Milan Design Week 2026 – What to see at 5VIE’s ‘Cavallerizze’ Venue

Milan Design Week 2026 – What to see at 5VIE’s “Cavallerizze” Venue

The 5VIE district draws inspiration from the work of contemporary philosopher David Chalmers for this year’s Milan Design Week. QoT – Qualia of Things, the title of the 2026 edition, turns the spotlight on the qualitative and subjective aspects of conscious sensory experience—those individual “sensations” that cannot be described through measurable data.
5VIE thus proposes an alternative to one of the most popular themes of recent years—the Internet of Things—and to the emphasis placed on networking physical objects and on the power of connectivity required to manage vast amounts of data.
Since its foundation, the 5VIE district has made authorial design and the hybridization of art and design its defining traits. With this year’s theme, it reaffirms its vision, underscoring “the urgency of safeguarding the human dimension of feeling.” By stating that the qualities of objects—their form, color, material texture, sound—activate different qualia in each individual, we affirm that every object holds value above all for its ability to evoke emotions, to summon other landscapes, images, memories, and to generate ever‑changing vibrations, because the relationship that emerges between the object, its creator, and its user is always unique.

Cover image: General view of the In-Between Matter installation by Shimadzu x we+  Cavallerizze on via Olona. Photo Inexhibit 2026

5VIE Productions for MDW — 20–26 April 2026

Now in its 13th edition, 5VIE presents ten new productions alongside exhibitions by designers, independent studios, and companies. These will be showcased across the district’s three main hubs – Cavallerizze on Via Olona 4; Via Cesare Correnti 14; and SIAM on Via Santa Marta – as well as throughout the surrounding streets that define the area.

What to see at the Cavallerizze on via Olona 

The 5VIE district. Entrance to the Cavallerizze on via Olona. Photo Inexhibit, 2026

The 5VIE district, Cavallerizze on Via Olona. Overview and details of the exhibition “From Flat” by Japanese designer Ryota Yokozeki. “From Flat” showcases the results of research focused on creating three-dimensional objects, such as lamps, containers, partition walls, and tools from flat shapes. Photo Inexhibit 2026

Noe Kuremoto’s Jomon – A Mother’s Anthem
At the Cavallerizze on Via Olona, Japanese ceramic artist Noe Kuremoto presents a new exhibition conceived as a love letter to mothers, a celebration of the complexity of motherhood.
The show features Kuremoto’s latest stoneware creations, envisioned as contemporary reinterpretations of some of the oldest known ceramics, dating back to the Jōmon period (14,000–300 BCE). Traditionally, these vessels were used in both domestic and ritual contexts and were often regarded as protective objects. Kuremoto’s elegant works are reimagined as talismans and tributes—homages to the everyday moments of light and shadow that, together, shape a life.

5VIE district, Cavallerizze on via Olona. Installation by ceramist Noe Kuremoto 

Elizabeth Lewis – Cosmic Meadow
For Milan Design Week 2026, SWING Design Gallery presents Cosmic Meadow, an installation by Australian ceramic artist Elizabeth Lewis, hosted within 5VIE.
This collection of handcrafted ceramics reflects on the surrealism of biomorphic forms found in ancient sculpture and architecture. Inspired by the animal world and mythology, the vases and wall pieces draw from natural processes of decay and calcification, giving shape to works that feel both primordial and otherworldly.

5VIE district, Cavallerizze on Via Olona, Elizabeth Lewis, “Cosmic Meadow”, detail.
Photo Inexhibit 2026

5VIE district, Cavallerizze on Via Olona. Elizabeth Lewis, Thorny vase.
Courtesy of Swing Design Gallery

Studio mo man tai – Re-campaign
Re-campaign is a travelling chromatic installation marking the entrance to the Cavallerizze.
The Eindhoven-based duo transforms large-scale advertising banners – some originally measuring up to 18 × 46 meters – into fifteen vibrant textile portals.
Once used to cover urban façades and convey commercial messages, these high‑resistance prints are cut, recomposed, and reassembled to create an immersive passageway.

5VIE district, Cavallerizze on via Olona, mo man tai, ” Re-campaign”. Photo Inexhibit 2026

Sara Ricciardi – Alma Water. The Sea Room
Alma Water is an immersive installation that transports us into the liquid heart of Sardinia.
The space is animated by the continuous movement of large silk bellies. Suspended and stirred by breaths of air, the fabrics ripple like a marine surface, generating a fluid, enveloping choreography. Within the context of Milan Design Week 2026, the Sea Room becomes a space for pause and immersion, where sound becomes a communal gesture.
A water‑dance dedicated to Sardinia, in which the sea is not only observed: it is listened to, crossed, and created together.

5VIE district, Cavallerizze on Via Olona, Sara Ricciardi “Alma Water, The Sea Room”
Photo Inexhibit 2026

5VIE district, Cavallerizze on Via Olona, Armand Louis and Roberto Beltrami, detail from the installation “Necessary Instability.” Photo Inexhibit 2026