The third day of Domus Design Week has two opposing yet complementary faces. Looking for excitement? At the Fuorisalone, you’ll find the best of the wow effect at Glo for Art, which transforms a sober neoclassical courtyard into a colourful work of pop art by Michela Picchi; in the courtyard of the Academy of Brera, transfigured by the reflections of Es Devlin's luminous library; in the “Design as a total experience” proposals of Capsule Plaza, dedicated this year to the theme of “Expanded Living”, and in the usual endless, exuberant kaleidoscope of projects on display at the Università degli Studi; and once again at Hermes, which invades the open space of the Pelota with fascinating volumes suspended in mid-air.

The Fuorisalone is also a place to rest. For a regenerating break, Domus went to Muji, which has installed a super-Japanese poster in a secret garden in Brera, and also to Porta Nuova to breathe clean air among the vegetation of "Vertical Connections". According to neurobiologist Stefano Mancuso, the installation's expert consultant, the city needs more trees, even during Design Week.

Over the course of his incredible career, Es Devlin has created the sets for Kanye West's legendary 2005 tour, Touch the Sky, as well as for The Weeknd, U2 and Billie Eilish; he has curated the staging for various theatres from the Royal Opera House to Broadway; he designed the UK pavilion at the Dubai Expo. Her collaboration with the Salone del Mobile is one of the most beautiful things you will see in Milan this year, not just at Design Week.

You will find it in the Brera building, the one that houses the Brera Art Gallery, the Academy of Fine Arts and the Braidense Library, in the large entrance cloister. Around the statue of Napoleone come Marte Pacificatore (Napoleon as Mars the Peacemaker), Devlin has created a large 18-metre rotating bookcase. Its mirrored surface by day reflects sunlight onto columns and statues that are usually dark. The books, 3,000 circa, are supplied by Feltrinelli, founded in Milan in 1954. The installation includes Cumberbatch's reading of Rovelli's The Order of Time and writings by mathematician and philosopher Maria Gaetana Agnesi, read by Devlin herself. A curiosity: the original of Canova's statue is kept in the UK, where Devlin was born, lives and works.

Design Week offers few, if any, certainties. That’s the beauty of it. Among the few safe bets, however, is Hermès at Pelota, a fixture for several years now. The Maison’s installations on Via Palermo have become a ritual for anyone passing through Milan during this time. With a few exceptions: last year’s “topographical” installation didn’t leave much of an impression, being less spectacular than expected. But this year’s presentation is truly breathtaking: Pelota has been transformed into a giant white box, with massive suspended shapes taking center stage. Archways and windows showcase some of the brand’s iconic furniture pieces: plates, vases, rugs.

The title is “What Makes the Object.” The concept is that in order to design an object, you need a box, “just like the sculptor’s block of marble,” as Hermès puts it. The Maison returns to the very roots of the creative act and freezes it in a stunning moment of explosion. The floor beneath remains pristine, untouched by any footprints. It is only colored by the lighting of the installation, which makes it appear like a small yet magnificent miracle, especially when compared to the careless designs we’ve seen recently – even from the most prestigious (and wealthiest) brands.

Capsule Plaza is back, with a few branches and the epicentre once again at Spazio Maiocchi, the symbolic location of an intellectual-cool Milan with which Domus has more than one thing to do. ‘Expect something different from last year,’ warns Paul Coumet, co-founder of Capsule. Then, he recalls the first Plaza, the one that in 2023 displayed only a large Formafantasma x Tacchini project.

This year's concept, says Cournet, is the creative approach of design in creating a space to live in. The result is a kind of “diffuse house” with furniture by Hem and No-ga (with Nm3's first wood project), the bathroom by Humanrace with Usm Haller, the kitchen by Finemateria with Elica, the listening room by Stone Island. There is also a store, exhibitions dedicated to plastic by XL Extralight and sustainable aluminium by Hydro, the beautiful installation on club culture by Pan x Nike across the street and the satellite venue in Piazza Risorgimento where the works of American designer Misha Kahn stand out. And much more, all to be discovered.

Now that Alcova has left Milan, the “other” Design Week is here: curated, intelligent and in step with the times.

Muji presents a highly urban, almost suburban installation at Design Week 2025. A garden, hidden behind the historic facades of Corso Garibaldi, hosts the home-manifesto conceived by the French duo 5:5 (Claire Renard and Jean-Sébastien Blanc). This small modular pavilion brings Japanese living culture to the heart of Milan, drawing inspiration from it to define the various spaces: the entrance (Genkan), designed to store guests’ shoes; a bathroom inspired by the traditional Ofuro bath; and a sleeping area with foldable mattresses on Tatami, to name just a few. Muji objects and products seamlessly complement the home, never intruding. The delicate stilted structure of the house sits next to an existing fountain in the garden, enhancing the meditative nature of the space. The structure, ça va sans dire, is made from recycled materials and is energy-efficient. 

Peering at the Velasca Tower (the real one) through a prism and living on the moon – these are the two surprises awaiting those who dare to venture into the now-iconic and joyful view that lands in the Filarete Courtyard at the Università degli Studi for Fuorisalone. These experiences come to life through two key installations: “Drifting Yào,” Wubin’s installation in collaboration with Empire, which transforms Yào – a character symbolizing light filtered by trees – into a dark wooden time tunnel punctuated by prisms, and “Design for the Moon,” an exhibition blending science and humanism, curated by NABA (Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti), with Claudio Larcher and Luca Poncellini, alongside The Design School at Arizona State University and the Astroterra collective.

“It’s a celebration!” said Ma Yansong of MAD Architects, describing his installation “The Amazing Plaza,” which transforms the Farmacia courtyard into an Italian piazza, with ribbons of ETFE radiating from a central pavilion. This is large-scale installation at its best, with Piero Lissoni’s sails for Sanlorenzo also standing out in the symmetrical 18th-century Cortile, alongside the giant 3D-printed arches in “Aevum” (Eternity) by Zaha Hadid Architects, which rethink the use of marble scraps.

City and nature, urban life and respect for the environment: oxymorons or necessary complements? This thought-provoking question is explored in the site-specific installation “Vertical Connection,” located in Piazza Gae Aulenti and designed by the studio Evastomper, curated by neurobiologist Stefano Mancuso. It is the standout feature of the Porta Nuova district for Fuorisalone 2025: a temporary structure made of simple pipes, entirely reversible, reusable, and fully covered in greenery. It is a symbolic representation of a greener, zero-impact future city that interacts with those who walk through it through digital AI technologies. A treat for gadget lovers and Design Week souvenirs: every visitor can take home a small plant.

“Hyper Portal,” the artwork created by Michela Picchi for glo for art at Milan Design Week 2025, contrasts strikingly with its historic setting. In the late neoclassical square courtyard of Via Moscova 18, bare and austere, Picchi introduces a flamboyant cube covered in sinuous fields of color inspired by pop art and surrealism.

The experience is immersive because the decoration extends onto the courtyard floor and reappears on its vertical surfaces, inside the windows. Even more immersive is the interior of the cube: mirrored ceiling, floors, and walls crisscrossed with interactive waves of color that respond to the visitors’ movements. It is an intimate and joyful space that invites “collaboration” with other guests to multiply variations and nuances.