The MEGA Fair-Exhibition Opens in a Former Milanese Factory: Photos and 5 Must-See Booths

In ex fabbrica di Milano ha aperto la mostra-fiera MEGA. Tutte le foto e 5 stand da non mancare

The third edition of MEGA Art Fair has opened in Milan, relocating to SPAZIO PROFUMO, a former perfume factory in the Barona district. Running from April 15 to 25, 2026, the event strategically bridges Milan Art Week and Design Week, featuring over 30 international exhibitors from Europe, Latin America, and Asia. Eschewing traditional booth structures, the fair utilizes a cohesive curatorial layout that integrates industrial archaeology with contemporary practices, including a dedicated video program and a section titled 'City of Glass.'

In Milan Design Week, in a garden, emerging designers can exhibit for free. "We received almost 100 applications to the call"

Nella Milano della Design Week in un giardino i designer emergenti possono esporre gratis. “Abbiamo ricevuto quasi 100 richieste alla call”

During Milan Design Week, the venue enoteca/naturale launched the initiative "Entra pure," offering its garden and interior space for free to emerging designers under 35. The open call received nearly 100 applications, with eight selected projects being displayed and utilized within the space from April 21-26, providing an alternative platform during the city's major design event.

From the Aral Sea to Milan: Uzbekistan tells its story between craftsmanship and climate crisis

Dal Mar d’Aral a Milano: l’Uzbekistan si racconta tra artigianato e crisi climatica

Uzbekistan made its official debut at the Milan Design Week with the exhibition 'When Apricots Blossom' at Palazzo Citterio. Curated by Kulapat Yantrasast and promoted by the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation, the immersive show presents contemporary reinterpretations of Uzbek craft, organized around three pillars of Karakalpak culture: textiles, food, and dwelling. It features installations by international designers like Bethan Laura Wood and a deconstructed yurt by WHY Architecture.

Salone Diary – Day One

Diario del Salone – Tag eins

The author begins a daily diary from the Milan Design Week, navigating the sprawling Fuorisalone exhibitions that run parallel to the Salone del Mobile furniture fair. The overwhelming experience prompts a search for genuine innovation amid a sea of installations merging fashion, art, and design, leading to the first lesson of the week: accepting the inevitability of missing out on some events.

Architecture Art Exhibitions

An exhibition titled 'The Eames Houses' opened at Triennale Milano during Milan Design Week 2026. It offers a comprehensive look at the residential architecture of Charles and Ray Eames, featuring scale models of eight house projects, archival materials, and two full-scale pavilion structures built using a modular system developed with Kettal. The show runs from April 20 to May 10 and is accompanied by a newly published volume on the Eames' residential work.

In Milan during these days of Design Week, it is possible to visit the mythical Villa Pestarini by Franco Albini. The images

A Milano in questi giorni di Design Week è possibile visitare la mitica Villa Pestarini di Franco Albini. Le immagini

Villa Pestarini, the only private residence ever designed by the renowned Italian architect and designer Franco Albini, has opened to the public for the first time in 87 years. The opening is an exceptional event timed with the 2026 Milan Design Week, where the villa serves as one of the venues for the itinerant design platform Alcova.

NOBODY: The Latin American Project at Milano Design Art Week

DON NADIE THE LATIN AMERICAN PROJECT AT MILANO DESIGN ART WEEK

The design collective DON NADIE, founded by Ecuadorian industrial designers Lisandro Carrasco and Mono Alvarado, is presenting its project "1 m² / 1 second" at Milano Design Week. The installation, part of the IN BETWEEN collective at the Fuorisalone circuit, consists of sixteen folded-paper pieces within a cubic meter, each referencing native plant morphology. It translates the rate of deforestation into a tangible measure of time, representing one square meter of forest lost every second.

DON NADIE: The Latin American Project at Milano Design Art Week

DON NADIE THE LATIN AMERICAN PROJECT AT MILANO DESIGN ART WEEK

The design and art collective DON NADIE, founded by Ecuadorian industrial designers Lisandro Carrasco and Mono Alvarado, is presenting its project '1 m² / 1 second' at Milano Design Week. The work, part of the IN BETWEEN collective exhibition within the Fuorisalone circuit, consists of sixteen folded-paper pieces within a cubic meter, each referencing native plant morphology. The project translates the rate of deforestation into a tangible measure of time, with each second representing one square meter of lost forest.

