The latest edition of Milan Design Week is upon us! The annual event is the largest design celebration in the world, drawing thousands of practitioners, collectors, brands, press, and fans from around the globe every year. From the newest brand releases and innovations launching at the 62nd edition of Salone del Mobile trade show to the Fuorisalone’s constellation of dreamy design installations and events taking place across the city, there’s always so much to explore!

To help you navigate all this year’s excitement, we’ve put together a list of 10 can’t-miss events to ensure an inspiration-filled week. (And obviously, don’t forget the gelato!)

Happy design hunting!

Just days after his passing, internationally acclaimed Italian architect, artist, and designer Gaetano Pesce’s Nice to See You exhibition opens at the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in 5VIE. The free public show offers a moment for admirers to pay tribute to the design maestro and to reflect on his many contributions to the creative world. It will feature several previously unreleased works, including pieces created in the last year, each framed as message bearers--objects with a double meaning that encourage closer inspection. In parallel, Pesce’s outdoor installation, The Tired Man, will be presented in Piazza San Pio XI in collaboration with the Municipality of Milan.

Exhibition open April 19-23 | Tired Man public art unveiling April 14 | Ambrosiana Library, Palazzo Pio XI, 2

For this year’s Milan Design Week, revered gallerist Nina Yashar has curated Time Traveler, a wide-ranging exhibition spanning both her beloved Milanese locations. The show is intended to explore design’s evolution, mixing historic and contemporary objects in unique conversations that cast new light on storied pieces and give context to newer works. Yashar’s selection includes new designs by Maarten de Ceulaer, Martino Gamper, Bethan Laura Wood, Draga & Aurel, Andrés Reisinger, and Objects of Common Interest (among many others) in conversation with historic American and Brazilian pieces, as well as work by Italian artist-designer Gabriella Crespi.

Beginning April 15 | Viale Lancetti 34 and Via della Spiga 32

The second edition of Dolce&Gabbana's GEN D initiative will also launch at Milan Design Week. Rooted in Dolce&Gabbana’s commitment to nurturing emerging talents, the project invites 11 outstanding talents under the age of 40 to engage in meaningful dialogues with both the brand and some of Italy’s finest artisans, resulting in objects in an array of materials that honor age-old craft traditions while infusing them with contemporary perspectives.

For the second season, curator Federica Sala has selected another outstanding cohort from around the globe, including Thabisa Mjo, Laurids Gallée, Byungsub Kim, Mestiz, Ella Bulley, and many more.

Open April 16-21 | Via Broggi, 19

The Triennale Milano and Fondation Cartier present Io sono un drago (I Am a Dragon): The True Story of Alessandro Mendini. This highly anticipated retrospective spotlights Mendini’s revolutionary work as an architect, designer, artist, and theorist. The show’s title, o sono un drago (I Am a Dragon), is inspired by one of the recently deceased legend’s most emblematic self-portraits, to emphasize his uniqueness in the design world. The show features work in a variety of materials, formats, and subjects drawn from collections around the globe, cumulatively demonstrating Mendini’s impressive range and impact. The project is realized in collaboration with Archivio Alessandro Mendini and curated by Fulvio Irace.

Open April 14-October 13 | Triennale Milano: Viale Emilio Alemagna, 6

At Palazzo San Fedele, Bottega Veneta teams up with Cassina and Fondation Le Corbusier to present On the Rocks, a large-scale installation centering round the LC14 Tabouret Cabanon, an iconic piece by Le Corbusier that demonstrates the prowess of Cassina’s carpentry workshop.  Originally designed for Le Corbusier's own cabin (or "Cabanon") at Roquebrune Cap Martin on the Côte d'Azur, the Tabouret was inspired by a wooden whiskey box Le Corbusier found washed up on the beach. Custom wooden editions, first seen on Bottega Veneta’s Winter 24 show set, are freshly joined by a new limited edition in the brand’s signature leatherwork.

Open April 16-20 | Palazzo San Fedele ⅓ 3

Following on the heels of their successful debut collaboration at Design Miami/ 2023, Kohler and artist-designer Samuel Ross are joining forces again. For Milan, Ross has designed an immersive installation called Terminal 02, composed of a maze-like network of industrial pipes. In addition, the duo will introduce the latest product from the Kohler x SR_A collaboration – the Formation 02 smart toilet, which draws inspiration from the power of water in nature.

Open April 16-21 | Palazzo del Senato, 10 Via Senato

For its 11th edition, the always inspiring 5VIE design district takes on the theme Unlimited Design Orchestra. Referring to the ancient idea of a chorus, in which different instruments and voices play in harmony, the emphasis is on projects that center mutual respect and care. Founders Ernesta del Cogliano and Emanuele Tessarolo have invited designers and curators from around the globe to respond, and the roster runs deep, tackling topics ranging from sustainability and craft heritage to the migration crisis. Highlights include the above mentioned Pesce presentations and projects by independent curators (and former Design Miami/ curatorial directors) Maria Cristina Didero and Anna Carnick—Didero with Indian designer Gunjan Gupta and South Korean designer Jay Sae Jung Oh and Carnick with Nigerian talent Nifemi Marcus-Bello.

Open April 15-21 | Palazzo Litta, Corso Magenta, 24 and 5VIE HQ, Via Cesare Correnti, 14

Also in 5VIE, France’s Mobilier National—in partnership with the Cité de la céramique Sèvres & Limoges—will showcase new work by emerging French design talents. Mobilier National is the ancestor of the Garde Meuble Royal, which historically took collections from castle to castle, and its MDW exhibition is inspired as “an invitation to travel.” The presentation will feature scenography by Madeleine Oltra and Angelo de Taisne (winners of the Toulon Design Parade in 2022), evoking a Paris-to-Milan train, while the exhibited works ( crafted in collaboration with expert artisans) are designed to be easily transportable.

Open April 16-21 | San Bernardino Alle Monache Church, Via Lanzone 13

B&B Italia will launch The Collection, an installation of new pieces that draw on the brand’s design anthology, presented in a range of living, dining, and sleeping vignettes. It will also debut the newest additions to its Outdoor collection. In parallel, Maxalto presents Art of the Unique, a collection of sophisticated furnishings designed by Antonio Citterio.

Open April 16-21 | B&B Italia Design Studio, Via Durini, 14

Over the past six years, Alcova has become one of the can’t miss events of Milan Design Week. Known for its nomadic format, the show presents fresh projects by brands, independent designers, institutions, and more in dialogue with extraordinary works of architecture. For its seventh edition, the event welcomes over 70 exhibitors to two gorgeous historical spaces that are sure to delight: the residences Villa Borsani and Villa Bagatti Valsecchi.

Open April 15-21 \ Villa Borsani, Via Umberto I, 148, Varedo and Villa Bagatti Valsecchi, Via Vittorio Emanuele II, 48, Varedo