Material is the first act of any design process. It’s substance and vision, technique, memory and possibility. Through material, spaces take shape, relationships are forged and future scenarios begin to emerge. From this realisation comes MATERIAE, the latest edition of INTERNI’s highly anticipated exhibition-event. The Mondadori Group’s magazine dedicated to interior and contemporary design, edited by Gilda Bojardi, returns as a leading presence at FuoriSalone 2026 from 20 to 30 April, turning Milan into an international platform for design research and experimentation.
Spanning multiple venues across the city, INTERNI MATERIAE offers more than an exhibition programme. It becomes a shared cultural statement and a privileged vantage point from which to observe the evolving landscape of contemporary design, highlighting the role of material as a bridge between innovation, responsibility and imagination.
The University of Milan, the Brera Botanical Garden, Audi X Zaha Hadid Architects at Portrait Milano, Eataly Milano Smeraldo and Urban Up | Unipol at De Castillia 23 serve as the focal points of a narrative involving more than 50 architects, designers and Italian and international companies from over 10 countries, invited to interpret material not as mere substance, but as the language of design and as a means of promoting relationships between space, body, time and society.
Our exhibition-event explores material not only as a construction element, but as a creative and cultural principle from which everything begins,” explains Gilda Bojardi, editor-in-chief of INTERNI. “The Latin meaning of Materiae inspires a multidisciplinary journey bringing together architects, designers and artists in projects that combine natural and artificial, tradition and innovation, technology and artificial intelligence. The support of companies, both within the sector and beyond, is essential in enabling works driven by research, experimentation and a commitment to a more sustainable future. As a result, materials become tools for storytelling, memory and innovation, shaping collective projects capable of imagining new possibilities for the world ahead.”
Installations, thematic exhibitions and micro-architectures by some of the most prominent names on the international stage, including Zaha Hadid Architects, BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group, Snøhetta, AMDL CIRCLE and Michele De Lucchi, Paola Navone, Alessandro Scandurra, MAD, Piero Lissoni, Wu Bin, alongside emerging voices in design research, come together in a collective exploration spanning art, architecture, design, technology and science.
INTERNI MATERIAE is one of the key initiatives organised by the Municipality of Milan for Design Week and FuoriSalone 2026, the latter having been launched in 1990 on the initiative of Gilda Bojardi and internationally recognised as the leading event for international design and architecture.
INTERNI MATERIAE will be officially presented on Monday 20 April at 2.30pm in the Aula Magna of the University of Milan, via Festa del Perdono 7. In addition to the designers, the press conference will be attended by: Marina Brambilla, Rector of the University of Milan; Tommaso Sacchi, Milan City Councillor for Culture; and Alessia Cappello, City Councillor for Economic Development and Labour Policies. Contributions will also come from Antonio Porro, Chief Executive of the Mondadori Group, and Timm Barlet, Director of Audi Italia and co-producer of the event. The conference will open with Gilda Bojardi, Editor of INTERNI, who will present the theme of the exhibition. The event will be moderated by design curator Silvana Annicchiarico.
MATERIAE: material as experience, process and relationship
Matter is never neutral. It holds traces, produces consequences and activates relationships. INTERNI’s exhibition-event explores this theme not merely as a support for form, but as the core of a narrative that brings together technology and craftsmanship, nature and artifice, industry and poetic vision. Each installation becomes an independent chapter, while also forming part of a broader story in which visitors are invited to move through, pause within and actively engage with the experience.
Origin: light, matter and perception at Portrait Milano – Audi X Zaha Hadid Architects
Within the spaces of Portrait Milano, alongside INTERNI for the 13th consecutive year, Audi gives voice to the technologies and visions shaping the future, placing mobility at the centre of social debate and expressing its ability to interpret the needs of a world in constant transformation.
Audi’s vision meets the signature style of Zaha Hadid Architects in Origin, an installation that operates as a manifesto of contemporary architecture, in perfect alignment with the brand’s values of innovation and progress. Set within the courtyard of the former Archiepiscopal Seminary of Milan, a key venue of Milan Design Week, the project establishes a critical and innovative dialogue with history, becoming a lens through which to interpret the principles of the brand’s new design philosophy. The project marks a new narrative direction: just over six months after the debut of Concept C, the Four Rings brand has chosen to express itself through the principles of clarity, technical precision, intelligence and emotion.
