01
La Marzocco · Accademia del Caffè Espresso
coffee portrAIts
La Marzocco’s center for coffee research and education reimagined daily rituals with Coffee PortrAIts, an experimental format where technology and craftsmanship lit each other up.
in real life · case study · milan design week 2026
room for
room for
dreams.
a designboom takeover of the Aldo Rossi–designed ME Milan Il Duca. seven days, one temporary ecosystem of ideas: installations, a cinema, six talks and two nights of music.
april 20–26, 2026 · ME Milan Il Duca, Milan
il sonno · SolidNature × OMA/AMO
the takeover
what if our dreams were blueprints?
we often dream in hotels: jet-lagged, between time zones, held in temporary comfort. Room for Dreams explored that in-between state as a tool for cultural change.
architects, designers, cultural institutions and brand partners took over the hotel in the heart of the city. across installations, a dedicated cinema, live talks and social encounters, the week became a living manifesto for utopian optimism, creative courage and the power of imagination.
impact
seven days in Milan. here’s the reach.
4.1M+
estimated & organic views
7M+
combined third-party follower reach
125K+
total engagements
200+
pieces & posts across earned, owned & social
6
countries with press coverage
on site, over seven days
3.1K
visitors
120
film screenings
6
talks & panels
2
VIP & community nights
installations & experiences
six partners, six worlds.
02
SolidNature × OMA/AMO
il sonno
in the hotel’s open-air garden, SolidNature and Samir Bantal’s team at AMO/OMA built a large-scale installation that turns stone into a speculative medium: a supermarket of carved stone groceries.
read the story
03
Ressence
a portal of horological wonder
Ressence challenged the linear idea of time with an installation showing some of the brand’s most notable watches, unique pieces and rarely seen components.
04
OPPO · Find X9 Ultra
seeing further
a short film captured entirely on OPPO’s new flagship, made with designboom lab and released during the week.
see the OPPO case
05
INDX | Global
11 one-hour podcasts
INDX | Global brought together some of India’s most influential architects and designers to talk about the visions behind their work. every episode is published on YouTube.
watch the first podcast
06
Topologie
a goodie bag worth keeping
Topologie’s Konbini Bag with a custom Room for Dreams print, filled with goodies from our partners. only 300 were made, and they went fast.
cinema of dreams
read the interview with Paf atelier
part installation, part screening room.
below ground, Paf atelier turned the hotel’s basement into a cinematic time capsule: a calm detour from the city’s pace during Milan’s most intense week.
a curated daily program of films invited visitors to explore where imagination meets emerging reality, framed by our lens of utopian optimism.
talks
all talks & films on youtube six conversations on dreaming.
moderated by designboom’s editors. book a designboom talk →
- 01watch
utopia as method: when the conscious mind dares to dream
Philippe Starck
- 02watch
temporary dreamscapes: immersive realities as prototypes for alternate futures
Christopher Dessus (Paf atelier) · Samir Bantal (OMA/AMO) · Paul Kelly (La Marzocco) · David Mahyari (SolidNature)
- 03watch
design intuition: when creativity emerges from the subconscious
Giovanni Moro (Unimatic) · Benoît Mintiens (Ressence) · Mårten Claesson (Claesson Koivisto Rune)
- 04watch
emotional carriers: what do non-human entities dream about?
Lonneke Gordijn (DRIFT)
- 05watch
dream projections: designing the future before it arrives
Carlo Ratti (Carlo Ratti Associati) · Stefano Boeri (Stefano Boeri Architetti) · Ma Yansong (MAD)
- 06watch
digital dreams: finding beauty through the lens
Simon Liu (OPPO)
voices
the people in the room.
Philippe Starckdesigner
Lonneke GordijnStudio DRIFT
Ma YansongMAD Architects
Carlo RattiCarlo Ratti Associati
Stefano BoeriStefano Boeri Architetti
Samir BantalOMA / AMO
David MahyariSolidNature
Christopher DessusPaf atelier
Paul KellyLa Marzocco
Benoît MintiensRessence
Simon LiuOPPO
Mårten ClaessonClaesson Koivisto Rune
gatherings
two nights of music for dreams.
a special event for our friends, supporters and community. with local DJs, we turned the installations into the set for two nights to remember.
a full week of editorial & social
boots on the ground, all week.
designboom didn’t just host Room for Dreams. we were commissioned to document partner projects, host panel talks in brand showrooms and explore the city’s hidden gems. the coverage reached well beyond Milan, across earned, owned and social channels.
press & media coverage
picked up by leading titles covering Milan Design Week.
partners
SolidNature · Paf atelier · Ressence · La Marzocco · OPPO · INDX | Global · Topologie
cinema partners
Louisiana Channel · 9sekunden · Bêka & Lemoine · Beatrice Minger & Christoph Schaub, and more
