Exhibitions
Children experience the world through imagination, and their rooms become the stages where stories take shape, where comfort turns into courage and every detail strengthens a sense of belonging. Designing for the youngest therefore means beginning from an emotional universe while also responding to the needs of parents who seek safety, durability and peace of mind
SaloneSatellite, ph. Ludovica Mangini
SaloneSatellite, scheduled from April 21 to 26, is choosing to put the spotlight back on craftsmanship as a driver of design: from manual gesture to innovation, spanning experimentation, new techniques and responsible design
In 2026, SaloneSatellite will again be a buzzing nucleus of vision and anticipation, a forge of ideas and a strategic hub for seeing where global design is heading. As part of the Salone del Mobile.Milano platform, the most eagerly awaited event for scoping new talent under 35, the 27th edition of SaloneSatellite will be back in Pavilions 5 and 7 at Rho Fiera Milano, curated by Marva Griffin Wilshire, founder of the event in 1998, and godmother and mentor of generations of young designers since then.
Craftsmanship to the fore in the 2026 theme
Craftsmanship + Innovation ― Skilled Craftsmanship + Innovation is the theme shaping the 2026 edition of SaloneSatellite. Not just a title, but a very specific cultural and design stance: one that recognises craftsmanship not as a nostalgic refuge of the past, but as a creative device capable of redefining the future. Craftsmanship is firmly back in the spotlight, at a time in history when new generations of designers – who have grown up among digital codes and artificial intelligence – are rediscovering the tactile, human and poetic power of "making by hand". SaloneSatellite captures this profound feeling, this need for rootedness, and turns it into a platform for concrete experimentation. Here, artisan "know-how" is no longer just a technique, but a language, vision, and cultural value, becoming an ally of innovation and giving shape to the urgencies, hopes and emerging needs of a new global generation of designers.
Communication Campaign Salone del Mobile.Milano 2026, “SaloneSatellite. Reimagining Matters”, Egg, @Alecio Ferrari, Stilema, Set-designer, Concept Motel409
Designers under 35, Design Schools and Universities from 39 different countries
The proposals from the over 700 young designers under 35, which also include undergraduate designers put forward by the 22 international Design Schools and Universities from 39 countries evidence a different, hybrid sort of craftsmanship, capable of dialoguing with technology and slotting into high-end production contexts, without losing its power of expression. The sort of craftsmanship that does not fear industry, but supports it as an ally, bringing uniqueness and authenticity to standardised processes, giving life to objects that carry with them the memory of the hands that fashioned them and a breath of the future.
The selected projects map out a new geography of values, combining circular economy, creative autonomy, cultural identity and the affectivity of objects. The "handmade" becomes a conscious practice that reintroduces natural materials, local techniques, regenerated waste, slow productions, i.e. care, dedication, emotion, intangible qualities, increasingly necessary today to reweave the bonds between objects and people.
Six higher education institutions are making their debut at SaloneSatellite. Among the Italian institutions are the Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara – School of Design and the Free Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. The international institutions include Toronto Metropolitan University from Canada and Japan’s Setsunan University. The participation of the Saudi Dar Al Uloom University and Prince Sultan University, meanwhile, marks an unprecedented collaboration that will take SaloneSatellite to Riyadh.
A dedicated exhibition
In this edition, the theme Skilled Craftsmanship + Innovation also plays out in a photographic exhibition that tells stories of hands, materials and creativity, in which every shot becomes a window onto a world of skilled gestures and contemporary insights. Each photograph will be accompanied by a description revealing the secrets of the materials, the techniques employed and the designers’ creative journeys. The protagonists of this exhibition come from a selection of countries across five continents – North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania – to present the most authentic and surprising expressions of craftsmanship, from the traditional to the most innovative, uniting memory, talent and the future.
Themed exhibition design
The entire exhibition design for SaloneSatellite 2026, by Ricardo Bello Dias with Hariadna Pinate as always, expresses the theme through colours and materials. It also includes 12 specially commissioned panels featuring tiles designed by Domenico Orefice, Alessandro Corina and Paolo Stella, and CALE Gambioli & Partners. Originally created as prototypes for the designers’ own respective debuts at the 2018, 2022 and 2023 editions, the ceramics were taken up by three different companies (Ceramiche Keope, Bosa, Ma.Vi. Ceramica) and put into production, subsequently entering the SaloneSatellite Permanent Collection as “dreams come true”. Presented today as a backdrop to the event, they express the connection between material, craftsmanship and design. The revisitation of Lombard terracotta and the Renaissance architectural styles of Orefice, to Corina’s exploration of nature, myth and movement, and the geometries of CALE Gambioli & Partners, inspired by the architecture of the Ducal Palace in Urbino, serve to fuel a dialogue between tradition and innovation capable of generating new expressive possibilities.
A Cedar of Lebanon egg: a symbol of rebirth and design
To celebrate the Reimagining Matters spin-off of the Salone's communication campaign, visitors to SaloneSatellite will be welcomed by an imposing installation: an egg made of Lebanese Cedar by the Artwood Academy, 140 centimetres high and 90 centimetres wide. The three-dimensional work represents the universal symbol of birth and renewal, becoming a metaphor for the new generation of design. This particular project is the protagonist of the campaign conceived by Motel409, with set design by Stilema Studio and photographs by Alecio Ferrari.
The SaloneSatellite Award: sensor of excellence and detector of the future
The SaloneSatellite Award: sensor of excellence and detector of the future Now in its 15th edition, the SaloneSatellite Award continues to stand out as one of the most forwardlooking platforms on the international design scene. Over the years, over 130 jurors have taken turns to affirm its authority, including curators, museum directors, designers, journalists and prominent entrepreneurs. Different voices, heterogeneous cultural sensitivities, yet all united by an extremely high level of critical competence and the ability to recognise potential where it is still hidden in embryonic form.
As Paola Antonelli, curator at MoMA and chair of the SaloneSatellite Award Jury since its very first edition, reminds us, the award doesn't simply celebrate well thought-out objects, it also captures a way of thinking, insight above market, research above industrial scale. It is a form of "collective imagination" that reveals what will be structural, not ephemeral. Young designers do not come up with simple solutions, rather radical and concrete visions, addressing issues such as the environment, equity, new economies and the relationships between people, industry and the planet.
The winning projects for the 2026 edition will be announced at 12.30 pm on Wednesday 22nd April 2026, during the Awards Ceremony in the SaloneSatellite Arena (Pavilion 7). In addition to the three main prizes, two Special Mentions will also be allocated, in collaboration with Róng Design Library, supported this year by the Beijing Contemporary Art Foundation. The award includes a one-month residency at China’s first library dedicated to craftsmanship and traditional materials, located in the Hangzhou district. Launched in 2019, this partnership has already enabled four young designers from SaloneSatellite to enjoy this experience.
Talks and meetings with designers
Make a note in your diary of the two events being held in the SaloneSatellite Arena on Thursday 23rd April. At 12.00pm, Where and How Does Good Design Come From will see Giampiero Bosoni, Full Professor of Interior Architecture and Exhibition Design at the Politecnico di Milano School of Design and School of Architecture, and Francesco Zurlo, Dean of the Politecnico di Milano School of Design, in conversation, sparking reflection on what design is today and what it will be tomorrow. At 3.00pm, Jean Blanchaert, Director of the Blanchaert Gallery, Alberto Cavalli, General Director of the Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d'Arte in Milan and General Curator of Homo Faber. Crafting a More Human Future and Alessandro Rametta, Sculptor and Master of Art at La Fucina di Efesto, be in conversation with SaloneSatellite 2026 designers, exploring their interest in the subject of craftsmanship