In an era dominated by visual noise, Origin works through reduction and synthesis. It is a form of architecture “on the edge”, which distils the essence of progress by stripping away the superfluous to reveal purity of intent and define a new visual paradigm. The object’s surface – a matte metallic skin recalling the emotional and technical coolness of titanium – is designed to react. It does not impose itself on its surroundings but absorbs their colours and forms; applying the conceptual logic of the mirror, it returns a transformed reflection of the surrounding historic building. Here lies the curatorial strength of the project: its ability to transform a high-tech piece of material into a sensitive instrument, capable of mediating between the algorithmic future and the warmth of Baroque stone.
The experience offered to visitors is deliberately opposed to the sense of speed that is nonetheless part of the brand’s DNA – from Formula 1 circuits to the performance of the new RS 5, interpretations of hybrid technology at the highest level of motorsport and on the road, presented to the Italian public for the first time, showing how performance can evolve and remain emotionally engaging without sacrificing responsible efficiency. Origin invites active reflection. As visitors move through the pavilion, the space is constantly reshaped by a light design that evolves from dawn to dusk: architecture becomes a living organism. In this sense, the installation goes beyond the function of a simple exhibition pavilion to become a manifesto for a new design philosophy. Inside, multimedia light and sound experiences convey the German brand’s values of progress, ethical awareness and technological innovation. Rather than celebrating technology for its own sake, the installation explores the emotional impact of precision and quality, from the smallest to the largest detail. Cutting-edge materials are used here to shape future behaviours, not only in mobility, but above all in the conscious actions needed to inhabit the contemporary world. Audi and Zaha Hadid Architects suggest that the future is not a distant place, but an origin to be continually rediscovered, through clarity of gesture and the truth of material. An invitation to slow down in an increasingly fast-paced world, in order to finally experience what is essential.
University of Milan: the beating heart of the INTERNI exhibition-event
The historic headquarters of the University of Milan is transformed into a true collective narrative, in which matter reveals itself through light, architecture, technology, artistic gesture and industrial experimentation. Courtyards, porticoes, loggias and transitional spaces host a constellation of installations that interact with one another in a continuous flow, shaping a multi-sensory experience.
The journey begins at the façade, where Luce Massiccia alla Statale, conceived by Alexander Maria Bellman of Gruppo C14 ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN STUDIO, explores how light and material work together as inseparable elements. Produced in collaboration with ILTI Luce, part of Nemo Group, the instillation draws inspiration from massive stars and quantum theory, transforming cosmic energy into a contemporary design language. Through Miniflux digital lighting elements, light becomes a shaping force, defining and sculpting the university’s architectural space. The result is a striking and harmonious installation that enhances walls, vaults and columns, conveying a distant energy that takes form and becomes a tangible experience for those who move through it.
Visitors will then encounter Regeneration, a polychrome ceramic pyramidal sculpture (2.1 × 1.9 × h 1.6 m) realised by Bertozzi & Casoni for Galleria Deambrogi Milano. This monumental, one-of-a-kind composition symbolises renewal and care. At its centre, a gorilla cradles a deer in its arms, its hands open towards the viewer in a gesture reminiscent of a Pietà, evoking feelings of empathy, compassion and acceptance akin to those inspired by sacred imagery. The gorilla represents strength and protection, the deer beauty and grace, while the soiled mattresses at the base symbolise human contradiction. The sculpture creates a striking aesthetic tension: although it engages with complex themes, it draws the eye through its composition and harmonious colours, enriched by small goldcrest birds. At its core, it speaks of compassion, sharing and beauty, drawing the viewer into the piece.
At the entrance hall of the Aula Magna, visitors will then encounter Innesti, an installation designed by Silvio De Ponte for Idealverde, exploring the shift from lifeless to living matter. Built from interwoven reclaimed wooden slats, it forms a porous structure reminiscent of nests or root systems, where plants and climbers become essential components. The installation expresses three states of matter: recovered, organised and living. Warm light and scents complete the sensory experience, creating a constantly evolving perceptual landscape.
