You can trust VideoGamer. Our team of gaming experts spend hours testing and reviewing the latest games, to ensure you're reading the most comprehensive guide possible. Rest assured, all imagery and advice is unique and original. Check out how we test and review games here Blizzard’s Diablo 2 Resurrected is one of my most-played games on the Nintendo Switch, and the idea of playing Diablo 4 on the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 instantly exciting. While the game is already rumoured to be coming to the new handheld, Diablo series manager Rod Fergusson has officially commented on the alleged port. Diablo 4 on Switch 2 is being “considered” In an interview with Gamertag Radio, Fergusson explained that there’s “opportunity there for sure” when discussing an official Diablo 4 Nintendo Switch 2 port. With the power of the new handheld, there’s nothing really stopping the series from continuing on the new handheld, and old games will be fully functional on the system. “I think there’s opportunity there for sure,” the Diablo series lead said. “I mean, we have Diablo 3 and Diablo 2 Resurrected already on the Switch, and with backwards compatibility it’ll be playable on Switch 2.” The Diablo lead explained that the game will run well on the handheld no matter what, especially as the game has its basis in last-gen hardware. However, Fergusson believes that the game’s live-service elements may not work well on the system. “It’s nice the Switch 2 has the performance that can run a game like Diablo 4, so yeah, it’s something to look at for sure,” Fergusson said. “I think the challenge is less around the hardware and just about how we… you know, live services on Switch have been a little bit challenging in the past.” “I’m hopeful that as they launch this June and as we look to the future, that becomes easier and easier, so it makes more sense to put a live service on that platform,” he continued. Blizzard still has years of development left on Diablo 4, although there are already rumblings of a Diaablo 4. With a 10-year roadmap internally at Blizzard, including a new expansion planned for 2026, players still have a lot of content on the way for live-service ARPG. Diablo 4 Platform(s): PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X Genre(s): Action, Action RPG, RPG Related Topics Subscribe to our newsletters! By subscribing, you agree to our Privacy Policy and may receive occasional deal communications; you can unsubscribe anytime. Share

It’s that time again: Those of us who enjoy putting on our best impression of a Project Runway judge will need to know where to watch the 2025 Met Gala from home. On Monday, May 5, Vogue is hosting the official Met Gala livestream on their socials for the fifth year in a row, so it’s simple to watch from anywhere as your favorite stars grace the event’s exclusive red carpet.This year’s dress code, Tailored for You, honors the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute’s new exhibition, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.” The exhibition, which celebrates Black dandyism, will run from May 10 to October 26.Read on for all of the details about fashion’s biggest night.Where can I watch the Met Gala livestream?The 2025 Met Gala will be broadcast live across Vogue’s digital platforms, including their YouTube channel. It will also be embedded at the top of this very post when the event gets underway!What time does the livestream start?The live red carpet coverage begins at 6:00 p.m. ET on Monday, May 5.Who’s hosting the livestream?This year’s Met Gala livestream will be hosted by musician and actor Teyana Taylor, Saturday Night Live comedian Ego Nwodim, and actor La La Anthony, returning in her second year as a host. Internet It girl Emma Chamberlain will be returning as Vogue’s special correspondent for her fifth year in a row.Where is the Met Gala held?The Met Gala is held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on Manhattan’s Upper East Side and serves as a fundraiser for the museum’s Costume Institute.What is this year’s Met Gala theme?The 2025 Met Gala theme, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” celebrates Black dandyism across history and explores the importance of personal style to Black identities across the Atlantic diaspora. The Costume Institute’s corresponding exhibition will be on view at The Metropolitan Museum of Art from May 10 to October 26. Curator Andrew Bolton created the exhibit in partnership with guest curator Monica Miller, who is the professor and chair of Africana studies at Barnard College. Her 2009 book, Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity, served as inspiration for the exhibit. Miller describes dandyism as “dressing wisely and well” and “a tool to rethink identity, to reimagine the self in a different context.” It is the first theme in over two decades to focus solely on menswear.What is the dress code for Met Gala 2025?Tailored for You is the name of this year’s Met Gala dress code. The theme celebrates menswear, particularly the concept of Black dandyism. “Dandyism can seem frivolous, but it often poses a challenge to or a transcendence of social and cultural hierarchies,” Miller explains. We can expect to see lots of suits and menswear accessories on the red carpet this year.Who are the co-chairs of the 2025 Met Gala?Sing Sing star Colman Domingo, F1 driver Lewis Hamilton, rapper A$AP Rocky, musician Pharrell Williams, and Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour are this year’s Met Gala co-chairs, along with honorary chair LeBron James.This year, there’s also a host committee. Its members include André 3000, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Jordan Casteel, Dapper Dan, Doechii, Ayo Edebiri, Edward Enninful, Jeremy O. Harris, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Rashid Johnson, Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee, Audra McDonald, Janelle Monáe, Jeremy Pope, Angel Reese, Sha’Carri Richardson, Tyla, Usher, and Kara Walker.

MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell revealed he is living on $1,000 a week. MANDEL NGAN/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES Lawyers representing MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell have been placed "on notice" for reportedly using artificial intelligence to help them write a legal brief in a defamation lawsuit.The brief contains over 30 citations and involves Eric Coomer, the CEO of voting technology developer Dominion. Lindell has famously supported the conspiracy theory that Donald Trump was the real winner of the 2020 election.U.S. District Judge Nina Wang accused attorneys representing Lindell of using AI to assist with formulating the brief."The Court identified nearly thirty defective citations in the Opposition. These defects include but are not limited to misquotes of cited cases; misrepresentations of principles of law associated with cited cases, including discussions of legal principles that simply do not appear within such decisions; misstatements regarding whether case law originated from a binding authority such as the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit; misattributions of case law to this District; and most egregiously, citation of cases that do not exist," Wang wrote in her ruling.Furthermore, Wang has demanded that attorney Christopher Kachouroff and associated attorneys explain themselves, threatening them with the suspension of their license if they do not comply."Not until this Court asked Mr. Kachouroff directly whether the Opposition was the product of generative artificial intelligence did Mr. Kachouroff admit that he did, in fact, use generative artificial intelligence. After further questioning, Mr. Kachouroff admitted that he failed to cite check the authority in the Opposition after such use before filing it with the Court—despite understanding his obligations under Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure," said Wang in her show case ruling."Counsel will specifically address, under the oath subject to the penalty of perjury, the circumstances surrounding the preparation of the Opposition to Plaintiff's Motion in Limine, including but not limited to whether Defendants were advised and approved of their counsel's use of generative artificial intelligence," she continued.Judge Wang gave Kachouroff until May 5 to respond.© 2025 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.Tags: Donald Trump

Not So Obscur Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is off to a great start, pulling in a huge number of concurrent Steam players on day one Following critical acclaim, the game is off to a scorching start. Image credit: Sandfall Interactive News by Connor Makar Staff Writer Published on April 25, 2025 Clair Obscur: Expidition 33, following a wave of glowing reviews, is off to a great start. Launching yesterday, the game has already surpassed 50,000 concurrent players on Steam, which is pretty darn good for a single player RPG. This figure can be found on SteamDB, a data aggregate website that gathers information from the largest PC gaming platform Steam, which shows that the all-time peak for Clair Obscure since its release was a sturdy 51,922. That's just on PC too, this figure doesn't take into account players on consoles, which Clair Obscur still has a presence on. To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Clair Obscur: Expidition 33 was created by a French developer called Sandfall Interactive, an indie developer that worked on Clair Obscur as its first-ever game. This, it appears, has proven to be a mighty strong first impression. In our own review of the game, our editor Dom Peppiat lathered praise upon the game stating: "If you have ever loved role-playing games, ever, you owe it to yourself to play this. It has the capacity to touch you." With single player games you'll likely see this figure drop in the coming weeks, due to day-one players hitting credits and ultimately moving on from the game. However, word of mouth does wonders with this sort of game, as it'll result in new players flocking to the title to hear what all the fuss is about. It's also worth noting that this weekend we may see another surge of players, and people decide to spend their days off exploring the world Sandfall has created. As a final note, Clair Obscur: Expidition 33 is also on Game Pass! This will surely act as another motivater for folks to try it out. Currently retails at £41.99 (or your regional equivilant) full price, though it does have a nice little 10% discount right now. Still, if you're tight on cash then Game Pass is a nice alternative. Are you having fun playing Clair Obscur? Let us know below!

