Wunderkammer at Masterly 2026 – Photography is by N. Marnati.
Design. Now in its tenth edition, Masterly – The Dutch in Milano brings together more than 100 independent designers, established companies, emerging ventures, artisans, artists, and educational institutions at the historic Palazzo Giureconsulti, just steps from Piazza Duomo.
A decade in, the event “has grown from a presentation platform into an ecosystem,” founder and director Nicole Uniquole told Archipanic. “The programme no longer only shows what Dutch design is; it also explores what Dutch design means, where it comes from, and where it is headed.”
In a world of global crisis and digital acceleration, “what is striking in this edition is that the response is not driven by panic or spectacle, but by responsibility.” Uniquole frames Masterly as “a filter against noise, insisting on transparency rather than greenwashing.” We asked her to select seven projects and showcases in Milan.
Wunderkammer – 10 Years of Masterly, co-curated with trend forecaster Lidewij Edelkoort, traces the emblematic projects that have shaped the event’s history. Housed in a soothing pink sanctuary, it “positions Dutch design as a living cultural movement: rooted in legacy, responsive to the present, and unafraid to shape the future.”
Mecanoo Architects, working alongside Bert Plantagie, presents the modular Macaron sofa system — a spatial response to the shifting rhythms of contemporary life. “At Masterly 2026, the emphasis is on longevity and adaptability; its bio-based infrastructure is a strong response to a world asking for spaces that are not only efficient, but also resilient and humane.”
Mecanoo Architects.
Rituals turns the bedroom into a genuine retreat. Their Mind Oasis At Home mat combines immersive soundscapes and haptic vibration to support sleep, focus, and recovery. “It reflects a broader shift in design, where wellbeing is no longer peripheral, but central to how we think about living environments.”
Mind Oasis At Home by Rituals collective.
NO-EM presents the Infinity chair by Robert Bronwasser — a 100% circular, modular task chair whose components are designed to be reused or repurposed. A special edition with textile manufacturer BYBORRE adds material intelligence and tactile richness, offering “one of the clearest examples of circular thinking translated into an everyday product.”
NO-EM at Masterly 2026.
Chemical company Avantium showcases furniture by Studio Hoogvliet Jongerius, crafted from Releaf — a fully plant-based, recyclable polymer — demonstrating how “high-performance, plant-based and recyclable material development can enter the world of interiors, textiles and product design with both intelligence and elegance.”
Avantium.
Furniture manufacturer Artifort, ceramic brand MOSA, and the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam honour the legacy of designer Kho Liang Ie, resisting what Uniquole calls “cultural amnesia in a design world often driven by novelty alone.”
Finally, collective Roots, led by Simone van Es, reframes soil as heritage rather than resource. Their exhibition Sleeping Beauty, a Symbiotic Symphony — poetic, political, and quietly urgent — asks “how design can contribute to non-toxic living, renewal and a deeper culture of care.”
“Taken together,” Uniquole reflects, “these projects show that Dutch design is no longer responding to today’s challenges from the margins, but from the centre of the conversation.” Masterly 2026 makes that case compellingly.
All photos of Masterly 2026 are by N. Marnati, unless stated.
