Paola Antonelli on Munari, MoMA's 'Items' show, and New York's urban evolution

Paola Antonelli, Senior Curator at MoMA's Department of Architecture & Design, was the special guest at MUBA (Museo dei Bambini di Milano) for the 'Munari oltre Munari' series, curated by Francesco Dondina. The event concluded the program tied to the re-edition of 'Vietato non toccare', an interactive exhibition for children. Antonelli's talk, framed by the question 'What would Munari do today?', explored contemporary design beyond furniture, advocating for broader applications to improve quality of life. She previewed MoMA's upcoming exhibition 'Items: Is Fashion Modern?' (opening October 1, 2017), featuring 111 items of clothing—from the little black dress to the sari, kippah, keffiyeh, and Ray-Ban Aviator sunglasses—examining aesthetics, technology, economics, labor practices, ecology, and responsibility. Regarding the Trump era, Antonelli emphasized MoMA's positive protests against the Muslim ban, focusing on solidarity rather than opposition. She reflected on New York's transformation since 1994, praising Bloomberg-era initiatives by women like Janette Sadik-Khan (pedestrian spaces, bike-sharing), Amanda Burden (High Line), and Kate Levin (support for Queens Museum and Brooklyn Museum). She called for Milan's Design Week to evolve beyond furniture to include digital and video game designers, warning that Milan risks losing its design capital status without infrastructure improvements and broader mental openness.