Milan Design Week 2024 Is Looking To Be The Most Eventful Yet

Watch out Milan Fashion Week, Design Week is coming to steal your thunder. As the largest furniture trade fair in the world, the annual event just seems to be growing year after year, drawing interior and lifestyle experts, design lovers, and some of the biggest fashion brands in the world. Yes, if we learned anything from last year’s fête, legacy style houses are doubling down on the home space, and showing their cards at Design Week. This year proves to be no different as the 2024 exhibition lineup, which runs from April 16 through the 21st, includes everyone from Gucci and Saint Laurent to MCM and Loro Piana.

Many brands are utilizing this week to debut their latest interior projects and launches. Gucci, for example is unveiling its highly anticipated Design Ancora, a celebration of five yet-to-be-revealed key home objects that exemplify the Milanese aesthetic. Saint Laurent, for its part, has partnered with the archives of the late designer Gio Ponti to reimagine his vintage plate collection for the modern consumer. The brand will be releasing the set during Milan Design Week.

Lifestyle labels, like Swedish mega-brand IKEA are flexing their creative muscles this week via conceptual exhibits. IKEA’s “1st” presentation will celebrate the universal experience of moving out on your own for the first time, and feature a range of events that align with the “1st” theme.

Ahead, see some highlights of the events and presentations that will be featured at Milan Design Week this year as well as the brands who are banking on the interior space.

Saint Laurent Rive Droite X Gio Ponti Collection

Saint Laurent’s lifestyle and tech retail concept has joined forces with the Gio Ponti Archives and the Fundación Anala y Armando Planchart on an exclusive collaboration. The exhibition, curated by Anthony Vaccarello, will showcase a plate collection at the Chiostri di San Simpliciano. The 12-piece set comprises 12 reissued originals from the Villa Planchart Segnaposto collection designed by the aforementioned renowned Italian architect Gio Ponti in 1957.

Gucci’s Design Ancora

At its Via Montenapoleone flagship store, Gucci will unveil its highly anticipated project which aims to showcase and celebrate classic Italian design. In a press release, the brand says the presentation “showcases a special edition of five objects from a bygone era that are symbols of Italianity, and even more so of Milananness, with the intention of representing contemporaneity through the interpretation of their iconicity.” The mystery star products will be available for purchase after the presentation. The exhibit space, which is designed by architect Guillermo SantomaÌ, runs from April 15 through the 21st.

IKEA’s 1st

For this special presentation, IKEA is taking over the historic Padiglione Visconti in Milan’s design district and offering six-days of experiences that range from design and music to food and organized discussions. The exhibition, designed by architect Midori Hasuike and spatial designer Emerzon, aims to “spotlight the often contrasting, but frequently similar ways we deal with moving out on our own for the first time,” according to an official press release. Events include the unveiling of IKEA’s new BRÄNNBOLL gaming collection as well as presentations from young creators and a standing IKEA newsstand that will house their exclusive magazine created for Design Week. At night, the space transforms into festive dance party, spotlighting Italian artists from the local music scene.

Giada De Laurentiis At Casa Masciarelli

On April 17, Emmy Award-winning chef and author Giada De Laurentiis will take over Casa Masciarelli, transforming it into a living, breathing homage to her Italian American heritage. The event will reveal the chef’s new Giadzy linen line in collaboration with Milan design house, La Tigre. De Laurentiis will deliver a live cooking show while guests indulge in aperitivos and Italian cuisine.

Loro Piana’s "A Tribute to Cinci Boeri"

On the anniversary of her birth, Loro Piana’s Interiors will pay tribute to iconic Italian architect Cini Boeri, who has been called “one of the great pioneering women in Italian design and architecture.” The special installation, designed in collaboration with Archivio Cini Boeri, will spotlight the arflex furniture pieces designed by the artist, created with Loro Piana Interiors fabrics. The exhibit will take place in the Cortile della Seta and run from April 16 through the 21st.

La Double J’s Solar Collection Debut

A “celebration of the most vibrant season of rebirth and of the most spectacular energy source, the sun,” La Double J’s latest homeware collection will debut at Milan Design Week and be available for purchase on April 16. The collection is inspired by the Spanish city of Seville, known for its stunning Moorish architecture and rich culture. “What started as a research trip through Andalusia last Spring, quickly evolved into a full-blown inspiration exploration: the light, the architecture, the intricate mosaics, rich color contrasts and the festive atmosphere of Seville sowed the seeds of the next collection,” reads an official release. Indeed, the installment is one of the most opulent we’ve seen from La Double J. Serveware is crafted by Italian artisans and trimmed in 18K gold, vases are made from hand-blown Murano glass, and delicate porcelains feature intricate sun-inspired emblems.

Technogym Celebrate 40 Years

The fitness label is celebrating four decades of innovation with its “Design To Move” exhibit, which will spotlight the brand’s iconic Technogym Benches. The star product will be reimagined in 40 different ways by 40 international designers and artists. “Designed to explore the special and deep relation between design and wellness, style and functionality, emotional and tangible, the exhibit will provide a unique interpretation of how Technogym has evolved since its inception,” reads a press release.

“As Leonardo taught us, movement is the cause of all forms of life,” said Nerio Alessandri, Technogym founder and CEO, in the release. “In the last 40 years we have been working every day to help people live a better life thanks to wellness. Design has always been a key element of our journey, a strong ally to turn functional into emotional and needs into aspiration. We are proud that so many designers and artists have joined our dream of putting the world back in motion.”

The Design To Move exhibit will be on display at the Salone del Mobile fair.

MCM Unveils Wearable Casa Collection By Atelier Biagetti

This year marks MCM’s first appearance at Milan Design Week. The brand will be presenting its Wearable Casa collection which aims to define “how we will live — physically and digitally together, in a more sustainable way,” according to an official release. “It’s a unique concept of wearing and dwelling that imparts multiple value to consumers, leading them toward a more sustainable and healthier way of living. The new collection was created by Milanese designer Atelier Biagetti and curated by hitorian and design scholar Maria Cristina Didero. Highlighted objects include the Chatty Sofa, which is inspired by urban art found in the streets, the Japanese-inspired Tatamu daybed, the stool-chair-coffee table hybrid call the Mind Teaser, and even the pet-focused Backpack.