During MDW26
20(MON)—26(SUN) April 2026
NOI MEN, the signature gateway of ZONA SARPI, reimagines the act of entering as a cultural threshold. The 2026 edition draws inspiration from the brick and stone portals of Shanghai and Milan, articulating a shared language of passage, exchange, and projection toward the future.
Since its debut in 2024, NOI MEN has evolved into a defining symbol of Sino-Italian cultural dialogue. As early as 2025, it had garnered sustained attention from Milan's media, art, and design circles, establishing itself as a compelling example of organic urban regeneration. This year, it is the result of a dialogue and collaboration among RPDC Design Week, Dontstop, and Zona Sarpi, which, by blending historical memory and contemporary expression, establishes a public visual language that is simultaneously rooted in the local territory and internationally legible, setting the tone for its continued expansion in 2026.
BY
Red Product Design Center (RPDC)
From 20(MON) April 2026
Rooted in ZONA SARPI, one of Milano Design Week’s official districts, The Flags unfold as a distributed visual system across the neighborhood. Structured around the “Six Better” themes—Better District, Better Mobility, Better Street, Better Connection, Better Entertainment, Better Network—they translate curatorial ideas into a spatial rhythm.More than signage, they operate as a subtle urban script—marking, guiding, and synchronizing the district into a cohesive yet evolving narrative.
BY
Red Product Design Center (RPDC), Zona Sarpi
From 20(MON) April 2026
During Milan Design Week 2026, ZONA SARPI presents a new chapter in its journey of dialogue between cultures: a visual and narrative project dedicated to Matteo Ricci, a historical figure symbolizing the encounter between Italy and China. The nearly 100-meter-long construction hoarding at the corner of Via Bramante and Via Sarpi becomes the opportunity for a civic intervention, an open space for storytelling, imagination, and exchange. Not a construction barrier, but a surface that invites you to pause, observe, and traverse a story that begins far away, among the hills of the Marche region, and unfolds all the way to the East, bringing viewpoints and teachings that remain extraordinary and relevant today.
Commissioned by
Regione Marche
Realized by
ZONA SARPI
Read full story here
Concept and curation:
Michele Brunello
Illustrations and texts:
Marco Grattarola
Graphic curation:
Elvira Zhao
Tommaso Boccaletti
During MDW26
20(MON)—26(SUN) April 2026
Window 01: Chateau DuFan (Via Paolo Sarpi 2)
Window 02: IPPO (Via Paolo Sarpi 1)
Window 03: Cantina Sarpi 1 (Via Paolo Sarpi 1)
Window 04: Foodie (Via Paolo Sarpi 4)
The 2026 edition of Windows of Sarpi collaborates with Red Design Week. Conceived as a street-facing display space, it showcases selected design practices and works from the Red Product Design Center (RPDC). This exhibition format has been part of Zona Sarpi since its first edition, proposing a novel way of presenting and experiencing design through storefront windows. By engaging directly with the urban landscape and the everyday life of Chinatown, the project respects the existing community ecosystem while weaving design into the district’s cultural and creative fabric
ORGANIZER
Red Product Design Center (RPDC)
New to the 2026 edition, the ZONA SARPI Info Point is conceived as a compact, multi-layered hub for an international audience during Milano Design Week. Both a point of orientation and a site of encounter, it anchors the district’s experience.
Featuring installations by Hu Yuehua and Ludovico Grantaliano, it also functions as the collection point for the district’s exploration program, as well as a lightweight multimedia center—where information, interaction, and narrative converge.
11:00 —18:00
20(MON)—26(SUN) April 2026
She draws on the layered embroidery of Shidong, Guizhou, translating its tactile “soft relief” into an abstract spatial language. By reconfiguring traditional motifs through scale, repetition, and geometry, the work reflects collective female knowledge and intergenerational transmission within Miao culture. Fingerprint of the Earth is a textile-based installation inspired by the Honghe terraces of Yunnan. Using reclaimed fabrics in black, red, and yellow, the artist reconstructs the rhythms of land and memory, echoing the relationship between ethnic communities and their environment.
