People are back, Milan is back

This article is published in number 38 of Vanity Fair on newsstands until 21 September 2021

There are cities that are beautiful empty (Rome, Venice for example, with their deserted theater scenes) and cities that suffer fromhorror of the story, which empty only cause anguish. Milan is one of these, deserted and scary. It is not a beautiful city in itself, it is beautiful if it reaches a certain filling rate. After two years, the emptiness of Milan ended. With the Salone del Mobile that has just ended, people return and the city is back as it always was: a (virtuous) gathering of people.

All around: from event to event, from Fuorisalone to Fuorisalone, up to the actual Salone: ​​there, the genius of the mayor Sala and Stefano Boeri to want it strongly (even among the many who rowed against).
And then: transform it into a mix between Expo and Eataly. No longer a fair for insiders but a beautiful place for family outings. And with a lot of food: the croque-monsieur with language pastrami signed Cristina Bowerman or la cheesecake with citrus fruits by Carlo Cracco and Marco Pedron, or tortellini in Parmigiano Reggiano cream by Tortellante by Massimo Bottura. It was a living room with a kitchenette. Now, the ice is broken, fashion week arrives, and then MiArt, and then the weeks of books, music, and so on.
Goodbye empty: what impresses are the people, all around, all together, and it is not a question of business, because many sold well even only online, even saving money. It is precisely being there, being together. In this great virtuous gathering that is Milan.

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