Many Italian cities wear their architectural heritage like jewellery. Milan isn’t one of them. It reveals its Baroque palazzi, modernist landmarks, hidden courtyards and secret gardens unhurriedly. And often only to a select few. It can take years to discover the city’s real gems, but visitors to Milan design week – also known as the Salone del Mobile, the biggest design fair on the international calendar (14-19 April) – have a head start. Each year, designers flood the city with exhibitions, and the more unknown and unexpected their locations, the better. Abandoned ballrooms, antique brickyards, ex factories – even empty swimming pools – come into their own. And that’s before you’ve even set eyes on the furniture.
Palazzo Mezzanotte, Piazza Affari
Even the Italian Stock Exchange is involved in Salone this year, transforming its headquarters into the Museo del Design. When the mighty Palazzo Mezzanotte was unveiled in 1932, it was hailed as a technical triumph, with air con, and state of the art elevators. Today it exudes an hauteur that befits the 100 iconic works, created by the world’s greatest designers, that make up the show.
14-17 April; Borsa Italiana, Palazzo Mezzanotte, Piazza degli Affari 6; museiitaliani.org
Palazzo Mezzanotte, Piazza Affari
Palazzo Mezzanotte, Piazza Affari
Casa dell’Opera Nazionale Balilla, San Babila
It’s all raw edges and dereliction at Casa dell’Opera Nazionale Balilla – a former school building and theatre built in the 1930s in the design-facing San Babila area. For Salone, its 10,000 sq ft has been taken over by Designjunction, a British outfit that brings 30 international exhibitors and the artsy Case café together in the space. At its heart lies a disused theatre, in which British designer Tom Dixon is creating his very own ‘cinema’.
14-19 April; Casa dell’Opera Nazionale Balilla, Via Pietro Mascagni 6; www.thedesignjunction.co.uk
Casa dell’Opera Nazionale Balilla, San Babila
Casa dell’Opera Nazionale Balilla, San Babila
Casa dell’Opera Nazionale Balilla, San Babila
Palazzo Crespi
This year, Airbnb has joined forces with Italian design think-tank Fabrica to host a show in Palazzo Crespi. This baroque palazzo – and Corso Venezia, on which it stands – was completed in 1805 to coincide with the coronation of Napoleon as King of Italy in the Duomo. For a show entitled Housewarming, 19 young designers have created works that respond to the concept of welcome and displayed them throughout the Crespi family’s own belongings.
14-17 April; Palazzo Crespi, Corso Venezia, 22; www.fabrica.it
Orto Botanico di Brera
Dating back to 1774, the Botanical Gardens are a treasured green space within the bohemian area of Brera. Surrounding artistic institutions regularly use it to host creative interventions. During Salone, a series of pop up pavilions will appear alongside the glasshouses for a show entitled Garden of Wonders. Eight designers have each been assigned a long lost perfume brand from the 1960s – 1980s and invited to resurrect it in any way they want. Expect surprising results.
13 April – 24 May; Orto Botanico, Via Brera, 28; www.beopenfuture.com
Via Pizzi, 29
During Salone del Mobile, Via Pizzi in the south of the city will come to life. In fact, when the Fondazione Prada’s Museum of Contemporary Art opens nearby next month, so will the whole neighbourhood. A former typography studio, no 29 is now a creative micro-community in itself. Artemakers (pictured), the go-to showroom for reclaimed industrial furniture, is exhibiting a series of old American ceilings, and design studio Cambio has turned wood reclaimed from Indonesian temples into furniture.
14-17 April; Palazzo Crespi, Corso Venezia, 22; www.fabrica.it
Via Pizzi, 29: Artemakers
Via Pizzi, 29: Moonhouse, a 500m² recording studio and rehearsal room, will be showcasing vintage guitars
Via Pizzi, 29: Two rooms of vintage 1970’s furniture and Tiki give off a Palm Springs vibe.