Inside the Aula Magna hall, matter is presented as a conscious process. Sony Group Creative Center (Sony Group Corporation), in collaboration with Setsu & Shinobu Ito, presents Esquisse, a reflection on raw material through a collection of modular furnishings made with Sony-developed materials, including Original Blended Material and Triporous. Texture, imperfection and tactile qualities emerge without mediation, establishing a direct dialogue between design, matter and environmental responsibility. Kaleido by MAD (Ma Yansong and Andrea D’Antrassi) for Canva explores the relationship between light, colour and artificial intelligence. In a space of fragmented light and reflections, AI acts as a prism transforming ideas, connecting physical and digital dimensions and stimulating constantly shifting creativity. Transparent surfaces, coloured panels and refractive effects create a dynamic and unpredictable environment, where every action generates multiple outcomes. The visitor journey unfolds in four stages: Reconsider, Act, Realize and Share, guiding participants from initial exploration to a shared creative experience. Through this progression, Kaleido presents artificial intelligence not as a distant or complex tool, but as an accessible instrument capable of expanding imagination, creativity and connections between people, ideas and technologies.
The Portico del Richini hosts House of Polpa, entirely constructed from twenty thousand cans of Mutti tomato pulp. An iconic product of the company, it becomes a red, compact and walk-through architecture that amplifies light and vibrates with the intensity of fresh tomato. The experience is a sensory journey: the vivid colour captures the eye, the scent recalls freshly harvested produce, and the rich texture speaks of the naturalness and versatility of Mutti’s Polpa, the result of a patented process. It is a real and symbolic tasting of Mutti’s identity, long committed to the quality of its raw materials, and at the same time a manifesto of circularity and zero waste, from flooring made of reused tomato skins to the donation of all twenty thousand cans once FuoriSalone concludes. Deliberately ephemeral, the structure, realised with the support of Mapei, invites reflection on the importance of conscious consumption and production: each can represents a supply chain committed to reducing impact and transforming what comes from the earth into a shared resource. Combining aesthetics, taste and responsibility, House of Polpa shows how the tomato can be far more than an ingredient: a symbol of care, creativity and sustainability, capable of inspiring new ways of nourishing our future.
In the courtyards, matter expands into the architectural and landscape space. In the Cortile del ’700, Piero Lissoni for Sanlorenzo presents UN_Material, an experimental installation that interprets the heritage vessel SHE in its most intangible dimension. With an essential and contemporary language, it explores the spirituality of design as a balance between form, vision and innovation. As a result, immateriality becomes a way of reading beauty rooted in the brand’s history yet expressed through a technological and contemporary aesthetic. In dialogue with INTERNI MATERIAE, the project reflects on matter as a narrative tool capable of connecting design, technology and landscape. The installation is made up of 1:1 cross-sections reconstructing the volume of the boat, clad in semi-transparent fabric and defined by black metal profiles. A platform marks the waterline, while a 12-metre LED wall at the stern completes the immersive experience.
In the Cortile della Farmacia, Infinity – Design della mente, conceived by artist Marco Nereo Rotelli, is an immersive installation that brings together art, science, music and poetry to reflect on the relationship between human beings and artificial intelligence. Here, space becomes an interactive device in which scientific sensors detect the presence of visitors and activate sounds, light and text. The generative music piece Codice d’Acqua, created by composer Alessio Bertallot with AI starting from a poem by Valerio Magrelli, accompanies the experience. The project addresses themes of sustainability and technological responsibility. It is also developed in collaboration with Domyn, which explores the relationship between human and artificial intelligence, and Veolia, which promotes responsible environmental practices. The piece ultimately invites visitors to reflect on the duality between the natural and the artificial, and on the irreplaceable role of human consciousness.
In the Cortile d’Onore, the journey unfolds through a series of works that explore matter as a shared experience. Mater, designed by Alessandro Scandurra with Holcim Italia, takes centre stage, regenerating rubble into a symbol of memory and renewal. Inspired by the reconstruction of schools in Ukraine, the piece sees material not only as a physical element but as a living testimony of the past and a foundation for the future. Rubble is reassembled into a circular form, an archetypal symbol of community and protection, within which continuous seating and modular structures create a space for encounter and exchange. A walkway leads to a central wooden platform (Eterno Ivica), a place of passage and observation that maintains visual continuity with the courtyard and invites visitors to reflect on matter as origin, foundation and generative principle.
With AO TING Court, Wu Bin – W.Design with M77, MOORGEN, UMGG and YARDCOM reinterprets the principles of Chinese landscape painting, transforming them into an immersive experience. Within a 6×6 metre courtyard, an “inner landscape” takes shape. Layered volumes, shifts in depth and changes in level create a silent itinerary that encourages visitors to slow down and lose themselves. The result is an intimate yet expansive environment, where matter and shadow interact and each step becomes an act of contemplation.
