As Milan Design Week 2026 approaches, and in anticipation of the collaborative opening event between industrialkonzept & DEORON, a new tension in the contemporary world of design is becoming increasingly evident: that of promoting independent voices, creating space for hybridization, and freeing oneself from the display logic in favor of more authentic, shared, and participatory experiences. In a world often ruled by large-scale productions and industrial dynamics, a new sensitivity is emerging—one based on research, slowness, and intentionality. It is within this context that DEORON returns: an independent curatorial project that, in its second edition at Design Week, presents an expanded and more radical evolution of its original vision, brought to life through this shared moment with industrialkonzept.  

"What guides us is a very specific, almost instinctive eye. We’re drawn to objects that feel raw, imperfect, alive but also to softer, more intimate, almost narrative forms. It’s in that tension that stories begin to connect."

— DEORON

Founded in 2021, DEORON started as an online platform that sits at the intersection of design, research, and lifestyle culture, with the purpose of rethinking the discovery and experience of objects in the world. By way of its webshop and daily research, it espouses the idea of slowing down and taking time, cultivating a community of creatives that value meaning, process, and quality. Following the success of its physical launch during the MDW 2025, which gathered 46 designers and over 5,000 visitors, DEORON continues in 2026 with an enhanced vision, exploring the idea of curatorial practice, thus moving beyond the realm of exhibition and entering the realm of space.

The 2026 edition of DEORON happens in an 800sqm space that was once a ball bearings factory, never before used as an exhibition space, located at Via Padova 11 (Loreto, M1/M2). It opens to the public for the first time as DEORON, becoming a new cultural destination in the Porta Venezia Design District.

"We chose a post-industrial factory still full of its past life, and decided not to tame it. We wanted the space to speak, in its own voice."

— DEORON

This process, therefore, is not only one of architectural transformation but also of symbolism, as the space of production becomes the space of research, supporting the idea of design as a practice that can produce new meaning from the existing. The exhibition includes more than 50 designers, brands, and independent studios from across the international context, including furniture, lighting, homeware, and technology. However, it is the approach that truly makes the project, as there are no boundaries between the emerging, the established, the industry, or the crafts.

The space is designed as a layered narrative where objects, architecture, and sound intersect. The visitor is not just a passive viewer but rather an active participant who is invited to touch, sit, test, and even inhabit the works. At its heart, a sculptural sound system converts the space into a fully sensorial experience in which sound is used as an architectural element alongside other elements such as light and material. In addition, a program of listening sessions, daily events, a bar area, and social spaces promote dialogue and interaction, emphasizing DEORON’s role as both exhibition and social space. Among the represented brands and designers, a cohesive yet diverse landscape emerges, united by a strong authorial and experimental approach. We have therefore selected some of the most representative projects.

Based in Berlin, YONT is a creative studio founded by architects and designers Serdar Ayvaz and Coşan Karadeniz, both of Turkish origin. Working with an intuitive and deliberately informal approach, the studio explores contemporary design through a distinct spatial lens, combining unapologetic forms with tactile and atmospheric qualities. Their piece, a sculptural vinyl station developed from the Brutalist Pink series, embodies this approach. Designed for both record stores and domestic environments, the object is built around a Technics SL-1200 MK7 turntable and an integrated Graham Slee amplifier, featuring vinyl sockets, a carved headphone niche, and a soft yet monolithic form. Made from foam hardened with epoxy layers and finished with a glossy surface, the prototype was handcrafted in Berlin and is available on request, with customizable options in size and color.

LAÔMA Atelier, founded by sisters Laura and Martine Feiereisen, develops a practice that moves between jewelry, objects, and furniture while maintaining a deep coherence of intention. Their small-batch, hand-crafted pieces—made from responsibly sourced and recycled materials—evoke a meditative and introspective dimension.

This approach is embodied in the Pierced Cosmic Flower Chair, a piece inspired by 90s subcultures and the visual language of body adornment, where the boundary between jewelry and furniture dissolves. Crafted in stainless steel, the chair features five deliberate piercings on each side, turning structure into expression and giving the object an avant-garde, almost otherworldly presence. Composed of two elements: the seat and backrest, designed to be assembled, the piece combines futuristic aesthetics with industrial craftsmanship. The choice of stainless steel ensures durability, heat and corrosion resistance, allowing the object to evolve over time, with surface marks becoming part of its material narrative.

Studio Ambre explores the relationship between time, material transformation, and perception, taking its name from amber—a substance formed through slow, almost invisible processes over time. This philosophy extends into their latest sound project, developed over the course of a year. Inspired by the traditional yakisugi technique, the work uses it as a conceptual starting point rather than a strictly applied method. Through extensive experimentation, the studio investigated how the principle of burnt wood could be translated into a sound object.

The oak surface is intentionally altered by fire and then stabilized with resin, preserving the traces of the process while fixing its texture. Each piece reveals subtle variations, shaped by both material behavior and the different stages of fabrication. Developed in collaboration with PHASIS Audio Systems, the project further expands Studio Ambre’s exploration of transformation into the acoustic realm.

Self-taught artist and designer Alexandre Veillon works with objects from the past, transforming them into hybrid sculptures charged with new emotional resonance. Once-forgotten elements are reactivated and constrained within cold, contemporary metal structures, creating a tension from which anachronistic lamps and sculptural pieces emerge. His work exists in a space where past and future collide—oscillating between seduction and fragility.

