BASE Milano 2026: Hello Darkness, design explores what remains unseen

BASE Milano presents We Will Design 2026 – HELLO DARKNESS, the initiative that, during Milan Design Week, brings to the public the research trajectories developed throughout the year by the institution’s design platform. For 2026, the theme proposes a reflection on contemporary darkness, understood not as a mere absence of light or a condition of crisis, but as a space of possibility and a field for regeneration. This approach aligns with the broader context of Fuorisalone 2026, which, under the theme “Being the Project”, invites audiences to consider design not as a finished form but as a dynamic process of transformation and a system of relationships between thought, matter, culture and emerging forms of intelligence.

During Design Week, the former Ansaldo spaces of BASE take shape as a project ecosystem where immersive installations, biodesign practices, open studios, public encounters and performative activities intersect with the specific research directions of We Will Design. Among the key interventions is IDIORYTHMIA – RE-U construction system by the French studio Smarin, developed in collaboration with Emanuele Quinz. Conceived as a system of reversible furniture, the project investigates the relationship between posture, breathing and biological rhythms, situating itself within a framework of circular economy and hospitality that reflects BASE’s vocation as a site for collective research and exchange.
In parallel, casaBASE becomes a hybrid device combining residence, laboratory and exhibition space through the project Temporary Home, hosting temporary studios and research initiatives that range from speculative design to sensory and biological practices, including projects supported by the British Council and investigations into cultural memory, biology and body–environment interfaces.

At the centre of BASE’s programme is Exhibit, the collective exhibition that for 2026 brings together more than 80 designers from 23 countries, selected through an international open call and accompanied by curators and ambassadors engaged in experimental design and technological research. The exhibition frames design as a critical and transformative practice, presenting works that span biodesign, speculative ecologies, open-source technologies, social design and emerging collective rituals, reflecting Fuorisalone’s perspective of the project as an evolving condition rather than a fixed outcome. Alongside the exhibition programme, BASE expands its public dimension through a series of talks, conversations and a music programme developed in collaboration with platforms such as Frakas and Le Cannibale, reinforcing the venue’s role as a point of convergence between design research, performance and contemporary culture.

Within this constellation of practices and languages, We Will Design 2026 operates not only as an exhibition format but as a temporary cultural infrastructure connecting research processes, critical discourse, international collaborations and emerging design practices. BASE’s programme offers visitors an opportunity to observe how contemporary design articulates processes, relationships and alternative visions, embodying the complexity and dynamic nature of the project in its broadest sense.