Image: semiworkHorror fans on PC have been raving about R.E.P.O., developed by Swedish studio semiwork. It's an online co-op game which launched back in February 2025 where you and up to five friends need to work together to discover a long lost age of humanity. You need to balance quiet and careful with panic and hilarity as chaos ensues. It went viral when it dropped early access, and rightly so. So, if you're browsing the Switch eShop and happen to spot something that looks very similar, a warning: don't buy it. Over on the NintendoSwitch subreddit, one user is cautioning fans about a "total fake" game called "REPO Horror", and the evidence is pretty damning,as Gamesradar and PC Gamer report.Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube810kWatch on YouTube The user stumbled upon this game while browsing the eShop and bought it, thinking that it was related to the actual Steam game. And, at first glance, it absolutely does --the logo is very similar, and the screenshots feature the same low lighting and character designs featured in the real R.E.P.O. It was only when they started playing the game that they realised something was wrong: "After examining it closer, it felt off—very low quality and nothing like the official game I was expecting to see, not to mention, it wasn't published by Semiwork." The situation appears to be very similar to the one that hit the developers of The Backrooms 1998, another PC horror that actually launched on Switch earlier this year. R.E.P.O. is not on Switch in any way, shape, or form right now, and it looks like the publisher of this fake version has essentially ripped off the viral game. Fortunately, the reddit user has contacted Nintendo Support, and confirmed that "they're escalating the issue to their head admins." We really hope this kind of stuff stops, because it's damaging for the people who make the original games, but also consumers who don't realise they're being scammed. Digging into things a little more, "REPO Horror" is published by BoggySoft who is also responsible for bringing another suspicious-looking game to the eShop: Only Up!, which appears to be a copy of a similarly titled game, OnlyUP! — which launched back in 2023. Amazingly, to cap this all off, BoggySoft seems confident enough that the game will be on Switch 2, too, as it lists the file size for a Switch 1 and Switch 2 release. Hmmm. Something tells us that won't happen... "Nintendo are letting this slide" The rise of "eSlop" Have you spotted this game on the eShop? Let us know down below. [source reddit.com, via pcgamer.com, gamesradar.com] Related Games See Also Share:8 2 Alana has been with Nintendo Life since 2022, and while RPGs are her first love, Nintendo is a close second. She enjoys nothing more than overthinking battle strategies, characters, and stories. She also wishes she was a Sega air pirate. Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment... Related Articles Opinion: It's Time To Get Rid Of Fall Damage Free faller Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack Now Boasts 300 Playable Titles Yeah, that's a lot

In the battle between two “agentic” coding tools — Anthropic’s Claude Code and OpenAI’s Codex CLI — the latter appears to be fostering more developer goodwill than the former. That’s at least partly because Anthropic has issued takedown notices to a developer trying to reverse-engineer Claude Code, which is under a more restrictive usage license than Codex CLI. Claude Code and Codex CLI are dueling tools that accomplish much of the same thing: allow developers to tap into the power of AI models running in the cloud to complete various coding tasks. Anthropic and OpenAI released them within months of each other — each company racing to capture valuable developer mindshare. The source code for Codex CLI is available under an Apache 2.0 license that allows for distribution and commercial use. That’s in contrast to Claude Code, which is tied to Anthropic’s commercial license. That limits how it can be modified without explicit permission from the company. Anthropic also “obfuscated” the source code for Claude Code. In other words, Claude Code’s source code isn’t readily available. When a developer de-obfuscated it and released the source code on GitHub, Anthropic filed a DMCA complaint — a copyright notification requesting the code’s removal. Developers on social media weren’t pleased by the move, which they said compared unfavorably with OpenAI’s rollout of Codex CLI. In the week or so since Codex CLI’s release, OpenAI has merged dozens of developer suggestions into the tool’s codebase, including one that lets Codex CLI tap AI models from rival providers — including Anthropic. Anthropic didn’t respond to a request for comment. To be fair to the lab, Claude Code is still in beta (and a bit buggy); it’s possible Anthropic will release the source code under a permissive license in the future. Companies have many reasons for obfuscating code, security considerations being one of them. It’s a somewhat surprising PR win for OpenAI, which in recent months has shied away from open-source releases in favor of proprietary, locked-down products. It may be emblematic of a broader shift in the lab’s approach; OpenAI CEO Sam Altman earlier this year said he believed that the company has been on the “wrong side of history” when it comes to open source.