Chronolith by DAAA Haus Group for Recobel by Halmann Vella, on the other hand, is an abstract, inhabitable architectural installation made of reconstituted limestone slabs, exploring the relationship between material, time, architecture and human presence. The 4×5 metre pavilion, approximately 3 metres high, surrounds visitors with a sensory experience in which material innovation becomes lived space. Designed as a timekeeping device, the plant resembles a clock face, while a central wooden pole casts shifting shadows that mark the passage of time, entrusting light with the role of temporal measure. A 360-degree camera observes the gestures and pauses of visitors, revealing how architecture is activated through spontaneous use.
Next up is KIRI³ by Maria Elisabetta Ripamonti and Alex Terzariol of MM Design for XLam Dolomiti. A four-metre cube designed to highlight Supertimber, an innovative material for sustainable construction, made through the densification of Paulownia wood. At its centre, a stylised tree represents the transition from nature to human intervention. The lightweight lattice structure demonstrates how the material can be used efficiently while supporting significant loads. Fast-growing and with a negative carbon footprint, Paulownia makes the project a tangible example of circular economy principles.
The concept of material takes on a more iconic and collective dimension with I suoni della materia by OTTO Studio, Paola Navone and Cristina Pettenuzzo, for the Consorzio Parmigiano Reggiano. The installation envelops visitors in a unique sensory experience. Its circular space, echoing the cheese’s iconic form, combines reflective surfaces with sound-absorbing walls to create an environment suspended between light and silence. Inside, materials and tools from the cheesemaking process form a small “sound archipelago”, created by Studio Azzurro. Every movement generates sound, turning visitors into part of a spontaneous, ever-changing orchestra. Hearing intertwines with touch, taste and smell, revealing the living nature of the cheese itself. The external structure, in metallised PVC printed with “Parmigiano Reggiano”, and the yellow interior walls recall the texture of the cheese, blending tradition and design in a poetic setting where balance, sensitivity and craftsmanship come together.
The journey continues with senzaFINE – beyond space limits by Simone Micheli Architectural Hero, with Lumyra Energy, Pilosio and WorldHotels. The installation interprets Materiae as emotional tension and continuous transformation, where temporary architecture becomes gesture, narrative and vision, moving beyond function to become an experience. The circular structure (Ø 6.5 m; h 10.5 m) creates an immersive, walk-through setting. At its centre stands a monolith integrating two video walls, presenting the Hubai Aparthotel and Sensoria Tower projects in Dubai. Light, sound and painted plexiglass spheres enhance the experience, turning the installation into a sensory gateway and a tool for global connection. senzaFINE is both an invitation and a promise: to embrace the limit and discover that it does not exist.
Visitors can then enter Le stanze del Metallo by Alessandro Pandolfo for Secco Sistemi, an immersive route celebrating the essence of metal beyond the finished product. Four circular rooms, made of Corten steel, burnished stainless steel, brass and galvanised steel, combine light, sound and scent to heighten the sensory perception of surfaces. Each area invites exploration through the senses, revealing the expressive depth and intrinsic beauty of the material. The installation expresses the research and attention to materials that underpin Secco Sistemi’s production. 365 by Meneghello Paolelli for Gibus, on the other hand, transforms the outdoors into an ever-changing experience, where material becomes rhythm, layering and light evolving throughout the year. Taking centre stage is the Velvet bioclimatic pergola, an elegant, high-tech design featuring a retractable canopy with dual-action operation, capable of adjusting the light and creating ever-changing atmospheres. An integrated platform and five digital monoliths interact with the space, adding narrative and movement. The installation invites visitors to see outdoor space not as fixed, but as something living and in continuous transformation.
The journey then moves to Ceramics forged in Light by Snøhetta, a contemplative micro-architecture expressing VitrA’s innovative approach and progress in ceramic recycling. Light, filtered through overhead oculi reminiscent of thermal baths, becomes both a generative principle and a symbol of the transformation of clay. At the centre, a reflective pool amplifies the surrounding forms, acting as both mirror and threshold. Material is revealed as something in constant evolution, between technology, aesthetics and renewal, opening up new possibilities for sustainable design. The interplay of water, light and surfaces creates a quiet, immersive atmosphere, encouraging a slower, more attentive engagement with the sensory and material qualities of the space. Ultimately, the installation invites visitors to take their time, paying close attention to the sensory and material qualities of the space.