ARTIST
Hu Yuehua
Grantaliano’s practice explores the threshold between design and the undesignable—elements that resist prediction, authorship, and formal control. Rather than being conceived through conventional design processes, these components are sourced from external, often natural contexts and introduced into the work as destabilizing yet generative agents.
ARTIST
Ludovico Grantaliano
NOI MEN, ZONA SARPI's signature gateway, reimagines the cultural threshold between Shanghai and Milan. Bridging history and future, it is a symbol of Sino-Italian dialogue.NOI—MEN GATE merges Milan’s Biscione Visconteo with the Chinese Dragon, symbolizing the bond between two cultures. Step through and explore this evolving artistic dialogue.
Public Installation
20(MON)—26(SUN) April
Via Sarpi, 1
20154 Milano (MI)
Rooted in ZONA SARPI, The Flags is a visual system based on the six "Better" themes. More than signage, they guide the district into an evolving urban
Public Installation
20(MON)—26(SUN) April
Along Via Sarpi
20154 Milano (MI)
Sarpi Wrap transforms a 100-meter hoarding into a visual journey. Discover the story of Matteo Ricci, a symbol of dialogue between Italy and China, traveling from the Marche region to the East.
Public Installation
From 20(MON) April
Via Sarpi, 13
—corner Via Bramante
20154 Milano (MI)
Windows of Sarpi 2026 collaborates with Red Design Week and RPDC. By showcasing design through storefronts, it seamlessly weaves creativity into Chinatown's daily life.
Public Installation
20(MON)-26(SUN) April
Via Paolo Sarpi 1
Via Paolo Sarpi 2
Via Paolo Sarpi 4
Milano (MI)
The new 2026 ZONA SARPI Info point is a hub for orientation and encounters. With art by Hu Yuehua and Grantaliano, it blends info, interaction and narratives.
oTTo
11:00–18:00,
20(MON) – 26(SUN) April
Via Sarpi, 8
Milano (MI)
Through Shidong embroidery and reclaimed fabrics, the artist translates Miao heritage into abstract spatial forms. Her work explores collective memory and the rhythm of the land.
oTTo
11:00–18:00,
20(MON) – 26(SUN) April
Via Sarpi, 8
Milano (MI)
Grantaliano explores the threshold between design and the “undesignable,” using natural elements that resist formal control as generative agents.
oTTo
11:00–18:00,
20(MON) – 26(SUN) April
Via Sarpi,
8Milano (MI)
Curated by RPDC & Frank Chou, this theatre explores design and civilization. It presents new Chinese designers, asking how design can unite humanity in turbulent times.From April 3-17, 2025, Circolo UltraFiorucci (Via Lomazzo 19) presents Lost and Found, an exhibition turning everyday objects into art and memory
20(MON) — 26(SUN) April 2026
Teatro del Borgo Milano
Via Giovanni Verga,
520154 Milano
Curated by RPDC Design Week & Ma Shirui, this exhibit uses books to bridge cultures. It shows how design transcends language, offering deep visual resonance across borders
20(MON) — 26(SUN) April 2026
Teatro del Borgo Milano
Via Giovanni Verga,
520154 Milano
Echoes 100 by RPDC Design Week asked 100 designers to create posters from urban views. They explore the city by visualizing the hidden, profound sensations of everyday life.
20(MON) — 26(SUN) April 2026
Teatro del Borgo Milano
Via Giovanni Verga,
520154 Milano
Galleria Luisa Delle Piane invites you to PLEASE COME IN for MDW26! Discover works by Finemateria, Locatelli-Zambernardi, Pellegrino, Tabet, Zaven, Zelli. Opening Apr 18, 6-10PM.
Centro Culturale Cinese
from 16:00
26(SUN) April
Via Paolo Sarpi 20,
Milano (MI)
Join our “WHY labs” with Il Club dei Bimbi di Quartiere! For the Year of the Horse, kids 3-6 (open to all) will turn the horse symbol (马) into creative drawings
Galleria Luisa Delle Piane
Opening
18:00 — 22:00,
18(SAT) April
Exhibition
10:30 — 20:00,
18(SAT) — 26(SUN) April
Via Giusti, 24, Milano (MI)
Design Group Italia, together with Ecopneus, The Playful Living, Panzini Secondary School, and the GPP Association, presents 4 new street games born from education and collaboration.
