Milan Design Week: The Latest Architecture and News

A large seabird gazing towards the sky appeared in the Cortile d’Onore in Milan as a metaphor for life retaking its course in the post-pandemic world. Designed by MAD Architects, the installation titled “Freedom” is a nod to inclusiveness and borderless, as well as a playful symbol of hope. In addition, for the 2021 edition of Milan Design Week, the studio taps again into furniture design with two projects, “Meteor” and “Gu Table”, created in collaboration with Dior and Sawaya & Moroni, respectively.

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Carlo Ratti Associati, working in collaboration with energy company Eni, has developed an architectural structure made of mushrooms, unveiled at Milan Design Week. “The Circular Garden” was grown from soil made over the past six weeks, and will be returned to the soil at the end of the month. The structure is composed of a series of arches adding up to a 1-kilometer-long mycelium, experimenting with sustainable structures that can grow organically.

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Design studio Space Encounters has partnered with Creative Holland to build a temporary museum for Milan Design Week. The installation is made to combine room for art and design, with atmospheres that promote relaxation, contemplation and focus amidst the pace of the Salone di Mobile. The Museum was designed as a journey through different spaces in which visitors constantly interact with Dutch creativity.

Italian architect Beatrice Bonzanigo of IB Studio has revealed her design for Casa Ojalá, an off-grid, mobile micro home to be unveiled at Milan Design Week. Designed with over 20 configurations in only 27 square meters, the patented project was made to be easily assembled in any location. Bonzanigo created the design so occupants can better connect with nature while minimizing their environmental impact.

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The 2018 Milan Design Week is now underway, a festival which this year is expected to attract over 300,000 visitors. Every year, the festival brings together a wide range of practitioners and design companies resulting in unusual yet fascinating collaborations and installations.

Below, we have compiled a list of collaborations to look out for throughout the week, including investigations into water, healthcare, and micro-living.

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Carlo Ratti Associati (CRA) has unveiled Scribit, a “writing robot” which draws images and text on any wall surface, turning office, living, and bathroom walls into a blank canvas for artistic expression. Using in-built engines, Scribit can draw, cancel, and re-draw new content an infinite number of times, allowing users to print different images, messages, or feeds every day.

Scribit is always connected to the internet, allowing users to download, upload or source any online content. Operating in real time, Scribit immediately reproduces any data sent to it by the user, be it a restaurant posting the day’s menu, a financial firm posting stock market updates in its lobby, or an art enthusiast projecting their own content on the living room wall.

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In an presentation at Milan Design Week 2017, MAD Architects has revealed their proposal for the Scali Milano project, which invited five international firms (MAD, Stefano Boeri Architetti, Mecanoo, MIRALLES TAGLIABUE EMBT, and Cino Zucchi Architetti) to design a community-reactivation masterplan aimed at transforming a series of Milan's neglected railyards into "productive social landscapes that establish a harmony between Milan’s citizenry, the larger metropolitan region, and the natural environment."

Titled Historical Future: Milan Reborn, MAD's scheme proposes reorganizing the railyards into a series of interconnected micro-systems that follow five spatial concepts: “City of Connections,” “City of Green,” “City of Living,” “City of Culture,” and “City of Resources.”

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Cities around the world are facing a shortage of attractive housing options that use resources in a responsible, environmentally-positive manner. Looking to solve this challenge, New York-based firm SO-IL has teamed up with car manufacturer MINI to create MINI LIVING – Breathe, a “ forward-thinking interpretation of resource-conscious, shared city living within a compact footprint.

Now on display at the Milan Salone del Mobile 2017, the prototype structure is constructed of a translucent fabric membrane stretched across a modular metal frame that rises vertically from a previously unused 50-square-meter urban plot. Six rooms and a roof garden provide the space for flexible programmatic arrangements, adhering to the MINI LIVING principles of “Creative use of space” and “Minimal footprint.”

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Zaha Hadid Architects has collaborated with Samsung and digital art and design collective Universal Everything to create an immersive technology installation at the 2017 Milan Design Week, taking place this week in the Italian city. Named ‘Unconfined,’ the pavilion will showcase Samsung’s new Galaxy S8 smartphone by leading visitors through an immersive environment inspired by the device.

To mark the conclusion of the 55th Milan Design Week (also known as Salone del Mobile), ArchDaily has compiled a list of the best architect designed products unveiled at the event. This year’s notable items include works by Zaha Hadid, BIG, Herzog & de Meuron, MAD, David Adjaye, and Daniel Libeskind, among others.

With the 2016 Salone del Mobile now behind us, Romanian photographer Laurian Ghinitoiu has shared his photos from Milan Design Week, along with his ranking of the top five architectural installations. Read on to see his exceptional collection of images accompanied by short descriptions of each project.

Daniel Libeskind, together with Italian paint company Oikos, has transformed the Università Statale’s Pharmacy Courtyard into a garden of "Future Flowers" as part of the 2015 Milan Design Week. On view through May 24, the installation was inspired by one of Libeskind’s "Chamberwork" drawings. It features a series of intersecting red metal "blades" that represent a collection of Oikos paints developed by Libeskind.

The 54th edition of Milan Design Week (also known as Salone del Mobile) recently came to a close. In celebration of its success, we have compiled a list of the most talked about architect-designed products showcased this year. Take a look after the break to see new products from Rem Koolhaas, Zaha Hadid, David Chipperfield, and more.

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Zaha Hadid, Fernando Romero, and Ben Van Berkel are making headlines alongside two renowned artists for their 3D printed reinventions of the high heel. A collaborative vision spearheaded by United Nude and 3D Systems, the highly anticipated project was unveiled yesterday at the "Re-Inventing Shoes" exhibition at Milan Design Week.

Each sculptural heel was 3D printed using SelectiveLaser Sintering in a hard Nylon and all-new soft Rubber material, making a "fully functioning" shoe. Only up to 50 pairs of each will be sold. See them all, after the break.