The City of Busan, based on a project by Migliore+Servetto, presents Busan Echoes, a resonant landscape that unfolds as a living wave of light, sound and echo. Open and permeable, the installation takes the form of a convivial public square in dialogue with its urban surroundings. Sound elements inspired by traditional Korean brass instruments create a polyphonic acoustic garden, activated by movement and touch. Human presence generates vibrations and “synaptic” connections between people and space. Semi-transparent fabric veils, bathed in light and set in motion by the breeze, feature words in Hangul as powerful symbols of identity. The project expresses Busan’s cultural identity and its innovative energy on the path towards World Design Capital 2028.
A focus on wellbeing emerges in Tracce di cura by AMDL CIRCLE and Michele De Lucchi for Zambon. The archetypal façade of a house is transformed into a branching structure that invites visitors to explore non-linear paths: moving, pausing, discovering. This section highlights the company’s commitment to women’s health and wellbeing. Conceived as a small inhabitable architecture with an entrance, exit and four exhibition nodes, the structure brings together two contrasting elements: the precise, technological surface of composite aluminium and handcrafted plaster sculptures set within niches. The figures depict female silhouettes inspired by sketches by Masahiko Cubo, shown on video as he draws using traditional Japanese techniques. A few essential lines evoke the dialogue between science and the human touch, conveying the essence of care.
In a corner of the Cortile d’Onore, Rubinetterie Treemme, together with Studio Q-Bic and students from POLI.design and Politecnico di Milano School of Design, presents Ad Aquam 2026 – Reflections. The installation highlights water consumption and its environmental, social and cultural implications. Defined by a continuous shell of undulating mirrored metal, it recalls the movement of water and engages with the surrounding space. The L-shaped structure includes an immersive area with projections of global consumption data, alongside a display of taps and showers connected to real-time meters. Reflections, images and data create an environment in constant flux, where visitors become active participants, turning awareness of water into a shared sensory and cultural experience.
A monumental presence emerges with Wild Kong by Richard Orlinski for Fidenza Village – The Bicester Collection. The three-metre-high red sculpture immediately captures attention. With its primal force and dynamic surfaces, it explores the balance between instinct and awareness, strength and vulnerability, becoming a mirror of human nature. Wild Kong explores the theme of material experimentation, offering an immersive experience in which art, design and fashion interact, evoking emotion, wonder and reflection.
Goodbye Discomfort, designed by Thirtyone Design + Management led by Claudia Campone for Uniqlo, takes shape as a light, breathing presence in space: a cube of soft, breathable fabric made using AIRism technology. Visitors can walk through and inhabit it, engaging directly with a material that responds to air and movement, creating a sense of freshness and lightness. The result is an immersive, sensory environment defined by transparency and subtle vibrations, translating LifeWear philosophy into a tangible experience of everyday comfort.
In the Loggiato Est, Light Knot Progression takes shape as a luminous thread weaving through space. Designed by BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group for Artemide, the installation unfolds as a sequence of knots, each distinct and progressively more complex. Suspended like a drawing in the air, light becomes a narrative: a continuous line that grows, intertwines and evolves. Each knot is a thought that emerges, connects with others and develops, forming a vibrant landscape that makes the flow of creativity visible.
In the Loggiato Ovest, il giardino segreto di Pasquale Bruni, conceived by Christoph Radl in collaboration with Eugenia Bruni for Pasquale Bruni, celebrates the Maison’s 65th anniversary through a poetic interpretation of matter as origin and transformation. The loggia becomes an immersive secret garden, where gemstones, metals and light merge in a landscape suspended between nature and human creation. Matter emerges from the earth, is shaped through care and love, and is ultimately transformed into light, making each jewel a tangible expression of energy and memory. The experience invites visitors into a sensory transformation, where body and mind engage with a narrative of ever-evolving elegance.
In the Sottoportico, matter takes on multiple forms, voices and meanings, offering a layered view of contemporary design. Here, Jan Puylaert, for EcoPixel presents Rings – An open surface for light and form, exploring the expressive potential of a recycled material that evolves from simple cladding into a spatial structure. At its core is RINGS by Ecopixel®, a fully recycled PERT surface made from industrial underfloor heating waste, transformed into interconnected rings that form a porous, lightweight and flexible structure.
