The city of Milan is preparing to consolidate its role as the international center of gravity for design through a major new expansion of theADI Design Museum. On the morning of April 15, 2026, an agreement was officially signed between the Lombardy Region and the Fondazione ADI Collezione Compasso d’Oro for the creation of Spazio Gio Ponti, a permanent exhibition space entirely dedicated to one of the most influential and multifaceted figures of the Italian 20th century. The agreement, which sanctions the operational start of the project, includes a joint financing plan worth a total of about two million euros, one million of which will be allocated directly by the regional body.
The signing ceremony was attended by prominent figures from the institutional and cultural scene, including regional councillor for culture Francesca Caruso, ADI Foundation president Umberto Cabini, ADI president Luciano Galimberti and the Honorable Federico Mollicone, chairman of the Chamber’s Culture Commission, along with design engineer Maurizio Milan and museum director Andrea Cancellato.
The architectural intervention takes the form of a volumetric and functional expansion of the existing structure, creating an additional area of between 650 and 700 square meters. The project, curated by Maurizio Milan, focuses on a construction strategy marked by sustainability and speed of execution, envisaging the inclusion of a structural mezzanine made of steel and wood. This solution was designed to integrate harmoniously with the museum’s industrial identity, while providing the flexibility to accommodate different types of activities.
It will in fact be an integrated system that will include permanent sections, rotating thematic exhibitions, in-depth activities and educational workshops specifically designed for new generations and families. Construction work will begin in the summer of 2026 and, according to the established timetable, should be completed by December of the same year.
The scientific rigor of the operation is guaranteed by the choice of professionals involved in defining the interior and content. The layout will be curated by architect Matteo Vercelloni, while the scientific responsibility for the project has been entrusted to Fulvio Irace, an architectural historian and one of the leading experts on Ponti’s work. Irace’s curatorial approach aims to go beyond the purely celebratory or anthological dimension, proposing instead a critical rereading that highlights the complexity and topicality of Gio Ponti’s thought. The stated goal is to transform the space into a dynamic cultural laboratory, capable of making the precious Historical Collection of the Compasso d’Oro dialogue with the challenges and instances of contemporary design. The figure of Ponti, moreover, is celebrated here not only as the author of icons of Made in Italy, but as a system architect, theorist and communicator who was able to prefigure the modern Italian design industry.
The initiative is part of a phase of strong expansion for the ADI Design Museum, which has seen its cultural impact grow steadily since its opening in 2021. Figures for 2025 confirm this positive trend, with more than 125,000 visitors and a busy schedule of activities that has seen the production of twelve exhibitions on the national territory and seven traveling exhibitions distributed in twenty-one international stops. In this context, Spazio Gio Ponti represents the natural evolution of a museological path that understands design as a system of values that is still active and capable of generating innovation.
The public-private partnership, with the Association and the ADI Foundation covering the remaining 50 percent of the investment, testifies to the validity of a management model that focuses on the protection of historical heritage as a lever for economic and cultural development.
Moreover, the link between Ponti and the institution is inseparable, as he was one of the founders of ADI and the creator of the Compasso d’Oro Award, which celebrates its 29th edition this year. The space dedicated to him therefore aims to explore the methodological principles that have made Italian design a global reference. To ensure the active involvement of the scientific and production community, a public seminar is planned in September 2026, with the participation of institutions, companies and the Ponti Archive, aimed at collectively defining the contents and directions of the research that the new pole will pursue. The project also assumes strategic importance in the context of the National Made in Italy Day, in order to strengthen the perception of design as a primary cultural asset and an indispensable tool for interpreting the transformations of modern society.
“Starting with Gio Ponti was a natural choice: a figure who knew how to interpret design as a synthesis of industry, culture, society and communication, anticipating a vision of the supply chain that remains central to the Italian system today,” stressed ADI Foundation President Umberto Cabini.
“With this intervention,” said Councillor Francesca Caruso,“ we strengthen the cultural offerings of the area and pay tribute to a symbolic figure such as Gio Ponti, creating a stable place of confrontation capable of recounting his topicality.”
“We do not want to create a celebratory space,” Luciano Galimberti stressed, “but an active environment, inspired by Gio Ponti’s reformist principles, open and accessible. That is why it will be a free space, designed for everyone.”
“The agreement between the Lombardy Region and the ADI Foundation consolidates a virtuous path of collaboration between institutions, strengthening the role of design as a cultural and productive lever,” says the Honorable Federico Mollicone. “Thanks to this agreement, the figure of Gio Ponti will continue to inspire new generations of designers, planners and businesses.”
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| ADI Design Museum: the Gio Ponti Space is born. Convention signed with the Lombardy Region |
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