An unmissable opportunity to visit Milan is during the week of the Fuori Salone, or Fuorisalone, the event that defines the Milano Design Week and accompanies the Salone del Mobile.

This is an international event, held every year, dedicated to the world of furniture and design, which originated spontaneously in the early 1980s to coincide with the trade fair in the Rho Fiera Milano premises. The Fuorisalone, which has even become a more famous and more eagerly awaited event than the Salone Internazionale del Mobile, involves the entire city with exhibitions, installations, workshops, conferences and meetings dedicated to the world of design.

Design Week 2022 had been held in June, but this year it returns in the usual period and will take place from 17 to 23 April 2023. A unique opportunity to discover the latest creations of the best designers and the most prestigious companies in the sector, but also to get to know new emerging talents and their creative ideas.

But that's not all! During the Fuorisalone, social events, aperitifs and evenings to party and have fun to the rhythm of music are organised throughout the week, often in exclusive locations. The highlights of the city will be the Milano Design District, specific areas that will come alive more than the others and will host most of the events planned during the week.

In this article we will discover the most interesting and unmissable events that will take place during Fuori Salone 2023. Get ready for an unforgettable experience in the heart of the design capital!

The theme of the Fuori Salone 2023

The key words of Fuori Salone 2023 are 'Future Workshop', this is the theme of the edition, so a look at the future but involving active doing, experimenting to achieve different results.

It is a reflection on how we imagine our future, in relation to the uniqueness of the times in which we live. It is a theme that stimulates creativity, innovation and experimentation, but also responsibility and sustainability. It aims to investigate the challenges and opportunities of the present but through the critical and imaginative gaze of design, art, architecture, technology and innovation.

It invites us to think about how design can contribute to improving people's quality of life, both today and in the future. To this end, it wants to encourage a dialogue between the various players in the sector to share innovative solutions and visions.

The Design Districts 2023

The events during Milan Design Week take place in particular districts of the city that become Design Districts for the occasion, including Brera, 5VIE, Tortona, Isola, Lambrate, Ventura and Porta Venezia.

Here are some of the most interesting events of FuoriSalone 2023, linked to the innovations that characterise the historical era we are living in:

• A floating multisensory forest in Darsena by Timberland and Stefano Boeri Interiors, exploring the relationship between nature and the city;
• A luminous architecture by Zaha Hadid for Slamp at Euroluce, showing the potential of natural stone;
• A gallery dedicated to Veuve Clicquot in Via Castelfidardo, celebrating art, colour and innovation;
• A flower garden of eco-design and botany at the Porta Garibaldi Station by Green Island, which proposes solutions for the circular economy and urban regeneration;
• An artificial intelligence workshop by Stark at the Acquario Civico, presenting its artistic and technological creations.
• Now let's take a virtual tour of the must-see events in the main design districts.

Now let's take a virtual tour of the must-see events in the main design districts.

The Fuori Salone 2023 events in Brera

Brera is one of the most scenic locations where the FuoriSalone events will take place. So, we decided to start right in the heart of Milan to discover some of the most interesting events.

Here are the main Milan events of FuoriSalone 2023 at the Brera Design District:

• Valcucine Ecosophìa: an exhibition on sustainable and circular cooking organised by Valcucine and Interni;
• Dry Days, Tropical Nights: a colourful, immersive installation by artist Agostino Iacurci with gloTM for art;
• Designing Timeless SPA Experience: an exhibition on the future of beauty salons with Takara Belmont at Vivarium;
• Plywood is future: an urban furnishing project with Panguaneta's multilayer wood;
• Trame: a dynamic installation on the landscape of encounters with Stark;
• Primitive rugs: an exhibition of handcrafted carpets with SAÏTO;
• GEORGES: a special collection of design objects with GEORGES.

The Brera Design District is one of the historic districts of the FuoriSalone in Milan, no wonder that more than 200 events and exhibitions will be hosted here.

The Fuori Salone 2023 events in 5VIE

One of the oldest districts in Milan is the 5VIE district, right in the city centre, between Via Torino and Via Meravigli. It was named after the confluence of five streets: Via Santa Marta, Via del Bollo, Via Bocchetto, Via Santa Maria Fulcorina and Via Santa Maria Podone.