Paola Sasplugas for PDPAOLA presents Crafted to Transcend, an organic plaster installation inspired by the fluid form of the Glacier earring. The artwork features smooth, metallic and rough surfaces, inviting visitors to carve and shape the rough areas using provided tools. Over time, the material records the presence and actions of its audience. The project celebrates craftsmanship as a living, human gesture in contrast to automation. In this way, jewellery moves beyond function to become a participatory and evolving experience.
The same space also hosts Metropac by the BA programme in Design and Interior Architecture at Accademia IUAD. The project explores the world of gaming through the iconic figure of Pac-Man, set within a metropolitan landscape. Structured across three areas, it guides visitors through an urban journey combining ceramics, 3D printing, LED walls and neon. The first room recalls the game’s labyrinth, with references to Franco Albini; the second, inspired by Marcel Duchamp, offers a provocative reinterpretation of the bathroom. The third concludes with illuminated niches inspired by the game’s ghosts, prompting reflection on the relationship between play and the urban environment.
Comfort Inside, conceived by GCS Genny Canton Studio in collaboration with Operaventuno for the MCZ Group, invites visitors to experience comfort as a total environment. A bold red volume welcomes them into a multisensory journey through contrasting climates: from the enveloping warmth of sunlight and soft lighting to a crystalline, silent cold, and finally to a balanced domestic setting where light, temperature and artistic fragrances come together in harmony.
Break Down the Boundaries (9 × 2 × h 3.2 m) by Marco Merendi and Diego Vencato for Stannah, with vases by Paolelli Outdoor, already expresses in its title the idea of overcoming physical, cultural and social boundaries. The Joya stairlift chair, reimagined beyond its functional language, is set within an enchanted garden where design engages in dialogue with nature. Here, the object becomes part of the landscape, shaping a poetic vision that brings together human beings, architecture and the environment, in the spirit of inclusive and sustainable mobility.
It transports visitors into a dreamlike and intimate atmosphere, ‘Chiedi alla Luna’ by Artset for Ever in Art with LiveHelp. At its centre, a floating moon interacts with visitors through the GeniusAgents AI live chat, capable of understanding the context and tone of questions. A circular platform in blue carpet and a velvet backdrop create an enclosed night sky, while an iron ring evokes the full moon. The piece celebrates the right to ask and to dream, blending material, light and reflection between reality and imagination.
‘Spanish Design as a Souvenir’ is a contemporary still life in architectural scale composed of ten souvenir-objects reinterpreted in ceramic, conceived by CODOO Studio for Tile of Spain. Spanish design and the collective imagination are translated into sculptural volumes that transform ceramics from a simple cladding material into an object, an identity-bearing material and an autonomous design piece.
As the exhibition continues, Racconti d’aMare takes visitors on an immersive experience through art, photography, science and engineering. Created by Navim Yacht Lab and Tecnimpianti, the project transforms nautical objects and reclaimed materials into artistic narrative: participants symbolically move from the harbour to the storm of the open sea and back to calm waters, accompanied by sounds, voices and visual suggestions that create a dreamlike space in which to lose and rediscover oneself. Next up is La man che ubbidisce all’intelletto (19.2 x 0.4 x h 2.3 m), curated by Rampello & Partners and sponsored by First Italy and Unicorn Creates Together Brand Organization in collaboration with Qwen, Treezo Group and Metz. This creation takes the form of an open-air installation that transforms the courtyard of the University of Milan into a route marked by a sequence of “living paintings”. These are not static images, but dynamic “canvases” where artistic and technical knowledge of high craftsmanship takes shape through a language drawn from cinema.
In the Cortile d’Onore, a teaser of Origin by Zaha Hadid Architects for Audi is also presented. This is an architectural element that refers to the main installation at Portrait Milano, creating a direct link between the different venues of the exhibition.
To round off the exhibition-event, VIVO – Abitare l’emergenza, by T. Cavalli, C. Gorni Silvestrini, S. Lipoli and Andrea Lombardi, curated by Davide Angeli for IED, proposes a temporary housing solution for the aftermath of natural disasters: a space of resilience designed to be set up quickly in Italian sports halls and offer a practical response to emergencies. The structure, made of steel tubes chosen for their ease and speed of assembly, is built on two levels: one dedicated to private life, the other to public life, conceived as a shared square and a place for social reconstruction. Easily available materials, reusable elements and transformable furnishings make the space adaptable over time. VIVO invites us to view the concept of emergency not as a temporary interlude, but as the beginning of a new possible equilibrium, an open system that places at its heart the continuity of life and the possibility of rebuilding and rebirth.