Milan Design Week 2026: A Guide to What to See in the Isola District (Celebrating its 10th Anniversary)

Milano Design Week 2026: guida sulle cose da vedere al distretto di Isola (che compie 10 anni)

The Isola Design Festival is celebrating its 10th anniversary during Milan Design Week 2026 with the theme "TEN: The Evolving Now." Originally founded to provide an affordable platform for independent and young designers, the festival has expanded from a local neighborhood initiative into a global organization with a permanent presence in Dubai. The 2026 edition centers on the historic Fabbrica Sassetti, a 1930s wool mill, alongside various venues across the Isola district including Fondazione Catella and Stecca3.

In the countryside on the outskirts of Milan, a series of artistic performances will take place in a wheat field

Nella campagna alla periferia di Milano ci saranno una serie di performance artistiche in un campo di grano

The Biblioteca del Grano, an experimental agricultural and cultural site on the outskirts of Milan, is hosting a series of artistic performances and workshops led by artist Edoardo Mozzanega. Scheduled to coincide with Milan Art Week and Design Week, the program includes 'Tiger’s Nap,' a collective public sleeping performance, and 'A House Full of Tigers,' a workshop based on Social Dreaming. These events are part of the broader 'Learning Landscapes' initiative, which brings together international researchers and artists to explore food and land as cultural infrastructure.

Group Efforts Succeed During Milan Design Week

Milan Design Week has become a primary stage for high-profile creative collaborations, where independent designers and major brands pool resources to debut experimental works. These partnerships range from limited-edition furniture collections to immersive installations, highlighting a shift toward collective production in the design industry.

Vintage Designs Take on New Lives at Milan Design Week

Milan Design Week is showcasing a significant trend of reviving mid-century furniture classics, featuring prominent reissues such as a 1950s table by Carlo Mollino and a 1960s lamp by Carlo Nason. These historical designs are being reintroduced to contemporary audiences through the annual festival, highlighting a bridge between mid-century aesthetics and modern production.

At Milan Design Week, Function and Form Take on New Meanings

Milan Design Week has transformed the Italian city into a sprawling showcase of avant-garde furniture and experimental objects. This year's highlights include whimsical, kinetic installations such as a spinning Christmas tree and sculptural tables designed to mimic the organic forms of flowers, pushing the boundaries between utilitarian furniture and fine art.

At Milan Design Week, Creative Seating Brings Fresh Ideas to the Table

Milan Design Week has unveiled a series of innovative seating concepts that challenge traditional forms of furniture. Highlighting the intersection of sculpture and utility, the showcase features standout pieces including a crisp, minimalist couch, a monolithic chair, and a playful pouf, all of which demonstrate how contemporary designers are rethinking the ergonomics and aesthetics of reclining.

Milan Design Week 2026: A Guide to What to See in the Brera District

Milano Design Week 2026: guida alle cose da vedere nel distretto di Brera

The Brera Design District has unveiled its extensive programming for Milan Design Week 2026, featuring over 300 events and 217 showrooms under the theme "Essere Progetto." Key highlights include Yinka Ilori’s immersive installation for Veuve Clicquot, a major showcase of Uzbek craftsmanship at Palazzo Citterio curated by Kulapat Yantrasast, and Sara Ricciardi’s large-scale inflatable installation at the Pinacoteca di Brera. To manage the high volume of visitors, organizers have introduced the "Fuorisalone Passport," a digital platform designed to streamline entry and registration across various locations.

At Milan Design Week, Noodling Around With an Italian Classic

Milan Design Week is hosting a provocative exhibition centered on the intersection of technology and culinary tradition through 3-D-printed pasta. The showcase features a variety of experimental shapes and textures that challenge conventional manufacturing methods, presenting pasta not just as food, but as a feat of precision engineering and industrial design.

Two American artists have invented a pedal-powered basketball court that now arrives in Milan to regenerate the suburbs

Due artisti americani hanno inventato un campo da basket a pedali che ora arriva a Milano per rigenerare le periferie

Artists Marisa Morán Jahn and Rafi Segal, both faculty members at MIT, have brought their 'HOOPCycle' project to Milan for Design Week. The installation consists of a mobile basketball hoop mounted on a cargo bike, designed to transform urban spaces into spontaneous playgrounds and community hubs. This Italian iteration features backboards made from recycled plastic by the design collective IlVespaio and includes a vertical hoop inspired by the ancient Mesoamerican game of pok-ta-pok.