Fuorisalone 2025, the exhibitions
Presentations of collections, but also in-depth analyses of designers past and present. A brief guide to the exhibitions of Milan Design Week, taking place in theatres, villas and universities
Not just product launches, meetings with designers, jaw-dropping installations and aperitifs. There is also a cultural side to the week of the Furniture Fair, filled as it is with exhibitions and in-depth reflections on the world of design, some of which continue well beyond the week itself. A number of exhibitions are closely tied to brands or collectible design galleries, such as the theatrical performance curated by Formafantasma for Cassina or the metallic-knit journey at Nilufar Depot. Others are solo retrospectives dedicated to prominent figures like Carlo De Carli, showcased at the Politecnico, or Jasper Morrison, whose design philosophy takes centre stage at the ICA. There are also narrative-driven exhibitions like Best of Both Worlds: ITALY at the ADI Design Museum, which explore the relationship between art and industrial design, and the tenth edition of Doppia Firma, which fosters creative collaborations between master artisans and renowned designers.
Staging Modernity
Teatro Lirico Giorgio Gaber, Via Larga 14, Durini Design District
Cassina celebrates 60 years of producing the Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, Charlotte Perriand Collection, in partnership with the Fondation Le Corbusier and the heirs of Pierre Jeanneret and Charlotte Perriand, with an extraordinary event. Formafantasma stages a theatrical piece directed by Fabio Cherstich and an installation inside Teatro Lirico Giorgio Gaber, paying tribute to these icons of contemporary design. Performances take place every two hours from 11am until 13 April.


Doppia Firma (‘Dual Authorship’)
Villa Mozart, Via Mozart 9, Porta Venezia Design District
The tenth edition of this exhibition by Living, Fondazione Cologni and the Michelangelo Foundation showcases collaborations between well-known designers and skilled artisans to create unique furnishings and decorative pieces. This year, the spotlight is on the craft excellence of the Alpine region, with seven new partnerships and a ‘best of’ from past editions. Participating international designers include Giulio Iacchetti, Draga & Aurel and Bethan Laura Wood. On display until 13 April.


Corollary
Spazio Mostre Guido Nardi, Politecnico di Milano, Via Ampère
An exhibition to (re)discover architect, designer and educator Carlo De Carli. Archival documents offer insights into his thinking, based on the belief that there is no basic difference between designing a house or a chair: both respond to the gestures of those who live with them. The only differences are the functional and aesthetic aspects. Until 7 May.


Best of Both Worlds: ITALY. Arte and Design in Italy 1915-2025
ADI Design Museum, piazza Compasso d’Oro 1
An exhibition highlighting the interplay between various artistic expressions and industry’s connection to literature, fine craftsmanship and the visual arts. Curated by Stefano Casciani with exhibition and graphics by Piero Lissoni / GraphX, it highlights key movements in object reinvention,from abstraction to neo-modernism and the recent low-cost collecting trend. On display are works by designer-artists such as Fortunato Depero, Bruno Munari, Joe Colombo, Gaetano Pesce and Nathalie Du Pasquier. Until 15 June.
Deus ex Machina
Via Luigi Porro Lambertenghi 3, Isola Design District
As part of the Isola Design Festival, Arno Hoogland pushes MDF’s aesthetic limits. Once considered a material to be hidden beneath lacquer or inside structures, here it is elevated through CNC machining that etches geometric bas-reliefs into the surface. Open until 13 April.

John Giorno: a labour of LOVE
Triennale, viale Emilio Alemagna 6
The first solo exhibition in Italy devoted to poet and performer John Giorno (1936–2019) offers a rare chance to view previously unseen material from his private archive. Dedicated entirely to love, it follows on from the Miart fair, the main them of which was Among Friends. The works on show are tangible traces of Giorno’s friendships and collaborations with some of the 20th century’s most significant figures in art, literature and music: William S. Burroughs, John Cage, Allen Ginsberg, Keith Haring, Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Patti Smith and many more besides. Until 13 April.


Silver Lining
Nilufar Depot, Via Lancetti 34
This year, Nilufar presents Repertorio, an exhibition conceived and curated by founder Nina Yashar in five acts, involving all the creatives represented by the gallery. Especially striking is Silver Lining at the Depot; co-curated with Fosbury Architecture: a theatrical installation devoted entirely to metal, a material that symbolises strength, substance and memory. Presented in a 1970s-inspired labyrinth of pink fur and mirrors, it features metal objects with flowing or ultra-minimalist forms, from contemporary designers and masters like Nanda Vigo, Gino Colombini and Mario Bellini. Until 13 April.

Design Shooting
c/o oTTo – Via Paolo Sarpi 10
Returning to Milan for its fourth edition, this cultural project supported by Ideal Standard and Towant is a photography exhibition featuring never-before-seen shots by 15 photographers. Each one captures an architecture studio through a single image taken on a live construction site. Visitors can vote for their favourite photograph either on-site or online. Until 13 April.

The Lightness of Things
Fondazione ICA Milano, via Orobia 26
The first solo show in Italy devoted to Jasper Morrison focuses on the thinking behind his work. For the London-born designer (b. 1959), design should be grounded in lightness, seen as a balance of form and function, intuitive usability and material quality. Until 11 July.

Gaetano Pesce
A Festival of Architecture: Models, thoughts and drawings
Galleria Antonia Jannone Disegni di Architettura,
Corso Garibaldi 125, Brera Design District
Antonia Jannone presents an exhibition devoted to Gaetano Pesce’s visionary and revolutionary work, bridging architecture and art. Highlights include models of three experimental buildings: the Pink Pavilion, built in Milan’s Bovisa district and later demolished, made entirely of expanded polyurethane; a proposal for rebuilding NYC’s World Trade Center with two towers joined at the top by a heart; and the utopian Pluralist Tower, a 40-storey skyscraper where each tenant was allowed to commission a different architect or decorator for their façade. Open until 13 April.

Prison Times: spatial dynamics of penal environments
Dropcity, Via Sammartini tunnel 42-140
This exhibition encourages a debate on the difficult subject of incarceration, offering a unique look at spatial design within prisons. Furniture and objects, categorised and displayed like a three-dimensional catalogue, follow strict design guidelines and are made from durable, hygienic materials, effectively shaping the prison environment through their forms, textures and colours. Until 31 May.


Tribute to Giovanni Gastel
Piccolo Teatro Grassi, via Rovello 2
The Luti family and photographer Giovanni Gastel enjoyed a lifelong friendship. Four years after Giovanni passed away, and to mark the Kartell Museum’s 25th anniversary, the company is opening up its archive to the public. The photographs on display portray design objects as if they were haute couture garments, as well as models interacting with shapes and materials. One highlight of the exhibition is a portrait of a woman in red, her hairstyle seamlessly merging into Ron Arad’s Bookworm bookshelf. Until 13 April.

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