After the sequence of installations in the Cortile d’Onore, the itinerary opens into the Outdoor lounges, conceived as spaces for pause and encounter. Here, matter is no longer merely an object to be observed, but becomes an environment to be inhabited, as seen in TIBUR/CONTINUUM by Studio Paolo Ferrari for AATC and Co, and Corals – Origin of Matter, curated by Natascia Finocchiaro Maurino for Cristallina Design in collaboration with Cristallina and Graniti Maurino.
As you approach the monumental staircase, the Portal features Sorpresa by Alessandro Enriquez for Kartos, whilst in the Press Room, Dainelli Studio, for Status Contract in collaboration with Fratelli Damian, presents Materia in two acts: two spaces in which imperfect surfaces demonstrate how the same colour takes on a different character depending on the material, in a composition where green grows, envelops the space and transforms matter into a narrative force.
Companies, institutions, schools and international designers contribute to a plural vision of material as behaviour, production process, ethical responsibility and cultural language, reinforcing the collective nature of MATERIAE and its ability to express the complexity of contemporary design.
The rediscovered garden: myth and matter at the Brera Botanical Garden
In the green heart of the city, the Orto Botanico di Brera becomes a place of listening and contemplation, where material emerges as a cycle of life, growth and transformation. Two works engage with the existing nature, weaving together design and landscape in a delicate balance between human intervention and natural processes.
Garden of the Esperides
The Franco-Lebanese architect Annabel Karim Kassar, working for Rubner Haus, ABS Group and Valpaint, brings to the Orto Botanico di Brera a vision suspended between memory and invention, where the myth of the Hesperides re-emerges as a subtle trace, entrusted to a light structure that invites visitors to move through and discover it rather than simply be told.
A wooden portico runs along the main path, directing the gaze towards the sundial, a symbol of the passage of time, while along the paths hand-painted female figures by the designer are arranged in geometric circles, turning the garden into a stage of suspended presences. Each figure interacts with its surroundings: trees, flowers, voids and solids become part of a narrative that brings together myth and the visitor’s direct experience.
The project reimagines the Orto as a place of contemplation, where architecture, art and landscape intertwine in visual and poetic sequences. The portico and painted figures become points of reference, guardians of an ancient story that emerges between shadow and light, between the movement of the seasons and the rhythm of footsteps. Here, myth is no longer distant: it is perceived, traversed, lived.
L’Armonia è qui
L’Armonia è qui is an installation born from the vision of Irritec and the Davision Creative Design Team for responsible innovation, where irrigation, design and sustainability come together in a single language. The project imagines a fairy-tale garden where efficiency and beauty coexist, and irrigation systems are discreetly integrated into the space, reducing visual impact and enhancing the environment. Here, design is not an accessory element but an integral part of sustainability. This creation invites us to rethink irrigation as a conscious and harmonious gesture, capable of respecting and enhancing the landscape.
Eataly Milano Smeraldo and De Castillia 23 by Urban Up | Unipol
For the fourth consecutive year, Eataly Milano Smeraldo (Piazza XXV Aprile, 10) and De Castillia 23 by Urban Up | Unipol (Via De Castillia, 23) are taking part in the INTERNI exhibition-event.
Everyday life materials and sharing at Eataly Milano Smeraldo
With CASA, Giotto Calendoli for Eataly brings the project back to the domestic and emotional dimension of food. Window graphics, images and table objects build a narrative made of shared gestures, phrases and rituals, where food becomes memory, relationship and a culture of living together.
“Amore, hai mangiato?” (“Have you had anything to eat, my Love?”) is the simple, universal question at the origin of the new artistic project by Giotto Calendoli in collaboration with Eataly Milano Smeraldo. Not a “hosted” piece, but a jointly developed journey: Eataly provides its raw materials and ingredients – food, gastronomic culture, the stories that inhabit our tables – and Giotto transforms it into a house of memories, traditions and shared gestures.
The installation, developed inside the store and on the building façade, will be on display at Eataly Milano Smeraldo from 20 April 2026. With “Amore, hai mangiato?” it expresses a simple, universal question, a daily phrase that becomes a verbal gesture of care, crossing generations and turning into a collective declaration of intimacy and affection. It reveals a strong shared vision between Giotto and Eataly: Italian identity as everyday care, the beauty of inherited rituals, and food as a language that connects generations. CASA is not just an artistic project, but an invitation to recognise ourselves in what binds us as a community: sharing, hospitality, and time given to others. The project speaks, without nostalgia or rhetoric, of time passing, habits being passed down, and words that preserve a sense of shared belonging. In this context, food becomes visual language, symbolic material and narrative tool. Eataly Icons spaghetti take part in the story, becoming a limited-edition design object by Giotto Calendoli: a container of stories, thoughts and emotions.
