Redesigning Design Weeks — CIVICITYRedesigning Design Weeks — CIVICITY

Design weeks around the world have become key events where designers, companies and visitors can meet and exchange ideas, expertise and ambitions. But with such events increasingly contributing to local pollution, rising living costs, housing crises, social inequality and over-tourism, the current design-week model is unsustainable.

At Milan Design Week 2026, Nieuwe Instituut, cheFare and curators Collective Works present the project's ongoing progress at Villa Mirabello and BASE Milano. Last year’s resident designers Pete Fung and Studio Method present their work, while a new cycle begins with new resident designers Demo- practice and Ned Kaar.

Studio Method (Riel Bessai and Pedro Daniel Pantaleone) supported residents in the Adriano neighbourhood with their Arrotino del Design cart, focusing on the repair and reuse of everyday items. Pete Fung developed the Pizzeria of Promises — a mobile pizza oven in Chiaravalle with undocumented minors, creating a meeting place for conversations about expectations, disappointments and agency.

Alongside them, the second cycle of resident designers, Demo- practice and Ned Kaar, share their initial findings, having just begun their residencies at two new locations: Barrio’s in the Barona district and Fondazione Abitiamo in the Niguarda district.

On view at Villa Mirabello (21 to 23 April) and BASE Milano (24 April), with a public talk on 22 April from 15:00-17:00.

Rooted in the Latin civis, meaning citizen, CIVICITY emphasises the connections between people, place, and participation. Through yearly cycles of residencies in Milan, resident designers immerse themselves in the city's urban, social, environmental and cultural ecosystems over the course of two months. CIVICITY was made possible with the support of the Embassy and Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Italy.

In partnership with the Embassy and Consulate-General of the Netherlands in Italy and Milan-based cheFare, the Nieuwe Instituut launched Redesigning Design Weeks, a multi-year residency programme inviting Netherlands-based designers to critically examine the sustainability challenges of design weeks and to rethink existing practices. Using Milan Design Week as a case study, the initiative builds on other Nieuwe Instituut projects, such as New Store and Redesigning the Designer, that aim to challenge existing structures and test alternatives in the real world.

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