Vincent Laine is a Finnish-born Swedish designer based in Norway and founder of the multidisciplinary studio Laine. His work operates at the intersection of industrial design, furniture, and conceptual installations, guided by a belief that design can offer glimpses of a far-fetched near future.

Over the past decade, he has created products that have become defining moments for brands such as Leica, Hasselblad, and Db—most notably contributing to the evolution of Leica’s contemporary identity through the Q and Q2, and leading Db as Creative Director during a phase that culminated in investment from LVMH Luxury Ventures in 2024.

Today, Laine’s practice unfolds across two parallel directions: under his own name, he collaborates with brands to shape contemporary icons, while through his independent studio ANAGRAM, he explores more speculative work—designing future icons through a fluid and optimistic approach that moves across formats, disciplines, and categories.

Yeonsu Na works with moments of everyday friction, isolating small, almost absurd inconveniences and transforming them into poetic objects. Her project begins with a familiar scene: stepping outside for a cigarette in the rain, only to have it instantly ruined by falling drops. Instead of accepting this minor frustration, she responds with a precise and ironic gesture—a miniature umbrella designed specifically to protect the cigarette.

What emerges is both humorous and unexpectedly refined. The object stems from a personal desire for solitude: the wish to smoke alone, without being forced under a shared umbrella with strangers gathered outside a building. By focusing on such a specific and intimate experience, Yeonsu Na amplifies it into something universal, revealing how design can address even the smallest rituals.

There is a subtle contradiction at play: while the user may be completely exposed to the rain, the cigarette remains perfectly sheltered. This inversion transforms a trivial inconvenience into an almost elegant solution, where functionality meets irony. Through this delicate balance, the piece questions what we choose to protect, and why—turning a fleeting moment into a thoughtful, slightly surreal design statement.

Danish designer Matias Møllenbach leads a young independent brand in which every product is designed and developed under his direct direction. Born in Copenhagen, he holds a BA in Product Design from Central Saint Martins in London and a Master’s in Furniture and Object Design from the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. Working in close collaboration with artisanal craftsmen, all pieces are produced by hand, maintaining a strong connection between design and making.

His approach is deliberately independent, focused on creating high-quality objects that resist trends, instead developing their own distinct language and a lasting, timeless character.

Boyo Studio, through its Contour Collection, translates a sensibility rooted in fashion and paper research into stainless steel objects defined by soft, wave-like edges. Each piece balances architectural presence with fluidity. Designed and produced in Italy, the brand is led by Yugoslavian-born designer Bojana Nikodijevic Liberti, whose direction shapes the precise character of every design. Products are realized through a combination of industrial precision and skilled hand finishing.

Gast Studio brings a contemporary perspective to pottery, blending traditional craftsmanship with digital experimentation. At the core of the practice, designer Jean-Baptiste Castel explores the tension between manual processes and automation through a series of vases informed by the material qualities of CGI.

These works translate digital aesthetics into physical form, offering a tangible embodiment of computer-generated imagery. More than decorative objects, the vases invite reflection on the evolving relationship between craft and technology, questioning the boundaries between the physical and virtual. Through this approach, Castel expands the language of pottery, marking a new phase in his practice where digital and material worlds seamlessly intersect.

Louis Wuhrmann approaches design through the logic of construction, treating assembly not as a hidden technical step but as the core expressive language of the object itself. His work centers on interlocking systems, where precisely cut aluminum plates are designed to slot together without the use of screws, adhesives, or additional hardware.

This method results in objects—such as his side table and magazine holder—that are defined by clarity and structural honesty. Form is not imposed but emerges directly from the way parts meet, lock, and support one another. The absence of secondary materials reinforces a sense of reduction and coherence, where each element serves both a functional and visual role.

LHOTO stands out for its exclusive use of reclaimed materials: the CHZ_01 chair is composed of elements sourced from different contexts—including the EPFL library—reassembled into a new narrative.

ANZA Coffee was born in a Berkeley design studio next to an espresso repair shop. Surrounded by polished steel and mechanical precision, it chose a different path: concrete over chrome, substance over surface. Its objects transform the daily ritual of coffee into an essential, material-driven experience designed to integrate seamlessly into interiors.

AB+AC Architects presents DAYBED x Alma Mater and CROSS x Alma Mater. Part of Alma Mater, DAYBED is a sculptural object for therapy, rest, and nervous system recalibration. Conceived as a space for intentional pause, its low, elongated form invites the body into surrender, stillness, and introspection. Cast in hand-poured dark amber beeswax, it engages the senses through tactile warmth and the subtle scent of honey, fostering deep relaxation and embodied awareness. Rooted in neuro-architectural research, the piece transforms rest into ritual. A discreet engraving, “Dream Peace,” acts as a quiet affirmation — guiding the mind toward presence, softness, and inner restoration. AB+AC Architects is an international multidisciplinary studio based in Lisbon, operating at the intersection of architecture, well-being, and futurism. Founded by Arianna Bavuso and Andre Chedid, the practice pioneers a neuro-architectural approach that integrates design, research, and teaching to create spaces and objects for mindfulness, healing, and transformation.

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Words: Simone Lorusso