Milk VFX and Lola Post have announced the appointment of Sarah Essam as business development producer, with Jonny Vale joining as head of marketing and communications. Essam, a seasoned producer with experience in large-scale VFX production, will support business development and client partnerships across both studios. She previously held production roles at Framestore and MPC, with credits on films including Blade Runner 2049, Suicide Squad, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and His Dark Materials. Vale boasts over 15 years of marketing and communications experience in the film and episodic industries, and led campaigns for productions such as The Lion King, Prehistoric Planet, The Jungle Book, and Prometheus. “I’m thrilled to welcome Sarah and Jonny to our expanding team,” said Roo Knight-Jones, business development director at Milk and Lola. “Both bring a wealth of experience and a forward-thinking approach that will help drive our continued growth. Sarah will play a pivotal role in deepening relationships with our key clients and further strengthening our presence across our studio network. Jonny’s strategic insight into market engagement will be instrumental in amplifying the visibility of both Milk and Lola and showcasing the breadth and depth of our creative capabilities.” Source: Milk VFX Journalist, antique shop owner, aspiring gemologist—L'Wren brings a diverse perspective to animation, where every frame reflects her varied passions.

Breakdown & Showreels Better Man: Recreating the Knebworth Festival by Weta FX By Vincent Frei - 25/04/2025 The crowd. The lights. The energy. Weta FX recreates the iconic Knebworth Festival in stunning detail for Better Man. Dive into the making of this unforgettable moment in music history! WANT TO KNOW MORE?Weta FX: Dedicated page about Better Man on Weta FX website.Luke Millar with Dave Clayton: Here’s my interview of Luke Millar (VFX Supervisor) with Dave Clayton (Animation Supervisor). © Vincent Frei – The Art of VFX – 2025

A research team at the University of Houston has developed a new method for fabricating flexible, damage-resistant ceramic structures by integrating origami-inspired geometries with a biocompatible elastomeric coating. The approach leverages 3D printing to produce complex Miura-ori ceramic architectures, which are then coated with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), a hyperelastic silicone polymer. The result is a class of brittle materials that exhibit significant improvements in energy absorption and failure tolerance. The project was led by Maksud Rahman, assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, with key contributions from postdoctoral fellow Md Shajedul Hoque Thakur. Their findings were published in the journal Advanced Composites and Hybrid Materials, providing a comprehensive account of the experimental procedures, material modeling, and mechanical testing of the ceramic origami structures. University of Houston’s engineering team designed and fabricated Miura-ori ceramic structures using slurry-based stereolithography, a 3D printing process that utilizes a silica-filled resin and ultraviolet light to build complex, high-resolution forms. The intricate origami patterns were chosen for their unique mechanical advantages, including multistability, tunable stiffness, and auxetic behavior. After printing, the components underwent a series of cleaning and drying steps, followed by multi-stage thermal sintering at temperatures up to 1271 °C. This process removed the polymer binder and fused the silica particles, resulting in a dense, load-bearing ceramic with a final density of nearly 50 percent. To ensure dimensional accuracy after sintering shrinkage, the research team adjusted the digital design files—generated using MATLAB and SolidWorks—prior to printing. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed successful densification and grain boundary development within the finished ceramic lattice. The assembly of the origami structure and the directions for performing compression tests. Image via Springer Nature Link. The origami ceramics were coated with a thin layer of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), a widely used biocompatible silicone elastomer to impart flexibility. The team used a vacuum-assisted dip-coating procedure, curing the PDMS in two steps to achieve a uniform thickness of 75 to 100 microns. SEM cross-sections showed that the elastomer coating covered all surfaces and creases of the structure, while remaining superficial and not infiltrating the ceramic core. Volume analysis estimated that 91 percent of the composite consisted of ceramic, closely mirroring the structure of natural nacre, which uses brittle/soft layering to enhance toughness. Mechanical Testing Across Three Axes Compression tests were performed on both coated and uncoated origami samples in three orthogonal directions, using an Instron ElectroPuls E3000 system. Load-deflection measurements revealed that uncoated ceramics failed