moving to a new venue each year, the design fair is returning to the same two historic homes that it occupied in 2024: Villa Bagatti Valsecchi and Villa Borsani, both in the suburb of Varedo. Yet the fair will also be adding an additional two venues in between the two homes, for a grand total of four 2025 sites. A former factory and a series of greenhouses are the latest additions. As for what to expect? Teasers promise new furniture from Lara Bohinc that builds upon her 2023 Miami Design District commission, as well as fresh lighting launches by Montreal d’armes and designer Will Choui. Knowing Alcova, unexpected surprises like giant sand towers and furry vases are sure to be somewhere in the mix, too.
ALCOVA: Villa Bagatti Valsecchi, Via Vittorio Emanuele II, 48, Varedo (plus three additional venues)
3
Capsule Plaza
Founded by architect Paul Cournet and Kaleidoscope magazine editor Alessio Ascari, this group exhibition put the “industrial” in industrial design last year, when Norwegian aluminum manufacturer Hydro stole the show with a collection of recycled aluminum designs by the likes of Max Lamb. This year, Hydro returns for an encore featuring new designs by Sabine Marcelis and Cecilie Manz — all made from aluminum scraps salvaged from demolished greenhouses and light poles. Also in the mix: Swedish brand Hem, celebrating its 10th anniversary and launching a new sofa with Philippe Malouin.
CAPSULE: Spazio Maiocchi, Via Achille Maiocchi 3–5–7–8 (plus two additional venues)
4
101010 Exhibition by Layer
Conceived to mark the 10-year anniversary of Layer, the London design studio led by Benjamin Hubert, this retrospective looks back by looking forward. Partnering with seven past collaborators, Layer has created six designs that each address a pressing global issue. For instance, Light, a table lamp developed with Muuto, burns algae fuel to provide illumination even during electrical grid blackouts. Each of these new designs will be featured alongside Layer’s greatest hits to date, which include the BeoSound Balance speaker launched with Bang & Olufsen and seating for brands like Andreu World and Fritz Hansen. Adding a behind-the-scenes look at Layer’s product development process, the studio will also be displaying its signature watercolour concept sketches, printed here on giant translucent banners.
101010: 10 Corso Como
5
24 Hours by Jamie Wolfond
For anyone journeying to Milan from far afield, adjusting to Central European Time can be a bit of a struggle. Perhaps a timepiece-themed exhibition will help reset our internal clock. Curated by Toronto designer Jamie Wolfond and the Milanese creative studio Simple Flair (and supported by Lapalma), this show presents two dozen clocks developed by 24 international design studios. The brief distributed to each participant was simple: each design had to be wall-mounted and fit within a 50 by 50 by 50 centimetre box. The roster of designers includes Copenhagen-based duo Hugo Passos and Sam Weller, whose collaboration is teased above.
24 HOURS: Riviera Creative Space, Via Gorani 4
6
Triennale di Milano Exhibitions
For its spring programming, Milan’s museum of design launches a series of exhibitions that strike a balance between old and new, Italian and international. Forme mobili focuses on movement, looking at the relationships between the body and a design’s silhouette, as well as between an initial design gesture and a resulting structure. Against the War sees seven designers (including Donata Paruccini and Giulio Laccetti) reflect on the destructive impact of global conflicts. Elsewhere, Material Alchemists highlights Wallpaper magazine’s “Class of 2025” — emerging global talents “who elevate base matter into beguiling forms with magic” — while Unstable Thoughts showcases the radical 70s-era concepts of Italian architect Franco Raggi. Rounding out the lineup is Playful Sculpture, an outdoor installation of kid-friendly designs by Naoto Fukasawa that walk the line between playground equipment and artistic sculptures.
Triennale di Milano: Viale Emilio Alemagna, 6
7
Staging Modernity by Cassina x Formafantasma
This year marks 60 years since Cassina began production of modernist designs by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeannette and Charlotte Perriand. To celebrate this milestone, Formafantasma (working alongside opera director Fabio Cherstic) is staging an installation that blends together theatrical performance and philosophy salon. Professional actors will perform texts that reflect on both Modernist ideals as well as current ecological concerns. Formafantasma will look to bring those ideas into harmony in its own collection for Cassina, being unveiled nearby in the manufacturer’s showroom.
STAGING MODERNITY: Teatro Lirico Giorgio Gaber, Via Larga 14
8
Casa Cork by David Rockwell
A life-sized replica of a cork tree made from reclaimed cork bark will be the monumental centrepiece of this celebration of all things cork. As one of the world’s most sustainable natural materials, cork has an especially important role to play in design as we move towards a zero-waste future. Conceived by Rockwell Group alongside eco non-profit the Cork Collective and cork producer Corticeira Amorim, this exhibition aims to inspire more widespread embrace of cork in design projects by highlighting cork-based furniture from around the world, as well as presenting tactile installations that demonstrate the material’s strength, versatility and eco-friendly properties.
CASA CORK: Via Solferino 31
9
Convey
“Discover the next wave of international design,” is the promise made by this group exhibition — and based on the promo images so far, it seems set to deliver. Whether it’s a globular armchair by Meritalia, a jungle gym-like garment display rack by Paleworks, or a sinuous wooden seat by Woak, everything that the show account has teased on Instagram in the past few weeks has been fresh and exiting. Then again, we shouldn’t be surprised — the exhibition is being staged by Milanese creative consultancy Simple Flair, which definitely has its finger on the pulse when it comes to future-forward style.
CONVEY: Via Rosolino Pilo 14
10
Grohe Aqua Gallery
“Function, form and impact” coalesce into this exploration of water and the way that design engages with it, playing out in the historic Garden Senato. Along with showcasing the sculptural silhouettes and filtration capabilities of Grohe products, the show will also express a strong environmental slant, drawing attention to both plastic waste and water pollution. (Indeed, the back “aqua bar” will be constructed entirely from recycled bottles.) An “aqua atelier” will round out the exhibition, offering a tranquil space for creating an “aqua poem.” (Admittedly, we’re not totally sure what that means yet — but we’re intrigued!)
GROHE AQUA GALLERY: Garden Senato, Via Senato, 14
11
New Showrooms
Manufacturers tend to use their Milan flagships to deliver some serious wow factor — which makes the opening of a new store an especially momentous occasion. When it comes to this year, there are three big debuts on our radar. Moooi, which has wowed over the past few years with sprawling temporary showcases, will finally move into a permanent home that is sure to be even more fantastically outrageous. Similarly, Tacchini, which collaborated with cc-tapis on the memorable Rude Arts Club pop-up led by Faye Toogood, now has a place of its own to call home. It’s also wasting no time in introducing another exciting Toogood collaboration: a new sofa that’s modelled after butter. Yum. Finally, next week will also mark our first visit to Molteni&C’s new Milan flagship designed by Vincent Van Duysen. As the second-largest Molteni&C store in the world, the retail space spans seven storeys of a historic 19th-century building on one of Milan’s most fashionable streets. (And if you can’t make it to any of these stores, not to fear — all three brands will also be exhibiting at Salone.)
Moooi Store Milan: Via Filippo Turati 2
Tacchini showroom: Largo Treves, 5
Palazzo Molteni: Via Manzoni 9
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