Soho House Milan
Opening: Late 2028
Location: Former Cinema Arti, Via Pietro Mascagni, Milan
Inside the House: Members' Club, panoramic rooftop terrace, Soho Health Club, rooftop swimming pool, more than 50 guest rooms and a curated collection of artworks by artists born, based or educated in Milan.
Years of delays, a change of address and a city transformed along the way have reshaped the meaning of Soho House's arrival. By the time the London-born members' club opens inside the former Cinema Arti, it will be joining one of Europe's most established creative ecosystems.
Some buildings seem to spend years waiting for the right project. Not because they remain inactive, but because they continue to acquire new meanings through temporary occupations, changing identities and unrealised plans until the right idea finally arrives.
Milan's former Cinema Arti belongs to that category. Built in the 1930s as one of the city's finest examples of rationalist architecture, later remembered by generations of Milanese families as the beloved Cinema Arti – Casa Disney and left dormant for more than two decades, it is now preparing for a new chapter as Soho House confirms its Milan opening for late 2028.
Designed between 1934 and 1935 by architect Mario Cereghini, the complex originally served as the headquarters of the Opera Nazionale Balilla and remains an important example of Italian rationalism. Reinforced concrete, brick façades, marble-clad loggias, porthole windows inspired by ocean liners, glass-block walls and the remarkable cantilevered canopy engineered by Giorgio Baroni—later cited as an inspiration for the iconic canopy of the Pirelli Tower—reflect an optimistic vision of modern architecture. Damaged during the bombings of 1943, the building was rebuilt after the war before becoming Cinema Arti in 1977, eventually earning a special place in Milanese collective memory through decades of Disney screenings that introduced generations of children to the cinema.
Even during the years when its future remained uncertain, the building never completely disappeared from the city's cultural life. Milan Design Week repeatedly brought it back into the spotlight, turning it into one of the Fuorisalone's most memorable temporary venues. Tom Dixon reimagined the space with The Cinema in 2015, COS invited Sou Fujimoto to create Forest of Light the following year, and in 2019 Dimorestudio unveiled Interstellar, introducing the first Dimoremilano collection inside the former cinema.
For a few days every April, Cinema Arti became a destination once again, demonstrating how architecture can continue to build cultural value even while waiting for its next permanent use.
This history helps explain why the building feels like such a natural home for Soho House. Long before construction began, Cinema Arti had already established itself within the international design community as a place where architecture, creativity and cultural exchange could come together.
Soho House is therefore inheriting much more than a remarkable rationalist building; it is taking over a place that has already proved its ability to bring creative communities together.
Cinema Arti Milan (courtesy Soho house)
The road to Milan has nevertheless been far from straightforward. The city was originally intended to become Soho House's first Italian destination, but finding a location capable of reflecting the brand's identity proved more challenging than expected. Rome opened first while the search continued, and by the time Cinema Arti emerged as the definitive choice, Milan itself had evolved considerably.
During those same years the city strengthened its position as one of Europe's leading creative hubs. International hospitality expanded, private members' clubs multiplied and a growing network of hybrid destinations blurred the boundaries between hotels, workplaces, cultural venues and social spaces.
Portrait Milano, Casa Cipriani and many other projects have helped redefine urban hospitality, while Milan's creative economy has become increasingly international throughout the year, extending far beyond the annual intensity of Design Week.
Cinema Arti Milan (courtesy Soho house)
That transformation also changes the meaning of Soho House's arrival. Since its foundation in London in 1995, the brand has never simply offered accommodation. Its ambition has always been to build a global network of creative professionals by creating places where ideas, conversations and collaborations emerge naturally. Milan already possesses many of the conditions that made this model successful elsewhere. The challenge now is not to introduce something unfamiliar, but to become part of a mature ecosystem that continues to evolve.
When Soho House finally opens its doors in 2028, it will be joining a city whose creative community has long since found its own identity. For almost twenty-five years the Fuorisalone has connected designers, companies, institutions and creative professionals from around the world, helping position Milan among Europe's leading capitals of contemporary design culture.
Soho House's long journey ultimately tells a story that extends well beyond the opening of a new members' club. It marks the meeting point between a global brand and a city that, over the same years, has transformed itself into one of the continent's most dynamic platforms for creativity, culture and collaboration.
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