Tortona Rocks returns to Milan Design Week “Design to Change Everything” reinterprets the present through design
Tortona Rocks returns and, at its eleventh edition, reaffirms itself as one of the most relevant hotspots of Milan Design Week, where design ceases to be form and becomes a statement. The 2026 theme, Design to Change Everything, is a declaration: in an unstable present, marked by crises and contradictions, design becomes a window onto the present and a critical tool, capable of generating alternative scenarios and redefining the way we interpret the contemporary.
Media partner of Tortona Rocks is nss magazine, which for the occasion will distribute in these spaces the new free press Edicola Italiana. The Tortona district, between industrial architectures and repurposed spaces, takes shape in a constantly evolving landscape.
At the core is Opificio 31, where immersive installations and international collaborations build a layered narrative. Among the names, IQOS together with Devialet presents Soundsorial Design: a sensory environment in constant evolution, recording and transforming audience interactions into sound and memory, expanding over time like a living archive. Archiproducts Milano closes its cycle dedicated to the elements with Fòco, living notes by Studiopepe, an interior built on contrasts and material tensions that translates fire into spatial language.
Pop culture enters the circuit with McDonald's with POOL Unlock a Memory, a project curated by Nicolas Ballario: between a ball pit, an AI-based time machine and references to contemporary art, from Damien Hirst to Vedovamazzei, memory is constructed as an immersive and generational experience. With Swatch AI-DADA, the archive becomes a creative tool: artificial intelligence reworks over forty years of design, transforming them into new models generated in real time. On the industrial front, Italdesign brings its end-to-end vision of design, from automotive to robotics, with highlights such as the Honda NSX Tribute.
Within this context, Opificio 31 takes shape as an open laboratory. It moves from Paola Navone’s reflection on time and objects with All’Origine Boutique, to the hyper-pop and material aesthetic of Candyslab with Wild Experience, and to REBEL by Hans Boodt Mannequins, which transforms the mannequin into an expressive presence. Fire becomes a design material also with Planika, which presents contemporary fireplaces with a strong visual impact, while Foroo redefines the kitchen as a modular system between craftsmanship and chromatic research.
On the automotive side, Zeekr with The Art of Connection stages the creative process behind the Zeekr 7GT, through models, prototypes and immersive installations. Design becomes a collective process with Designed by Who?, a project curated by uau studio that transforms the space into a participatory laboratory, where the public contributes in real time to the construction of the project. The route expands across via Tortona, Savona and Bergognone: Bud Brand overturns perception with objects suspended beyond the line of sight, Maisons du Monde creates emotional environments with Moments of Joy, inspired by distant landscapes, while Haier with Inside the Experience brings technology into domestic space, making it increasingly invisible, integrated and relational.
Tortona Rocks 2026 works like this: no isolated objects, but processes, systems and interactions. Design is no longer just aesthetics, but also a cultural infrastructure. And above all, it remains one of the few tools we have to truly try to change things.
