Following the successful launch of the last edition of xLux – the section devoted to timeless luxury reworked in a contemporary vein – the Salone Internazionale del Mobile has brought in an innovative format for classic furniture and furnishing accessories, in Pavilions 2 and 4, under a new name, Classic: Tradition in the future, and with a more homogeneous, balanced and fluid layout. A central “promenade” takes visitors into a space that draws on values such as patrimony of knowledge, craftsmanship and the skills needed to create classic furniture and objects. The exhibition will also feature the theatre and one room from the successful Before Design: Classic project presented at the last edition of the Salone del Mobile.Milano, along with the short film by multi-award winning director Matteo Garrone.

SaloneSatellite, in Pavilions 22 and 24, with free public entry from Cargo 5, is an unmissable event. It brings together a selection of young designers from 5 continents with entrepreneurs, architects, interior designers and the press. The theme of the 20th edition is “Design is …?”, an open, topical and crucial question. The 20 years of SaloneSatellite will be celebrated with the SaloneSatellite 20 Years Collection – a special edition of bespoke pieces designed by international designers whose careers took off at SaloneSatellite – and with “SaloneSatellite. 20 Years of New Creativity”, a large exhibition curated by Beppe Finessi at the Fabbrica del Vapore: an anthology of pieces presented during the twenty editions of SaloneSatellite as prototypes, which then went into production, marketed by prestigious, large-scale companies and other key manufacturers. This year also marks the 8th edition of the SaloneSatellite Award.

Alongside the purely commercial exhibitions, the fair will feature two events, at the fairgrounds, tying in with the two biennial themes, light and the workplace. The first, “DeLightFuL”, a portmanteau for “Design, Light, Future, Living”, is curated by Ciarmoli Queda Studio, which produced Before Design: Classic for the last edition of the Salone del Mobile.Milano, and will feature a short fantasy film d’auteur by multi-award winning director Matteo Garrone.

The second event, “A Joyful Sense at Work”, curated by Cristiana Cutrona, is a visualisation of the evolving workplace scenario of the future, using innovative content to recast the theory of office product and workplace design with four installations, each representative of the cultural characteristics of the international architects’ areas of provenance. America, Asia and Europe will be produced by Primo Orpilla and Verda Alexander/Studio O+A (United States), Arash Ahmadi/Ahmadi Studio (Iran), Ben van Berkel/UNStudio and Jeff Povlo/SCAPE (Holland) and Alfonso Femia and Gianluca Peluffo/Studio 5+1AA (Italy).

Back for a second edition, space&interiors, the only other event officially connected with the Salone del Mobile.Milano, puts the spotlight on architectural finishes. Curated by Migliore+Servetto Architects, the exhibit will showcase interior surfaces, floors, doors and finishes at The Mall – Porta Nuova, in Milan’s Brera Design District from 4 April to 8 April 2017. A lounge area will be completely turned over to Archicocktails: various figures from the design and architectural world will discuss design and execution trends with visitors. The exhibition “Absolute Lightness” will round off the 2017 edition, harnessing an innovative interactive and digital display to underline the value of finishes in contemporary architecture.