catastrophically at low strains, particularly along their weakest axis. In contrast, PDMS-coated samples absorbed significantly more energy before failure. The weakest loading direction showed the largest relative improvement in toughness—an effect attributed to the compartmentalized failure enabled by the elastomeric layer, which prevented cracks from propagating through the entire structure at once. SEM imaging further illustrated that the coating stopped or slowed crack growth, resulting in a stepwise, localized failure mode rather than the sudden collapse typical of ceramics. Optical images taken at various stages of compression confirmed that coated origami maintained structural integrity at strains that destroyed uncoated samples. Finite element analysis was performed using ABAQUS/Explicit, with material models tailored to both the ceramic (concrete damaged plasticity) and the hyperelastic PDMS coating (Arruda–Boyce model). Element deletion routines were employed to accurately simulate fracture and separation. Simulation results closely matched experimental findings, revealing lower stress concentrations and delayed damage accumulation in coated samples. Mesh convergence was verified, with final models containing nearly 300,000 elements to ensure numerical stability. Fabrication of the 3D-printed ceramic Miura-ori structure, followed by the application of a hyperelastic coating. Image via Springer Nature Link. Analysis of von Mises stress and maximum principal strain showed that the PDMS layer redistributed loads away from vulnerable edges and vertices. The presence of the coating reduced both tensile and compressive damage variables, with the largest reduction seen in the direction most susceptible to crack initiation. Cyclic Loading Shows Durability Under Repeated Strain Researchers further evaluated the coated ceramics under cyclic loading in the X-direction, up to a compressive strain of 1.5 percent. Uncoated structures failed at or below this threshold, but PDMS-coated samples endured multiple loading cycles with only minor reductions in peak force—evidence of crack bridging and controlled damage. Simulation of cyclic loading confirmed this trend and provided additional insight into the evolution of damage over time. The team’s approach demonstrates that combining complex origami geometries with 3D printed ceramics and hyperelastic coatings can yield macroscale structures with application-specific mechanical properties. By tuning both geometry and material composition, University of Houston engineers have created a pathway toward lightweight, tough, and biocompatible materials suitable for prosthetics, implants, impact-resistant aerospace parts, and robotic systems. Future work will focus on further optimizing Miura-ori unit cell parameters using algorithmic design and simulation to maximize performance under specific loading conditions. The team anticipates that advanced optimization techniques—such as Bayesian methods or genetic algorithms—will enable the rapid identification of optimal design configurations for new engineering challenges. Results of the experimental quasi-static compression test on the architected ceramic structure. Image via Springer Nature Link. Ready to discover who won the 2024 3D Printing Industry Awards? Subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry newsletter to stay updated with the latest news and insights. Featured image showcase the assembly of the origami structure and the directions for performing compression tests. Image via Springer Nature Link. Anyer Tenorio Lara Anyer Tenorio Lara is an emerging tech journalist passionate about uncovering the latest advances in technology and innovation. With a sharp eye for detail and a talent for storytelling, Anyer has quickly made a name for himself in the tech community. Anyer's articles aim to make complex subjects accessible and engaging for a broad audience. In addition to his writing, Anyer enjoys participating in industry events and discussions, eager to learn and share knowledge in the dynamic world of technology.

After recovering from the jet lag, lack of sleep, and spritz regimen that typifies the occasion, I’m happy to report I survived Milan Design Week (MDW). At its core is Salone del Mobile, the world’s largest furniture show, which did not disappoint this year. The fair itself was strong as ever, attracting around 300,000 attendees, over 2,100 exhibitors, and a visitor satisfaction index of 88 percent. Across Rho’s pavilions, the latest releases and tests were on display, and Euroluce, the biannual lighting show, was fun to explore. Salone del Mobile remains a place for the global furniture and lighting industry to meet, catch up, and do business. An attendee at the Artemide booth during Euroluce at Salone del Mobile (Diego Ravier/Courtesy Salone del Mobile) But in the city, the Fuorisalone/MDW hype machine continued to amp up central Milan into a frenzy of talks, open studios, openings, aperitivo hours, dinners, and afters. It reminded of the trajectory of