The best installations from Milan Design Week 2025
Each April, Milan transforms into a living design gallery, as the city’s historic palazzos, courtyards, disused buildings and gardens open their doors for Milan Design Week. Some installations drew exceptionally long queues, with visitors waiting hours to gain entry. Here are five standout installations from Milan Design Week 2025 that caught our attention.
Photo by Monica Spezia
Library of Light by Es Devlin Studio
Commissioned as part of the Euroluce at Salone del Mobile, British artist Es Devlin presented the stunning Library of Light, a monumental rotating installation at the historic Cortile d'Onore at the Pinacoteca di Brera. Created in collaboration with Feltrinelli and inspired by a quote from Umberto Eco, the 18-metre-wide illuminated cylinder held 3,200 books. By day, the mirrored top reflects sunlight into hidden corners of the courtyard; by night, it casts dramatic shadows—transforming the space into a performance stage.
Photo by Melania Dalle Grave
Two Fold Silence by 6:AM
Milan-based design studio 6:AM presented Two Fold Silence—its first solo exhibition— which was set within the atmospheric basement of the historic Piscina Cozzi, a former public swimming pool. Once home to communal showers, the long-abandoned space was reawakened through a series of site-specific installations that blend mystery with material exploration. Murano glass lamps, sconces, and objects are thoughtfully placed among unfinished shower stalls, alongside prototypes such as glass murrini rod towel rails and incomplete chandeliers.
Photo by Marimekko
What happens in bed? by Marimekko
Finnish design house Marimekko teamed up with New York-based artist Laila Gohar to present an immersive installation at Teatro Litta. Centred around the playful question, "What happens in bed?" The installation transforms a bedroom into a larger-than-life celebration of the everyday moments we experience between the sheets—from coffee mornings and impromptu dinners to late-night films with friends. Throughout the week, the space evolved with a series of activities, inviting visitors to climb in, interact and eat a giant bed shaped cake.
Photo by Nathalie Krag
Nobody Owns the Land: Earth, Forest, Mahk by Byoung Soo Cho
At the heart of the MoscaPartners exhibition at the historic Palazzo Litta, Korean architect Byoung Soo Cho made his Italian debut with Nobody Owns the Land: Earth, Forest, Mahk—a striking site-specific installation that transforms the main courtyard. A suspended platform covered in finely crushed red Verona marble, mistaken at first glance for sand, invited visitors to remove their shoes and walk barefoot across its unexpectedly smooth surface.
Photo by Maxime Verret
Quest for the Object by Hermès
Hermès returned to its familiar home at La Pelota in Brera—a former 1940s sports hall—with a striking new installation called ‘Quest for the object’ designed by Charlotte Macaux Perelman, architect and artistic director of Hermès’ home collections, alongside Alexis Fabry. This year’s presentation featured new creations displayed in suspended, near-colourless white boxes that cast vibrant halos of colour onto the floor—inviting a poetic, contemplative experience
Banner photo by Es Devlin Studio