Discussion, dialogue and inclusion will save the world

Once we’ve taken on board the fact that we live in transitory and unstable situations that call for constantly changing solutions, it becomes manifestly clear that it is only by discussing the present – jointly, blurring the lines between disciplines and looking ourselves squarely in the eye again – can we build a (hopefully) better future. This is the hope and the aim of the talks, lectures and conversations that will bring the six days of supersalone at the Rho Milan Fairgrounds alive. 

A programme put together by Maria Cristina Didero will focus on the great contemporary issues with which design, art, architecture, education, gender, the circular economy, environmental impact, the relationship between project and curation and much more besides have to contend. These debates will fuel the imagination, heart and mind with words – well-informed words, obviously – that will help us reflect on the fragility of our planet and on how creativity, research, knowledge and inclusion can enable us to overcome this difficult period in history.

In the stunning setting of the arenas, one in each pavilion, the Open Talks will allow the masters of today and tomorrow to have their say. The general public will have an opportunity to meet not just internationally renowned architects and designers, but also artists, chefs, intellectuals, politicians and businesspeople, who will discuss their own experiences in a multidisciplinary, holistic and kaleidoscopic approach. They include many illustrious names: from Humberto Campana to Bjarke Ingels, Hans Ulrich Obrist to Carsten Höller, Alejandro Aravena to Michele de Lucchi, Beatriz Colomina to Cecilia Alemani, Formafantasma to Philippe Malouin, Cristina Bowerman to Davide Oldani.

On the sidelines, our partnership with the Milano Design Film Festival means that a series of explorations, biopics and docufilms will be screened each day, providing an in-depth, crosscutting look at design, architecture and their current social and environmental implications. Five films are scheduled, all of them wonderful, powerful and collectively important: Newmuseum(s). Stories of Company Archives and Museums by Francesca Molteni; Tokyo Ride by Ila Bêka and Louise Lemoine; Paradigma Olivetti by Davide Maffei; Precise Poetry. Lina Bo Bardi’s Architecture by Belinda Rukschcio; Honeyland by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov. All unmissable films for anyone involved with design that is radical and bold both in terms of its use of spaces and their narration of what working in this field actually means. It’s a line-up that cannot fail to appeal to the entire design community.

The aim of the supersalone Open Talks is to promote inclusivity, bringing together the most innovative and brilliant minds and ideas of local and global thinkers, because it is precisely through sharing and dialogue that solutions with the power to change people’s lives and the way they relate to each other and with the planet can be found. In order to spread the message as widely as possible, the Salone del Mobile.Milano digital platform will provide an opportunity for people far and wide to attend the events virtually, building an archive of stories and experiences that will remain online for consultation.

Further information and details of the complete programme of Open Talks, the exhibitions and the film shows, can all be found online in the Events section