SXSW, which began as an industry-focused convention in Austin that has since exploded into marketing mania. (Who remembers the 60-foot-tall vending machine sponsored by Doritos?) This year’s MDW had a healthy helping of this, with perhaps the pinnacle being Vans’s first appearance, capped by a (semisecret) DJ set by Björk. What? MDW is much more popular than Milan Fashion Week in September, which is great: Design ought to be for everyone. Still, the tension between a citywide festival and a trade show (staged miles from downtown) endures and will likely only increase. Es Devlin’s Library of Light was a popular installation (Monica Spezia/Courtesy Salone del Mobile) Salone’s success means it will continue to span this gap to hold attention spans among MDW’s feeding frenzy. It did so with aplomb this year, as Es Devlin’s Library of Light in Brera was well attended; the Design Kiosk marked a node for orientation, publications, and talks; and, in the Castello Sforzesco, Robert Wilson’s Mother was moving, as it extracted viewers from the fervor of consumerism and dunked them into a cold plunge of mortality, grief, and spiritual angst. Robert Wilson’s Mother (Lucie Jansch/Courtesy Salone del Mobile) After a week of roving across Milan, I came away overwhelmed but inspired. Here are some of the themes I found relevant. Take Me to the Fair Salone del Mobile bustled with activity, as its pavilions were populated with the world’s best furniture brands. Some personal highlights: Knoll’s reusable pavilion, a Miesian arrangement of metal extrusions with palm-laden courtyards and designed by OFFICE KGDVS, supported new furniture releases like the Biboni Sofa designed by Johnston Marklee; Humanscale debuted its Humanscale Living collection, including a preview of its Diffrient Lounge Chair for all-day work and relaxation; and Marset presented a set of new releases and reissues in a plywood-lined booth designed by Barcelona darlings Mesura. Marset presented new designs and reissues in a plywood-lined booth designed by Mesura. (Courtesy Marset) Other brands use the fair as time to share prototypes and gather feedback: Poliform debuted the enticing boomerang-shaped Adrien Home Desk designed by Jean-Marie Massaud. And at Euroluce, Ingo Mauer tested out some experimental lamps, like an adjustable wall light dubbed Bruce Springsteel. Fashion Forward A heightened presence of companies spending the euros to activate immersive brand experiences was the part that felt the most like SXSW, albeit with a stylish Milanese flair. There were long lines to get into Loewe’s teapot show, set within James Stirling’s bunkerlike addition to Palazzo Citterio; Loro Piana tapped Dimorestudio to stage a cinematic 1970s interior; Gucci delivered Bamboo Encounters, curated and designed by former OMA partner Ippolito Pestellini Laparelli. Talks and performances lent an air of intellectual stimulation: Miu Miu again hosted its Literary Club with the theme of “A Women’s Education,” and at the Centrale, Formafantasma set up a Wes Anderson–like world within a train car for another edition of its Prada Frames salon series. And, of course, that surprise DJ set by Björk staged atop a checkered run of scaffolding for a Vans activation designed by Willo Perron. (Did anyone notice it was actually a launch for a new shoe?) It was the brand’s first appearance at MDW, as it was for Range Rover, which landed in a downtown piazza with a three-scene installation created by L.A.’s Nuova Group. These showy, marketing declarations amp up the week for a wider audience of design-interested folks, if not themselves designers. As Amy Kasper from Alpha Kilo summarized on Substack: “Fashion brands ruined it for the true design folks.” Performance! As other observers have noticed, theatricality was a major theme. To mark 60 years of producing classic midcentury pieces designed by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, and Charlotte Perriand, Cassina tapped Formafantasma to create Staging Modernity, a show that saw the chairs—in new, millennial-friendly colors—as part of the set for a happening that collided modernity’s structural shortcomings “with a broader ecology.” Texts by Emanuele Coccia, Andrés Jaque, and Feifei Zhou were source material for the piece. Formafantasma created Staging Modernity as a performance piece for Cassina. (Omar Sartor) A Sunday evening celebration at Bocci’s apartment to mark 20 years of the brand saw a set of pieces curated by The Future Perfect’s David Alhadeff, but also models wearing headpieces inspired by the company’s logo. Most literally, Delvis (Un)limited mounted The Theatre of Things, curated by Alcova’s Valentina Ciuffi and Joseph Grima, for which seven designers each occupied the Brera storefront to live among the original pieces for the day. Bocci marked 20 years of its brand with pieces curated by The Future Perfect. (Courtesy Bocci) Marimekko, ahead of a capsule collection with Laila Gohar, created a bedscape of striped sheets. It was perfect for pillow talk and selfies. They even