Alcova is a platform for independent design developed by Joseph Grima (Space Caviar) and Valentina Ciuffi (Studio Vedét). Currently operating as an itinerant network of exhibition spaces across multiple sites in and around Milan, it activates forgotten locations of historical significance, temporarily recasting them as venues for performative activities. After having activated a former bakery factory, a cashmere factory, the buildings of a military hospital complex, and a former meat market, Alcova renews its commitment to bring historical and significant spaces for the city to life, transforming them into a stage of unrivalled beauty for a selection of designers shaping the future. Whether designers, galleries, museums, schools or companies, Alcova seeks to shine a spotlight on the most forward-looking design being produced today.

This coming April 2024, Alcova will be set in two of the most extraordinary villas of the Milan metropolitan area: Villa Borsani and Villa Bagatti Valsecchi. Villa Borsani. Alcova will once again bring design and research into dialogue with surprising and historically significant urban settings, entering into a temporary relationship of cohabitation with nature that has grown wild and spontaneously taken over these imposing sites.

Alcova 2018 - Photo Giulia Piermartiri

As for previous editions, Alcova 2024 is characterized by the variety of the ideas and themes converging in its displays, capturing a snapshot of a rapidly evolving world. Ecological, political and anthropological discourse, tales about the history of design or expressions of new exhibition currents intertwine convincingly across the many new pieces in this new edition.