Fire, Energy and urban transformation on the façade of De Castillia 23 by Urban Up | Unipol
The kinetic artistic creation LIGHT OUR FIRE by Studio Azzurro for Urban Up | Unipol animates the façade of De Castillia 23, evoking Fire as a primordial form of energy, a generative force, the incandescent core of the Earth, and completing the quadrilogy of the elements after Water in 2023, Air in 2024 and Earth in 2025. Fire has accompanied humanity for millennia: it has provided warmth, transformed metals, enabled early technologies and illuminated the path of progress. In the myth of Prometheus, who steals fire from the gods to give it to humankind, this flame becomes knowledge and passion, a spark of evolution but also responsibility: power that elevates always carries consequences and risks. LIGHT OUR FIRE was born out of this realisation. From the image of the Earth’s burning core emerges an invitation – more relevant than ever in today’s historical moment – to reflect on energy, the future and responsibility towards the planet, but also to listen to and safeguard the inner fire that drives us every day. LIGHT OUR FIRE is not merely an aesthetic piece of art, but a device for thought, a call for collective reflection that must not be static but kinetic, like the panels that compose it, in line with Urban Up | Unipol’s commitment over the past eleven years.
LIGHT OUR FIRE is a monumental modular sculpture 37 metres in diameter, made of 492 panels, covering a total surface area of more than 1,100 sqm. Made from an innovative polycarbonate derived from a continuous recycling process enabling 100% reuse, LIGHT OUR FIRE is suspended on steel cables, allowing the panels to rotate and respond to air and light. Its circular chromatic structure recalls fire, the Earth’s core: at the centre, glowing oranges are surrounded by intense shades of red, like an incandescent heart pulsing within the urban space.
The INTERNI system
The integrated communication system of INTERNI confirms its role as a key reference point in the world of design through a structured ecosystem which, for FuoriSalone, includes its two historic print publications, INTERNI and the FuoriSalone Guide, as well as the major INTERNI MATERIAE event. The offer extends into the digital sphere, led by the website and official social media channels, alongside the online FuoriSalone Guide and the digital edition of INTERNI King Size. This is further enriched by editorial insights and video content, also distributed through a newsletter system, providing complete tools and real-time updates on trends, news and previews in the field of design.
Now in its 36th edition, the FuoriSalone Guide confirms itself as an essential handbook for navigating the increasingly complex landscape of Milan Design Week events. The guide presents a curated selection of around 350 events involving companies, designers and architects taking part in FuoriSalone, organised both chronologically day by day and alphabetically. Distributed free of charge with the April issue of INTERNI, the Guide will also be available in showrooms, institutions, museums and all major FuoriSalone 2026 locations, as well as at the trade fair. It will also be accessible online, optimised for tablets and smartphones, with an interactive map.
The strength of the INTERNI brand is also strongly expressed across the region. On the occasion of MATERIAE, a wide street advertising campaign has been planned, including: the customisation of 10 retail outlets within Milan Malpensa Airport (Terminal 1) and 4 outlets at Linate; advertising on 150 digital screens in city newsagents, 50 of which have been selected and customised to ensure strategic coverage in central areas and key thoroughfares; the display window installations at the Mondadori Duomo bookshop in Piazza Duomo and Rizzoli Milano in Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, complete with a network of LED walls; 20 FSU Digital installations in central Milan; 20 digital bus shelter installations, 15 screens on Corso Vittorio Emanuele and 15 roadside banners, all selected in the city centre; 10 large-scale rear-view media displays on shuttles and buses; 57 digital screens inside Milan Central Station and 17 at Cadorna, Bovisa and Domodossola stations; 2 LED cubes in Piazza Meda and Via Mascagni; 81 screens on the Subway Vision network on lines M1, M2, M3 and M5, at strategic stops such as Duomo, Garibaldi, Isola, Loreto, San Babila and Zara; 16 stations on the M4 line; and finally, DOOH presence in the Gae Aulenti Domination area, with installations at Vele, Capelli, Castiglioni A/B, Viganò and Avar Aalto.
For information, please visit www.internimagazine.it