Public Presentation
10:30 — 12:00, 25(SAT) April
Exhibition
21(TUE) —26(SUN) April
Via Giovanni Verga , Milano (MI)
Tender Hunger reimagines hunger as a storyteller of desire and memory. It creates a tangible space to reflect on our relationship with food, nature, and finite resources
Sala Cisterne – Fabbrica del Vapore
22:00—05:00,
21(TUE) —25(SAT) April
Via Giulio Cesare Procaccini, 4, Milano (MI)
APICAIA and RUYIFANG present a Hanfu Fashion Show at Milan Design Week. Discover traditional Chinese clothing and Xiangyunsha fabric through a runway show and cultural salon.
Tempio del Futuro Perduto
Hanfu Fashion Show
17:00, 26(SUN) April
Hanfu Cultural Hall and Experiences
27(MON) April
Via Luigi Nono, 9/7, Milano (Mi)
Returning to Milan Design Week, Mindful Peace International shares Eastern culture and Chan aesthetics. Experience tea ceremonies,vegetarian cuisine and mindful activities to find true inner peace.
Tempio del Futuro Perduto
14:00—18:00,
26(SUN) April
Via Luigi Nono, 9/7, Milano (Mi)
CHOPSTICKS 箸 by S—3 connects East Asian design with globalideas. Curated by Yoko Choy, 16 creatives explore how traditionsevolve into globally relevant design languages.
10:00—19:00
21(TUE) — 25(SAT)
10:00—15:00
26(SUN)
Via Pietro Giannone 3,
Milano (MI)
Returning to Milan Design Week, we share Eastern culture and Chan aesthetics. Experience tea ceremonies, vegetarian cuisine and mindful activities to find true inner peace
15:00—17:00,
24(THU) April 2025
Registration +39 349 3912848 (Marco)
Via Privata Simone Schiaffino 25,
Milano (MI)
Monblari’s Milan debut uses water to inspire solo-living bathroom designs. We blend simplicity and luxury, transforming intimate spaces into a romantic dialogue with oneself.
10:00 — 22:00,
20(MON)—26(SUN) April
Piazzale Principessa Clotilde, 11, Milano (MI)
“Fòco. Living Notes” is the new interior project by Archiproducts Milano, curated by Studiopepe. A space of transformation, where fire is a generative force and the origin of the creative gesture.
15:00—19:00, 19(SUN) April
Opening
15:00—18:00,
20(MON) April
Exhibition
10:00—20:0,
21(TUE)—26(SUN) April
Via Tortona, 31, Milano (MI)
Celebrating 10 years of urban motor shows, the exhibit features 70+ brands, immersive videos of city parades, and classic cars highlighting design evolution.
Opening:
09:30, 20(MON) April
Public Exhibition:
09:00 – 19:00, 20 (MON) — 26(SUN) April
Via Tortona, 35, Milano (MI)
Explore “RÓNG: Craft as Knowledge,” showcasing Chinese traditions, the color red, and Gyantse Tibetan weaving. Includes live demos and the 2026 RÓNG Design Award.
SaloneSatellite 2026
Fiera Milano Rho, Pavilion 5/7, Stand E21
10:00—20:00,
21(TUE) —26(SUN) April
Strada Statale del Sempione 28
20017, Rho (Mi)
At SaloneSatellite 2026, designers draw from the ancient Liangzhu civilization. They use sustainable materials and digital craft to reinterpret Eastern aesthetics.Celebrating 10 years of urban motor shows, the exhibit features 70+ brands, immersive videos of city parades, and classic cars highlighting design evolution.
SaloneSatellite 2026
Fiera Milano Rho, Pavilion 5, Stand A02–A04
10:00—18:00,
21(TUE) —26(SUN) April
Strada Statale del Sempione 28
20017, Rho (Mi)
