The 63rd edition of the Salone del Mobile furniture fair, which runs from the 8th to the 13th of April, will see more than 2,100 exhibitors from 37 countries, including 148 new and returning brands, spread across 1,819,100 square feet of sold-out exhibition space. This year’s creative campaign for the fair, Thought for Humans, by Dentsu Creative Italy, champions design that focuses on the role of emotional intelligence in creativity and innovation. It’s a rousing sentiment as much as a necessary concession to scale: attendance has grown under the stewardship of president Maria Porro, with the fairground seeing over 370,000 professionals from 146 countries. 2025 is set to attract an even larger, more diverse audience. But what can all of these visitors expect?
Es Devlin will present Library of Light.
A Focus On Lighting
The Euroluce Biennial, following a successful run in 2023, is back with over 300 lighting brands from 25 countries. There will also be the first-ever International Forum on Light, a multidisciplinary deep dive into lighting design hosted in the Sou Fujimoto-designed Forest of Space Arena. To top it all off, British artist Es Devlin will light up the Pinacoteca di Brera with a spectacular installation dedicated to the value of knowledge dubbed Library of Light, supported by the Feltrinelli book store. At the heart of the installation is a monumental 59-foot circular structure that houses 2,000 illuminated books arranged in a continuous ring, meant to champion libraries as “a space where knowledge is never static, but constantly evolving,” Devlin said in a release.
Robert Wilson’s Mother, a light, art, and sound exhibition designed to respond to Michelangelo’s unfinished masterpiece, the Pietà Rondanini.
Expanded Cultural Programming
Major cultural installations inside the Fiera fairgrounds and within the city center include French architect Pierre-Yves Rochon’s Villa Héritage; renowned visual artist and theater director Robert Wilson’s Mother, a light, art, and sound exhibition designed to respond to the Pietà Rondanini, Michelangelo’s unfinished masterpiece; and Oscar-winning filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino’s La dolce attesa, an installation that rethinks and reimagines what it means to pass the time. “It’s one of the worst things in life—the sort of waiting that becomes a suspended reality,” Sorrentino tells ELLE Decor. “We end up obsessively hunched over our smartphones. Our waiting room aspires to be something else.”
Kasthall will be debuting new designs at the Piazza Paolo VI.
A City Alive With Exhibitions
It’s not just the Fiera Milano exhibition center that comes alive during Salone del Mobile. The entire city will be teeming with exhibitors and brands taking over historic palaces, high-end boutiques, and even a handful of industrial tunnels. Valentina Ciuffi‘s Alcova will be back at Villa Borsani, Kasthall will take over Piazza Paolo VI to debut its Anemon collection, and Artemest will celebrate its 10th anniversary by taking over the Palazzo Donizetti for the third edition of L’Appartamento by Artemest. The Finnish brand Marimekko is collaborating with artist Laila Gohar on an immersive experience centered around a grand-sized bed in the foyer of Teatro Litta, naturally, and Ligne Roset will set up shop in the Mohd showroom to celebrate the design of the 70s and 80s in an exclusive exhibition, Back To The Shape. Those interested in a deeper exploration of those decades and their trends can head to the Triennale Milano, where a series of exhibitions will highlight the work of visionary figures like Franco Raggi and Ettore Sottsass.
Sean Santiago is ELLE Decor’s Deputy Editor, covering news, trends and talents in interior design, hospitality and travel, culture, and luxury shopping. Since starting his career at an interior design firm in 2011, he has gone on to cover the industry for Vogue, Architectural Digest, Sight Unseen, PIN-UP and Domino. He is the author of The Lonny Home (Weldon Owens, 2018), has produced scripted social content for brands including West Elm and Streeteasy, and is sometimes recognized on the street for his Instagram Reels series, #DanceToDecor
