Milan Design Week 2025

This month, Palefire Founder and Creative Director Rowena Morgan-Cox hot-footed it to Milan for a whirlwind three-day tour of Milan Design Week 2025. In between dodging the queues and scouring for gems, Rowena made some notes for the Palefire Journal – here’s what she saw and liked.

Euroluce at Salone di Mobile

Salone di Mobile (otherwise known as the HQ / base of Milan Design Week) is a monumental trade fair spanning 21 huge halls packed with exhibitors, which each year draws in a deluge of visitors to the city. Not for the uncommitted, mindful meandering of Milan Design Week’s satellite events, the Salone di Mobile is very much business-focused. To save on burnout we focused our efforts on the lighting displays only; Euroluce, a biannual event, was back.

Santa & Cole

This stand is always very consistent, and its understated modern elegance is unusual in a fair known for flashy, eye-grabbing spectacle. On a predominantly neutral stand (aside from the luscious yellow carpet), the colour-saturated artworks and lighting by Gabriel Ordeig Cole and Nina Maso stood out. Also on display was the best picture light we’ve encountered; Lamparaprima, designed by Pete Sans in 1979.

David Pompa

A lesson in stand design and exhibition production, David Pompa’s team managed to make magic in amidst the chaos of a giant trade fair, which is no mean feat. The entrance to the stand was flanked by a charming breakfast bar serving a warm guava drink and traditional Mexican fare, which we enjoyed while perusing the display.

The starting point was the materials they use – all thoughtful, natural and local, from woven palm to lava rock. Beautifully presented imagery of the Mexican landscape and historical artefacts built a sense of the tradition that the studio works within. This culminated in a materials bar which visitors could handle. One highlight was the Nilia wall light and table lamp which had a satisfyingly smooth mechanism to adjust the angle of the palm shades.

Alcova in Varedo

With over 100 exceptional exhibitors and four stunning venues, Alcova still has the edge on Milan Design Week’s satellite exhibitions, making the day trip out of town well worth it. An unexpected, almost magical atmosphere permeated all the locations, which included the modernist Villa Borsani, the grand 18th-century Villa Bagatti Valsecchi, a derelict former SNIA factory, and the ruined Pasino Glasshouses – entirely taking over the small town of Varedo.

Highlights at Alcova included a state-sponsored Guatemalan design exhibit complete with fragrant forest foliage and live hand-weaving; a moody, nostalgic salon created by South African brand, Lemon; a Slovenian material bar where recycled clothes were made live; a light, airy and contemplative Marlot Baus ‘Daily Rhythms’ installation, curated by Claudia Longarte; the ethereal Ghost Orchid by Polish designer Marcin Rusak, followed by a quick spritz of perfume by Avau. Last but not least, the spacey debut furniture collection from London-based jewellery brand Completed Works made from coated polystyrene.

Alcova in Varedo

With over 100 exceptional exhibitors and four stunning venues, Alcova still has the edge on Milan Design Week’s satellite exhibitions, making the day trip out of town well worth it. An unexpected, almost magical atmosphere permeated all the locations, which included the modernist Villa Borsani, the grand 18th-century Villa Bagatti Valsecchi, a derelict former SNIA factory, and the ruined Pasino Glasshouses – entirely taking over the small town of Varedo.

Highlights at Alcova included a state-sponsored Guatemalan design exhibit complete with fragrant forest foliage and live hand-weaving; a moody, nostalgic salon created by South African brand, Lemon; a Slovenian material bar where recycled clothes were made live; a light, airy and contemplative Marlot Baus ‘Daily Rhythms’ installation, curated by Claudia Longarte; the ethereal Ghost Orchid by Polish designer Marcin Rusak, followed by a quick spritz of perfume by Avau. Last but not least, the spacey debut furniture collection from London-based jewellery brand Completed Works made from coated polystyrene.

Casa Fornasetti

We had a rare opportunity to peek inside Piero Fornasetti’s home in Milan thanks to a wonderful party hosted by World of Interiors. The house, which is only opened occasionally to the public for private events, was purpose built in the 19th century by the artist’s parents, and is a riot of Fornasetti designs alongside curated objects and antiques.

The juxtaposition of designed and found softened the highly stylised Fornasetti aesthetic, offering a well-rounded understanding of his wild and wonderful work. Every inch of space is utilised, and every corner offers a startling vignette, building a total interior. Walking through the rooms felt like the purest expression of the designer’s aesthetic, as if peering into his mind. It is a creative manifesto.

Prison Time by Dropcity

Haunting and beautiful, this exhibition of prison furniture and objects collected from around the world represents an investigation into the design of penal life. It is a faceless and nameless design industry that serves to regiment and ‘protect’ those who live and work within its confines while simultaneously undermining and anonymising them. Pieces were presented unaltered, and sourced directly from prison contractors, with the sparkling sheen of the stainless-steel sanitary ware and the pop colour of plastic food trays belying the unloved surfaces of an operating prison.