Here is a list of some of the events of the Fuori Salone that will take place in 5VIE, one of the star districts:

• Doppia Firma: an exhibition of craftsmanship and design at Palazzo Litta with works by Italian and European designers and master craftsmen;
• L'Appartamento di via Cesare Correnti: an exhibition of furniture and art with unique and original items selected by Artemest;
• Constance Guisset announces her surprise party!: a design and scenography exhibition featuring the French designer's works at the Institut Français Milan
• Re;collective Milan: an exhibition of sustainability and upcycling between fashion and design;
• Future by Design: an exhibition of innovative projects for the future with the book-manual by designers Tommaso Corà, Lucilla Fazio and Filippo Collura at Via Santa Marta.

This district is not only a focal point for the events of the Fuori Salone in Milan, but also boasts an artistic and cultural heritage with historic buildings, churches, craft workshops, ateliers and art galleries.

The Fuori Salone 2023 events in Via Tortona

Via Tortona is another area to keep an eye on in Milan for the Fuori Salone. It is located between the Navigli, Porta Genova and Via Solari. Initially, it was a rural area that was later transformed into an industrial area.

Its popularity began in the 1990s when fashion and design studios opened here. This made the area one of the main districts of the FuoriSalone in Milan.

Here is a list of some of the events that will take place in Via Tortona during Fuori Salone 2023:

• Tortona Design Week: an event involving various spaces in the Tortona district with exhibitions, installations and workshops;
• TCL ELEMENTS - TCL Green Horizon: an exhibition of sustainable art, design and technology with TCL;
• IKEA Assembling the Future Together: an exhibition of design and innovation with IKEA at the Visconti Pavilion;
• Materially Vivarium: an exhibition of innovative and sustainable materials with Materially at Vivarium;
• Tortona Rocks: a project exploring the challenges of the present and future through design at Opificio 31;
• Superdesign Show: an event featuring the latest design trends presented under the curatorship of Gisella Borioli and Giulio Cappellini at Superstudio Più.

Tortona Design Week was called precisely because of the large number of events you can find on this street.

The Fuori Salone 2023 events in Isola

In recent years, the Isola district has been transformed into a creative and innovative area, thanks to design studios and cultural spaces.

Let's take a look at the events in Isola during the FuoriSalone Design Week:

• Isola Design Festival: a physical and digital platform presenting over 40 exhibitions and installations, events and a series of talks with almost 300 international designers, design studios, creators and manufacturers;
• ID-exe | Design After Covid: an exhibition of design projects that respond to the challenges of the pandemic with innovative and sustainable solutions;
• Innovation for Living: an exhibition that investigates the interaction of advanced technologies with architecture and furnishing to give life to innovative solutions, at Via Barnaba Oriani 27;
• Behind The Impossible: Milan Engineering becomes BUROMILAN to exhibit its work at the Fonderia Napoleonica Eugenia.

The Isola Design Festival offers dozens of exhibitions, all focusing on innovation and technology, from which you can search for the ones that interest you most.

Other events at Fuori Salone 2023

At the Fuori Salone there are so many events for all tastes, and special guides are created online and even printed that bring them all together. Let’s take a look at more events that you should mark on your calendar:

• Alcova: an exhibition platform in the spaces of the Ex-Macello di Porta Vittoria with over 70 design projects;
• Design Variations: an exhibition at Palazzo Visconti and the Circolo Filologico with works by international designers and companies;
• Dropcity Convention: a programme of exhibitions, installations, conferences and talks in the Magazzini Raccordati spaces;
• Morel Design Week: an exhibition dedicated to sustainable design and the circular economy at Morel Lab;
• Paola Navone with "Take it or Leave it": an exhibition of recycled and reused objects at Opificio 31.

If you already have the good fortune to live in Milan, the hardest thing this week will be choosing which events to attend, as many are at the same time, and finding some time to rest.

Instead, if you have not yet found a flat to move into the city, consider DoveVivo's different and affordable options. All you have to do is plan your entertainment in perfect Design Week style.