ABITO: an exhibition in which fashion and design explore the transformation of society and the concept of living

At the Salone del Mobile.Milano, design also serves as a way of interpreting the times. It is within this context that ABITO – an exhibition organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and curated by Palomba Serafini Associati – is taking place, interweaving fashion and design to illustrate, through objects and garments, how society is changing and, with it, the way we live and inhabit our spaces.

Taking part in the Salone del Mobile.Milano forms part of an ongoing dialogue between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Salone, a progression that looks beyond national borders and recognises this platform as a hub for the dissemination of Italian design culture. From this perspective, the exhibition does not end at the Milan fairgrounds, but marks the beginning of a journey: a route that will take in Italy’s diplomatic and cultural network – Embassies, Consulates and Italian Cultural Institutes – taking the values, forms, gestures and visions of Italian design out into the world.

The title already contains a subtle tension: ‘abito’ meaning that which is worn, but also meaning a way of inhabiting the world. This ambivalence gives rise to a journey spanning the twentieth century to the present day, finding in the body and in space two surfaces upon which to tell a story. At its heart lies the evolution of the role of women, who, through changing clothing, evidence a deeper transformation: the conquest of movement, of public space, and of a new standing in the world. In parallel, domestic objects and environments are also transformed, adapting to new gestures, new freedoms and new ways of life.