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At Milan Design Week 2025, Italian designer Antonio Aricò returns with a trio of evocative exhibitions that reaffirm his signature poetic language—one rooted in Mediterranean nostalgia, symbolism and artisanal collaboration. Taking place across three unique venues in Milan, Italy from April 8 –13, 2025, the showcases—Olympo Garden: Ready to Fly, Vasi Mare for DoppiaFirma and Magna Graecia by Seletti—collectively explore Aricò's vision where design intersects with memory, nature and craft.
Olympo Garden: Ready to Fly
The first of Aricò's presentations at the design fair, Olympo Garden: Ready to Fly, opens at Bici & Radici, Via Nicola d’Apulia 2, Milan. The project marks the pilot phase of a broader initiative centred on decorative gypsum sculptures intended for both interior design and exterior spaces. These sculptural forms are developed using a new technique with alpha gypsum, offering a combination of strength and lightness—qualities well-suited to contemporary plasterwork applications.
The debut piece, Dafne, is the first of these sculptural designs embodying the narrative and symbolic depth typical of Aricò's work. The design exhibition also hints at an ongoing collaboration with a prestigious American art and design gallery, pointing to international recognition and cross-cultural exchange. Sponsored by EOL Spa, a global logistics provider, the showcase underscores a merging of art sensitivity with unique materiality.
Vasi Mare - DoppiaFirma
At the historic Villa Mozart (Via Mozart 9), Aricò presents Vasi Mare as part of DoppiaFirma, an initiative curated by the Cologni Foundation and Michelangelo Foundation for Homo Faber. The project pairs designers with master artisans to create unique works that blend tradition and creativity. Here, Aricò collaborates with ceramicist Elena Milani to craft Vasi Mare, a series of ceramic vases inspired by personal memories and Southern Italian art heritage. Reflecting on his childhood visit to Seminara in Aspromonte—where he received a bumbuleddu, a glazed earthenware container—Aricò revives the aesthetic of pop and folklore through contemporary ceramic forms.
"In the early years of my career, nature and simplicity had a profound influence on my vision [...] with Vasi Mare, I revisited these intimate memories," Aricò shares in the press note. This personal storytelling, grounded in material and memory, brings a lyrical dimension to DoppiaFirma's broader dialogue between ceramic design and craft.
Sole, Luna and Bajour - Magna Graecia
At Seletti's Milan store (Corso Garibaldi 117), Aricò reveals new additions to the Magna Graecia collection, designed for Seletti. The whimsical pieces include Sole and Luna—wall-mounted decorative faces inspired by iconic Southern Italian souvenirs. Evoking the joy and warmth of Mediterranean summers, the playful designs serve as symbols of light, celestial rhythm and domestic nostalgia. Also introduced is the Bajour Outdoor Lamp, a completely new typology within the collection. The lamp design embodies Aricò’s ethos of functional storytelling.
Together, these three events illustrate Aricò’s multidisciplinary approach—where art, design and craftsmanship converge into emotive objects and installations. Whether through plaster sculpture, ceramic collaboration, or lighting infused with mythological charm, Aricò continues to expand his world of symbolic design rooted in memory, identity and poetic materiality.
Keep up with STIR's coverage of Milan Design Week 2025, where we spotlight the most compelling exhibitions, presentations and installations from top studios, designers and brands. Dive into the highlights of Euroluce 2025 and explore all the design districts—Fuorisalone, 5Vie, Brera, Isola, Durini and beyond—alongside the faceted programme of Salone del Mobile.Milano this year.
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