arranged to have a library ladder set to one side, which allowed dutiful boyfriends to ascend and get the shot for their girlfriends. Marimekko, in collaboration with Laila Gohar, created a bedscape of striped sheets. (Sean Davidson) And there was another installation of North America Night. This time, the event took over Teatro Litta for an experience created by Rodolfo Agrella. (AN was again a supporter.) In solidarity, there was singing in English, Spanish, and Italian; a chef prepared a medley of corn-based snacks; and bartenders slung a trio of corn-derived libations. North America Night (Mattia Acito) Deepened Role of Collaboration The designers are the main draw for professional attendees, as it allows a global community to see friends and witness new talents. Formafantasma was again a prominent duo, as mentioned. Philippe Malouin had a strong showing via his new Great sofa for Hem and a line of tables for Lehni. Yabu Pushelberg won the prize for most releases, with a dozen, for these brands: Molteni&C, Leolux, MDF Italia, Zucchetti, Salvatori, Henge, DePadova, Linteloo, CEA Design, Glas Italia, Lasvit, and Noritake. George Yabu (left) and Glenn Pushelberg (center) of Yabu Pushelberg with Gabriele Salvatori (right), CEO of Salvatori, in front of Nagi, a new stone tile (Courtesy Yabu Pushelberg) A Bounty of Unofficial Showcases Beyond Salone del Mobile and the now-expansive Alcova, which sprawled across four sites in Varedo, many “unofficial” shows were worth checking out to see a wider range of design talent. Convey mounted a group show of younger furniture makers, with pieces from Marimar, Campeggi, Woak, and DANTE – Goods and Bads. Capsule Plaza, now in its third year, expanded to two additional locations. Beyond hosting Hem and Lehni, it was the site for Hydro’s R100 show, art directed by Lars Beller Fjetland, who commissioned Sabine Marcelis, Keiji Takeuchi, Cecilie Manz, Daniel Rybakken, and Stefan Diez to design objects using recycled aluminum made from scrap sourced from within 100 kilometers of the foundries. (Pleasingly, the extrusion molds for each piece were also present.) BOON_EDITIONS and A-N-D popped up in a 1980s bank, whose darkness and exposed concrete were a great foil to the furniture, including pieces by Jialun Xiong. Hydro’s R100 showcase at Spazio Maiocchi (Einar Aslaksen) Even smaller events were fun discoveries. At DISPLAY Spazio in Isola, Piovenefabi, Sam Chermayeff Office, DISPLAY., and Giovanna Silva paid homage to the Milan metro with a yellow chair, screen, and light designed using motifs from classic stations. (There was even a gift shop.) Nearby, within the spazioSERRA kiosk in the Lancetti train station, Argentina’s 322A’s first appearance at MDW was Drop Shadow, which presented “objects typically used to display other things—structures that support vertical surfaces, shelves, graphic panels, space dividers, and lamps.” The staging included contributions from Jules Cairon, MOS, Lütjens Padmanabhan, Constanza Castagnet, and Amparo Molar. 322A’s exhibition at spazioSERRA within the Milano Lancetti train station (Jeroen Verrecht) Our Green Dream The climate crisis wasn’t front and center for most things, but material sourcing and carbon footprints were still consistent parts of brand messages and designer ambitions. The most stirring effort was Casa Cork, where cork products were assembled by Rockwell Group into a menagerie of feel-good items. Casa Cork by Rockwell Group (Ed Reeve for RockwellGroup) As Diana Budds noted in her coverage for Fast Company, Muji showed its Manifesto House, and Ikea “launched a new foam-free sofa as part of its Stockholm collection, using natural latex and coconut fibers as cushioning within the wood-framed piece.” Out at Salone, brands promoted their bona fides: Arper again showcased its Catifa line made with recycled plastic, and Gloster described the management of its own teak forests in Indonesia that is uses to make outdoor furniture. A Heightened Sense of History I was also struck by the collective attention to history. Anniversaries abounded, and shows included responses, reissues, and inspirations; there was a referential sense of deep time. On the top floor of Torre Velasca, Dedar showed a new line of textiles that draw from the weavings of Anni Albers, the first commercial editions of her work. Out at Alcova, Office of Tangible Space showed Osvaldo, which was inspired by the immediate interiors of the Villa Borsani. Upstairs at 10 Corso Como, now sleekly renovated by ex-OMA Laparelli, I appreciated the ten-year anniversary show from Benjamin Hubert’s Layer, which included a lot of sketches and process material. Jil Sander’s rework of Thonet chairs, her first foray into furniture, was a welcome treat. Office of Tangible Space staged work in Villa Borsani along with Murano glass pieces by Kiki Goti. (Matthew Gordon Photography) Beyond the launch of Linked for Flos, Michael Anastassiades presented new fixtures within the interior of the Jacqueline Vodoz and Bruno Danese Foundation. Danese was an