“The New State of Materials” is the title of the event organized by Materially for Milan Design Week 2026. Included this year in the program of the Isola Design Festival, the exhibition, hosted in the Stecca3 spaces, explores materials innovation as a driver for design, technology and applied research. 

From April 20 to 26, Stecca3 will also be a central hub for discussion with a rich program of panel talks, meetings and workshops.

Innovation, circularity and decarbonization

From alternatives to plastic to wood, from smart materials to bio-based ones, up to metal finishes and second-generation materials for digital and traditional manufacturing: The New State of Materials presents a curatorial selection of materials produced according to principles of innovation, circularity and decarbonization. 

The installation, conceived according to principles of circularity, is realized with the technical contribution of Frem Milano and Parastruct and in collaboration with ADA Stecca. Standex Engraving will collaborate with ISIA Urbino and Prof. Marco Tortoioli Ricci in creating an environmental typography work on the building's access staircase.

Material innovation solutions

The companies selected from the international panorama express some of the most interesting contemporary solutions in material innovation, each highlighting the state of the art in its field.

Among the exhibitors we highlight: Balena with its advanced bio-based polymers; formalighting, which in collaboration with the firm D’Alesio&Santoro presents an innovative LED lighting system with a plant-stimulating spectrum; Impact Acoustic, acoustic panels made with cotton cellulose fibers and natural earth pigments; Kastamonu Italia, panels for furniture derived from post-consumer recycled wood; Kloak Studio, with its bio-materials produced from onion peels; Re-Up® with its furniture pieces made, in whole or in part, from plastics derived from renewable sources or from recycling by Versalis; ST Powder Coatings, high-performance powder coatings with aesthetic and functional qualities.

Materially, a bridge between technological research and the market 

For over twenty years, Materially has been the point of reference in Italy for innovation in materials, with a focus on sustainability and design-driven applications and operates as a bridge between technological research and the market, helping material producers to define positioning strategies and users to implement innovative and circular material solutions in their products.