There's an exhibition for everyone at Milan Design Week 2024. This curation of must-visit shows will help you distil your visits down to the essentials, whether you're out to engage with innovative new design concepts, discover new studios and brands, get a feel for the creative culture of participating countries, or simply be inspired by beautiful craftsmanship.

HELLO, EARTH SPEAKING

The Good Plastic Company x StudioXAG 

A huge sculpture of planet Earth will be the centrepiece of Hello, Earth Speaking, an exhibit organized by The Good Plastic Company and StudioXAG at Superstudio Più. Aimed at encouraging visitors to consider new ways of working with recycled materials, the sculpture and surrounding installation space are entirely crafted from The Good Plastic Company’s innovative, propietary Polygood range of 100 per cent recycled and recyclable plastic panels.

Where: Superstudio Più, Via Tortona, 2720144 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 21 April 2024

SOLIDIFIED

Leading designers and artists based in the Netherlands including Rive Roshan, Rick Tegelaar, Jesse Visser, Umut Yamac and Form Editions have joined forces for SOLIDIFIED, a material-led exhibition revealing installations and objects in addition to the manufacturing processes behind them. FRAME, GLUE Amsterdam and SOLIDIFIED will host two inspiring panel discussions at the exhibition, tailored for designers who dream of pursuing independent work (RSVPs closed).

Where: Isola Design District, Via Carlo Farini, 57, 20159 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 21 April 2024

ALCOVA

Over 70 international exhibitors including designers, galleries, companies, institutions and schools are set to be part of Alcova’s seventh edition, which will take place at the historic Villa Borsani and Villa Bagatti Valsecchi in Varedo, just north of Milan. The works on show explore contemporary design through a variety of angles, with installations, performances and collective moments all part of the Alcova programme.

Where: Villa Borsani, Via Umberto I, 148, 20814 Varedo MB, Italy
Villa Bagatti Valsecchi, Via Vittorio Emanuele II, 48, 20814 Varedo MB, Italy
When: 15 – 21 April 2024

 CAPSULE PLAZA

Capsule

Striking a balance between a fair and a collective exhibition with talks, workshops and pop-ups, Capsule Plaza will activate Spazio Maiocchi and 10 Corso Como during Milan Design Week. Capsule founder and creative director Alessio Ascari curated the event with architect Paul Cournet. Their scope spans interiors and architecture, beauty and technology, innovation and craft, with participants including Rimowa, Herzog & De Meuron, Tiffany & Co., Hydro and many more.

Where: Spazio Maiocchi, Via Achille Maiocchi, 7, 20129 Milano MI, Italy
10 Corso Como, Corso Como, 10, 20154 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 21 April 2024, 10h00 to 19h30

 HOMAGE – A TRIBUTE IN AUCTION

Catawiki

Online auction platform Catawiki and Nicole Uniquole, founder of Masterly – an annual exhibition for Dutch designers in Milan – tapped established and emerging designers to create Homage, a series of limited-edition pieces in response to iconic designs. The fruits of this partnership will be displayed at Masterly in the Palazzo Giureconsulti and opened up for auction on Catawiki.

Where: Palazzo Giureconsulti, Piazza dei Mercanti, 2, 20123 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 21 April 2024

1ST

Ikea

Teaming up with young creators and collaborators, Ikea is taking over the Padiglione Visconti for 1st, an immersive brand exhibition shining a light on the ‘often contrasting, but frequently similar ways we deal with moving out on our own for the first time.’ Architect Midori Hasuike and spatial designer Emerzon have turned the space into a welcoming showcase for new and classic products, complete with a restaurant and space for parties and music into the evenings.

Where: Padiglione Visconti, Via Tortona, 58, 20144 Milano MI, Italy
When: 15 – 21 April 2024

DESIGN SPACE ALULA

Saudi and international designers alike have a platform in Saudi centre Design Space AlUla for Milan Design Week, with an exhibition space devised by Cloud and Studio Sabine Marcelis at Mediateca Santa Teresa. Reflecting the traditional craft, materials and artisanal skills to be found in AlUla, Saudi Arabia, the works displayed include new creations by Bahraini-danish, Cristián Mohaded, Dr Zahrah Alghamdi, Hall Haus, Leen Ajlan, Leo Orta, Studio Raw Material, Takk and TechnoCrafts.

Where: Mediateca Santa Teresa, Via della Moscova, 28, 20121 Milano MI, Italy
When: 15 April 2024 from 14h00 to 20h00, 16 – 21 April 2024 from 10h00 to 20h00

DROPCITY – IN PROGRESS

Exhibitions, talks, experiments, DJ sets and sound explorations are all on offer at new centre Dropcity this Milan Design Week, along with live architectural and design interventions. Envisioned by founder Andrea Caputo to serve as a foundation for architects and designers to imagine and create better worlds, Dropcity is undergoing live construction in previously abandoned tunnels, with visitors able to see a blend of 3D-printing and building partnerships firsthand. Eventually the space will grow into a permanent communal space for the design and architecture community.

Where: Via Giovanni Battista Sammartini, 38/6020125 Milano MI, Italy
When: Opening on 12 April 2024 at 18h00,  13 – 21 April 2024 from 11h00 to 19h00

BOLD DUALITIES

Belgium is Design

Belgium is Design, an international platform powered by Flanders DC, WBDM and MAD Brussels, is returning to Milan Design Week with Bold Dualities, a joint exhibition at Baranzate Ateliers. Over 30 Belgian designers and studios will be represented at the show, which has been curated by Brussels creative agency Baroness O with scenography by Karel Burssens.