important figure for Anastassiades early in his career; according to an interview with Designboom, he “wanted to be non-invasive, and to gently occupy the space, respect it, and let it speak for itself.” A custom Floor Mobile Chandelier by Michael Anastassiades as installed at the Jacqueline Vodoz and Bruno Danese Foundation (Nicolò Panzera) Fancy Digs The hyped-up atmosphere continued last year’s theme of elaborate venues that elevated otherwise lackluster shapey/vibey objects. The distance—or closeness—between item and environment makes or breaks the success of a pop-up showing. In some cases, the lure of seeing a palazzo or penthouse apartment that is never open to the public was a stronger pull than the work itself. The week can feel like an Open House Milan, with architectural curiosity motivating attendees to shake off the tiredness and pound the pavement to see lived-in presentations of the latest furniture, lights, or objects. Remarkably Apolitical Commentary on the ongoing slide to the right—in Italy, U.S., and elsewhere—was largely absent from the week, which made it a semi-reprieve from domestic meltdowns (aside for a late-night writing session about Trump and showerheads). Beyond skillfully handling questions about AI, Salone del Mobile president Maria Porro, in remarks to the press, urged attendees to see design as a global language that unites people from all walks of life. Salone is a place where everyone can meet and be together thanks to design, she said. There were some stirrings. In the city, Rooms Studio presented “an exhibition of new furniture, lighting, and ceramic works that reflect the shifting political and social landscape in Georgia.” And at Dropcity, Milan’s exciting venue for architecture exhibitions and fabrication largely self-funded by its creator, architect Andrea Caputo, Prison Times explored the “spatial dynamics of penal environments.” Within the tunnels, furniture, objects, and doorways used in carceral spaces, each shown in available colorways, were organized into arrays. The show was powerful to the point of parody—there was only the slightest aesthetic difference between the metallic toilets and some of the aluminum and stainless steel offerings elsewhere during MDW. And, to these American eyes, the exhibition didn’t take a strong ethical position: It was more about typology than abolition. Prison Times, as installed at Dropcity (Piercarlo Quecchia, DSL Studio/Courtesy Dropcity) A Diversity Problem? Where were the people of color? Despite a highly global and cosmopolitan affair, there were few collaborating designers or prominent voices/figures who are Black. One exception—and highlight—was the conversation between Nigerian designer Nifemi Marcus-Bello, design critic Alice Rawsthorn, and Eames Demetrios for the launch of the Charles & Ray Eames Foundation. Elsewhere, Calico launched Particulaire, a wallpaper collection designed by Stephen Burks Man Made, which was inspired by objects collected during worldwide travels as a way to connect “different places, cultures, and experiences.” Stephen Burks Man Made launched Particulaire, a new wallpaper line for Calico. (Bonetti Margherita) One of the prominent visuals of the week was guest editor Asad Syrkett’s cover of the Salone issue of AD Italia, which ran blue type over a painting of a Black figure by Ghanaian painter Amoako Boafo that hangs in Natalia Bianchi’s apartment within the famed Milanese building Ca’ Brutta. I Want It Still, I came away from MDW with a sense of jealousy. It is a rare thing to see a large city come alive in celebration of design. Only in Italy, perhaps. It was encouraging to see the exploration of design showrooms and events by a range of folks, young to old. Design Kiosk (Andrea Mariani/Courtesy Salone del Mobile) I wonder how to match this groundswell of interest in design with the necessity of degrowth: We ought to be making fewer objects, wasting less material, and consuming less energy. (For me, the week unfurled largely without major discussions of how much things cost.) Design is so tightly aligned with the industrial production of consumer goods that to question this relationship is do battle with the hard truths of material culture. How can we reduce consumption? How can we slow down? How can we create things that won’t spend centuries as landfill garbage or clumped in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch? How can manufacturers eliminate labor abuses in their supply chains? And on. Lately, design is less about form and more about process, materials, sourcing, feelings, and attitude. This is not the uptight doctrine of total design but the loose fit of youthful collectivity, which is a welcome change. This shift was quite evident among the plethora of design talent showcased at SaloneSatellite this year. An elevated view of SaloneSatellite (Ludovica Mangini/Courtesy Salone del Mobile) Amid the chaos of MDW, I saw so much that showed me where we’re headed. The future is unevenly distributed, but it was certainly on view in Milan.