I can’t believe 4 months has flown by since I attended my second Salone Del Mobile, the world’s most influential design fair. This event was locked into my calendar since attending for the very first time in 2023, and I was so excited to see how it has evolved and who and what was setting the tone for global design trends.

Salone Del Mobile and Milan Design Week: A Global Design Celebration

Salone Del Mobile, which began in 1961 as a showcase for Italian furniture manufacturers, has grown into a massive global design event. The 2024 edition marked its 62nd year, with over 1,950 exhibitors from 35 countries and nearly 371,000 attendees. The fair alternates its focus each year between Euroluce (lighting) and Eurocucina (kitchens and bathrooms), with this year's spotlight on the latter.

Held at the Fiera Milano exhibition centre, Salone is the heart of Milan Design Week. Beyond the fairgrounds however, Fuorisalone brings the city alive with showroom events, installations, and exhibitions in private palazzos, courtyards, and hidden corners. These days Milan’s Design Week goes way beyond furniture, and is now embraced by fashion houses, avant-garde artisans, and even the automotive industry.

Image location: Duomo di Milano (Cathedral in Milan, Italy)

Excitement & Anticipation: A Designer’s Journey

The exhilaration of attending Milan Design Week is indescribable, and that didn’t wane with my second visit! It’s thought-provoking, exciting, surprising, and overwhelming, all at once. Travelling with colleagues, and design besties, adds a whole other level of immersion and reward to the experience. While general planning for the trip starts almost a year in advance to secure flights and preferred accommodation, the real hustle begins about two weeks out as suppliers and venues release detailed schedules of the week’s extensive list of exhibitions and events. With my second year at Design Week under my belt, I’m starting to feel like I’m getting the hang of it and can navigate it like a seasoned visitor. But, even with that confidence and pre-planning, the social media whirlwind, buzzing non-stop before, during and after, means the fear of missing out (FOMO) on something fabulous is real!

Spotlight on Trends: What’s Hot in 2024

While trend-driven interiors aren’t a focus for The Space Within, it's impossible not to be influenced by the directions and themes presented by world-renowned designers and manufacturers at the fair. Here are a few of the key themes that I captured during my visit:

Material Mix Mastery

Juxtaposition of Raw and Polished: Stone bench tops were often monolithic and combined honed or polished tops with organic, rough-hewn faces; fixtures combined matte and gloss surfaces; unexpected textures enhanced unlikely pieces such as leather and bamboo-look finishes at Gessi taps; and sensuous matte finishes on timber furniture appeared at legacy brands like Flexform showcasing a fascinating blend of raw and refined materials.

Image 1: Flexform Arnold Coffee Table & Camelot Sofa / Image 2: Candy Basin collection by Terzofoco, both at Salone del Mobile

The Rise of Red: Colour Explosion

Burgundy’s Dominance: Shades of oxblood, raisin, cognac, and mahogany took centre stage across furniture, appliances, lighting and accessories.
Orange-Toned Reds: Terracotta and peach hues also featured prominently, particularly in outdoor furnishings.
Surprising Purples: Hues ranging from amethyst and lilac to violet added an unexpected twist to upholstered furniture, tables and accessories.

Image 1: Aura Basin range by Kast at Salone del Mobile / Image 2: Assiale Table at B&B Italia showroom

Curves and Soft Edges: Embracing the Round

Rounded Shapes and Smoothed Edges: Curved and bull nosed bench tops abounded while shapely appliances, such as those from Smeg, dominated the scene. The furniture was rounded and soft, eschewing hard edges and finishes.

Image 1: Kohler Ophelia Bath at Eurocucina / Image 2: Allure O’Dot tables at B&B Italia showroom

Sustainability in Style: Waste Not, Want Not

Sustainable Innovations: Throughout was a theme of sustainability from honouring history in heritage brands to embracing technology for innovative design. EconitWood featured stunning 3D-printed furniture and lighting made from sawmill wood waste and several brands showcased exquisite furniture and lighting crafted fromoffcuts of marble and alabaster.

Image 1: Repurposed marble tables / Image 2: Econit Wood lamps both at Villa Bagatti Valsecchi for Alcova

Innovative Exhibits: Pushing Boundaries

Image: Villa Bagatti Valsecchi, one of two locations for Alcova 2024

Among the many impressive exhibits, Alcova at Villa Bagatti Valsecchi stood out. Alcova, a platform created by designers to highlight creatives shaping design culture, selects unique, often abandoned sites, each year to showcase and create a dialogue with innovative design, selected two historic locations for this year’s event. I was fortunate enough to visit one, Villa Bagatti Valsecchi, a disused 19th-century villa, originally a summer retreat for a Milanese family. The exhibition presented technologically advanced, environmentally driven, and nature-inspired designs throughout the interior and the grounds of the villa. Highlights included:

Undine Lounge Chair: Combining cutting-edge audio technology into a sleek and contemporary piece of furniture, offers a personalised surround sound experience like no other.

EconitWood: Featuring earthy and tactile 3D-printed furniture and lighting made from wood waste recovered from sawmills and displayed in a desert-scape setting within a salon in the villa.
Sfossils: A Vancouver-based studio presented an enthralling two-storey ceramic chandelier showcasing over 40 unique and experimental textures so perfectly attuned to its setting that it is now part of the Villa Bagatti permanent collection.

Image 1: Undine Lounge Chair / Image2: Sfossils chandelier both at Villa Bagatti Valsecchi for Alcova

Personal Highlights: Moments of Inspiration

Among my favourite moments were:

Gessi’s Tapware: Showcasing stunning textures and shapes, including a tap that looks like leather, Gessi is redefining luxury within the bathroom space.
Kohler’s Shower: Another innovator within the bathroom and wellness space, Kohler showcased a concept shower as an incredible sensory experience combining sound, light, and water pressure.
Alessi’s Installation: A magical dragon egg fountain in the courtyard of Palazzo Borromeo D'Adda added a playful experience in the heart of Milan.
Aesop’s Retro Fit-out: A delightful, whimsical and retro-inspired design in muted greens, yellows and pinks at their flagship in Porta Magenta was a welcome repreive from the bustle of the Fair.

Image 1: Alessi’s Installation at Palazzo Borromeo d’Adda / Image 2: Aesop’s Retro Fit-out at Corso Magenta

These experiences reinforced the importance of celebrating detail and form in design. We're witnessing a shift from minimalism to maximalism, where ‘form follows function’ is no longer the ultimate goal. There's beauty in detail and value in form for form's sake.

The overall experience at Salone Del Mobile 2024 was nothing short of transformative. Beyond the obvious immersion in, and growth of, creative expression, Milan Design Week is a mecca for fostering connections across the design community, promoting the exchange of ideas, and challenging preconceptions of what is possible. Immersing myself in an environment rich with creative expression—from architecture and fashion to gastronomy and ‘la dolce vita’—is life-changing.

Milan Design Week is a masterclass in honouring history by juxtaposing modern design within its context. And, of course, it’s Italy - what’s not to love!

Stay tuned for future articles exploring Milan itself and destinations further afield.

Until next time, grazie mille!