What’s Happening: In a wide-reaching show at Milan Design Week, the oil-rich country conveyed design’s role in the Vision 2030 plan through a five-month residency and a transportive scenography that evokes sand dunes.

The Download: Saudi Arabia’s ambitious Vision 2030 plan likely evokes fantastical renderings of architectural giga-projects in the barren Middle Eastern desert, not to mention the multitude of thinkpieces spurning them as a dystopian nightmare and questioning their feasibility and as the oil-rich country’s cash reserves dry up. Wild architecture is only part of the plan to diversify the economy, which involves building new industries. The country has created an airline, plans to invest $40 billion into AI research, and launched a golf league in partnership with the PGA Tour. Less talked about are Vision 2030’s design initiatives, namely Madrasat Addeera Editions and the inaugural AlUla Design Residency, which were on display during Milan Design Week.

Set within the landmark Mediateca Santa Teresa library in Milan’s Brera district, Design Space AlUla presented a smattering of projects created with local craft traditions. Among these were the AlUla Design Residency, realized under the curation of architect Ali Ismail Karimi, which tapped five global designers to participate in a five-month immersion into life in AlUla. Most visible was Hall Haus’s giant seating system, which blended Majlis-style sofas with the swoops of sand dunes. Also appearing windswept are Bahraini-Danish’s steel partitions and sculptural chairs by Leo Orta that channel AlUla’s geological formations. Studio Raw Material’s floor lamps explore the spatial quality of light in the Qasr al-Bint while Leen Ajlan’s wooden platforms and benches reflect the setup of Saudi folk games.

To present the projects in the most authentic light, designer Sabine Marcelis and her life partner Paul Cournet, the founder of Dutch studio Cloud, devised scenography for the lounge-like interior that, as she tells Dezeen, “gives you a feeling of what AlUla is like.” They topped Hall Haus’s giant seating system with a giant overhead cylinder that bathed the entire room in a gentle color-changing light. The skylight, which faces downward, mimics those commonly found throughout AlUla to limit light pollution. While it remains unclear how much Saudi Arabia has invested in the design industry, the high-budget Milan Design Week outing does make it clear the country is taking the sector seriously. According to a recent report, fashion contributed 1.4 percent of the nation’s GDP across 230,000 jobs in 2022. Perhaps design isn’t too far behind.

In Their Own Words: “We are working alongside local and global arts and design communities to inspire a new generation of creatives to grow our design economy in line with the ambitions of Vision 2030,” Nora Aldabal, executive director of arts and creative industries at the Royal Commission for Alula, told WWD. “Saudi now has a growing number of impactful institutions and organizations that have launched initiatives across the country.”

Surface Says: Design Space AlUla doesn’t quite capture the vertigo of Jean Nouvel’s Sharaan Nature Reserve that will be carved into the side of a sandstone hill, but we applaud the effort.

Have a news story our readers need to see? Write to our editors.

Reach the design world every morning. Find out more about advertising in the Design Dispatch.

When it comes to pasta, raw fare, and sheer vibes, there’s nowhere in the Twin Cities’ North Loop neighborhood better suited to the occasion than Dario. Interiors by homegrown firm Wittkamper Studio are characterized by a palette of soft pink and teal, creating a breathtaking contrast. An irreverent lineup of contemporary art, along with blonde oak millwork and expansive floor-to-ceiling windows, keeps the space awash in light and adds to the essence of levity, avoiding self-seriousness.

Thoughtful touches, like scalloped high-gloss tiles, velvet teal banquettes, and architectural archways throughout create a just-right amount of drama. Where Dario does take itself appropriately seriously is its menus. Founders Joe Rolle and Stephen Rowe have calibrated a sumptuous pasta lineup, which features braised beef agnolotti, truffle risotto, and spaghetti with blue crab, calabrian chile, and lemon, alongside seasonal veggies and a fish and meat menu that ensure guests won’t leave unsated.

When: April 25–June 1

Where: Jessica Silverman, San Francisco

What: Five oil paintings reflecting the Korean artist’s memories and sensory experiences from daily walks in the Bay Area vividly capture an interplay of light, nature, and architecture. Influenced by Korean landscape painting, You’s canvases integrate human forms into nature, evoking introspection through ephemeral silhouettes in motion within serene and atmospheric settings. Highlighting her fusion of memory with artistic tradition, Blue Pond and Succulent Garden employ psychological colors and textures to explore themes of consciousness, memory, and the symbiotic relationship between the natural and built environments.

Last week, the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, one of the country’s oldest institutions devoted to contemporary art, toasted its distinguished history with a celebratory gala in its hometown of Ridgefield, Connecticut. The evening began with cocktails and a private view of Loie Hollowell’s first East Coast exhibition of drawings and pastels, “Space Between, A Survey of Ten Years.” During the evening, Hollowell, along with museum trustee Eric Diefenbach, were honored with distinction. Guests were then transported to Yanity Gymnasium for a seated dinner and a performance by Stephen Petronio.

When was it? April 20

Where was it? Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum and Yanity Gymnasium, Connecticut

Who was there? Elizabeth Englander, Layo Bright, Lisa Phillips, Diana Bowes, Amy Smith-Stewart, Eduardo Alfonso, and Dick Cavett.

Perennials & Sutherland are icons and acknowledged leaders in the global design industry. Founder David Sutherland and chief creative director Ann Sutherland share an ingenious talent for curating the finest interior and exterior collections of luxury furniture, fabrics, rugs and accessories. Based in Dallas, the company comprises Sutherland Furniture, Perennials Luxury Performance Fabrics, and David Sutherland Showrooms.

Surface Says: It’s easy to see why, for more than 20 years, design pros and in-the-know clients have looked to Perennials and Sutherland for high-end textiles designed to stand up to the demands of everyday life.

There’s a simple reason why we don’t believe what influencers say in our feeds.

Troye Sivan’s lifestyle brand Tsu Lange Yor will soon pop up in New York.

After 20 years of e-commerce, Wayfair enters the bricks-and-mortar game.

Ernesto Neto’s largest installation to date is a cascading, crocheted fabric world.