“A Matter of Salone”: the 2026 Design Week unveiled

The President of the Salone, Maria Porro, emphasized how this edition is designed to respond to people’s evolving needs, while keeping sustainability, innovation, and relational capacity at its core. It is no longer merely a showcase of furniture and furnishings: the Salone is evolving into a catalyst for design thinking, open to the new languages of contemporary living.

Among the main highlights, Salone Raritas stands out as a platform dedicated to collectible design (Halls 9 and 11), curated by Annalisa Rosso with an exhibition design by Formafantasma. Here, historical icons, unique pieces, and creative outsiders engage with high craftsmanship and aesthetic storytelling, giving rise to a dialogue between memory and the future.

The imaginary installation Aurea. An architectural fiction, conceived by Maison Numéro 20, continues the immersive narrative path developed in recent years: a journey where interior design becomes a sensory experience and a visual story, transforming spaces into emotional scenographies.

The fabric of the exhibition is further strengthened by the return of EuroCucina and the International Bathroom Exhibition. The kitchen, the quintessential domestic space, is reimagined as a multisensory environment, blending smart technology, sustainable materials, and solutions designed to enhance everyday well-being.

Alongside these, growing attention is being given to the contract sector—a strategic field in transformation that looks beyond the single object toward the ability to integrate systems, expertise, and spatial visions. The Salone Contract project—featuring a masterplan developed by OMA, led by Rem Koolhaas and David Gianotten—will, in the coming years, open up new opportunities for dialogue between hospitality, retail, public, and residential environments, exploring the more complex dynamics of integrated design.

The Salone proudly preserves its educational and generative spirit through SaloneSatellite, a true international laboratory for designers under 35. For the 2026 edition, with 700 young talents from 43 countries and the participation of more than 23 design schools and universities, this creative hub once again confirms itself as a space for experimentation and dialogue between craftsmanship, innovation, and technology. The theme “Skilled Craftsmanship + Innovation” encapsulates a deep-rooted ambition: to rediscover the value of hands-on skill and design thinking—not as nostalgia for the past, but as a tool for imagining the future.