Where: Baranzate Ateliers, Via Gaudenzio Fantoli, 16/3, 20138 Milano MI, Italy
When: 15 – 21 April 2024

ON THE ROCKS

Bottega Veneta x Cassina x Fondation Le Corbusier

On the Rocks iterates upon a design story begun at Bottega Veneta's Winter 24 show, which utilized custom timber versions of Le Corbusier's LC14 Tabouret Cabanon stools for Cassina as seating. Visitors have a chance to see these pieces on exhibit at Milan Design Week, as well as a new limited edition in signature Bottega Veneta leather.

Where: Piazza S. Fedele, 1/3, 20121 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 21 April 2024

 UPS – UNDER PRESSURE SOLUTIONS

ECAL 

With UPS – Under Pressure Solutions, ECAL (University of Art and Design Lausanne) presents a curation of lightweight furniture and objects made from cellulose sponge – a call to action to optimize transport and promote sustainability in the furniture industry. Originally an applied research project inspired by the llate Gaetano Pesce’s UP5 chair, the exhibition ‘focuses on materials that are capable of occupying a fraction of their volume, then reconfiguring themselves without mechanical assembly.’

Where: Spazio Orzo 16, Via dell'Orso, 1620121 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 20 April 2024, from 11h00 to 20h00, 21 April 2024 from 11h00 to 16h00

 FUTURE IMPACT 2

DesignSingapore Council 

Innovative design solutions from Singaporean creatives will take the stage at Future Impact 2, a DesignSingapore Council exhibition curated by Tony Chambers and Maria Cristina Didero. Projects by Christian+Jade, David Lee, Faezah Shaharuddin, Gabriel Tan, Genevieve Ang, Tiffany Loy and Zavier Wong underscore the importance and value of technology in achieving positive future impact.

Where: La Rotonda del Pellegrini, Via delle Ore, 3, 20122 Milano (MI), Italy
When: 16 – 21 April 2024, 10h00 to 19h00

 UNFOLD

Domus Academy 

Post-graduate design school Domus Academy is working together with five other international design institutions for Unfold, an exhibition at cultural centre BASE that will highlight the vision of young talents. ‘Unfolding Complexities’ is the theme, speaking to the ways designers can solve complex global issues by exploring dependencies and interconnections. Each university will present two projects supporting this concept.

Where: BASE, V. Ambrogio Bergognone da Fossano, 34, 20144 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 20 April 2024 from 10h30 to 20h00, 21 April 2024 from 10h30 to 18h00

 EMOTIONS OF THE SUN

Maison Veuve Clicquot x Magnum Photos 

Iconic Champagne house Veuve Clicquot and international cooperative Magnum Photos are bringing Emotions of the Sun, a touring photographic celebration of Earth’s light source, to Milan Design Week. A group of 40 images by eight Magnum photographers capturing the power of the Sun are to be displayed in a exhibition space by French designer Constance Guisset at the heart of Garden Senato.

Where: Garden Senato Milano, Via Senato, 14, 20121 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 21 April 2024, 11h00 to 20h00

TIME TRAVELER

Nilufar Gallery

Renowned Milan gallerist Nina Yashar and her team are unveiling Time Traveler, an exhibition merging contemporary design and collectible classics. Nilufar Gallery will host solo exhibitions for Maarten de Ceulaer and Draga & Aurel, and show Christian Pellizzari and Lola Montes pieces in addition to vintage designs from the 1960s. In the gallery’s accompanying space Nilufar Depot, one can find solo shows by Andrés Reisinger and Analogia Project, as wel as works by Allegra Hicks, Lucia Massari, Obiects of Common Interest and Ranieri. 

Where: Nilufar Gallery, Via della Spiga, 32, 20121 Milano MI, Italy
Nilufar Depot, Viale Vincenzo Lancetti, 34, 20158 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 21 April 2024

 TO THE EDGE OF MATTER

Neutra

Presented by Neutra and curated by Migliore+Servetto, To the Edge of Matter assembles the work of Atelier Oï, Draw Studio, Foster + Partners, Gabriele and Oscar Buratti, Mario Bellini, Migliore+Servetto, Nespoli and Novara and Zaha Hadid Architects. The immersive exhibition at MEET Digital Culture Center poses a ‘synaesthetic experience where natural stones become a physical and virtual narrative landscape.’

Where: MEET Digital Culture Center, Viale Vittorio Veneto, 2, 20124 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 – 21 April, 10h00 to 20h00

IO SONO UN DRAGO, THE TRUE STORY OF ALESSANDRO MENDINI

Triennale Milano x Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain

Alessandro Mendini, the late Italian architect, designer, artist and theorist, will be celebrated with a retrospective exhibition from Triennale Milano and Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain. Curation by Fulvio Irace, Pierre Charpin scenography, and a site-specific Philippe Starck installation activate visitors as they explore 400 of Mendini's works on show, made possible by the Archivio Alessandro Mendini.

Where: Viale Emilio Alemagna 6, 20121 Milano MI, Italy
When: 16 April – 13 October 2024

Stay tuned for more Milan Design Week 2024 preview roundups to follow this week.