Whenever i am in Milan for Milan Design Week, I visit the Antonio Marras store at Via Cola di Rienzo. For the last fifteen years we stay in the same neighborhood near the store and every year it is such a surprise to discover the different worlds Antonio creates. Before visiting the store for the first time back in 2011 or 2012 I remember to have spotted the interior of the store on a blog and I was so happy when my friend Stefano and I got to visite the actual store.
During last Milan’s Design Week, I visited the Antonio Marras store on Via Montenapoleone. The store itself is unlike a conventional fashion boutique. Designed around Antonio Marras’ own vision, it brings together fashion, art, design, vintage furniture, objects and references to Sardinia within a highly theatrical interior.
Antonio Marras on Via Montenapoleone
The Antonio Marras boutique is located at Via Montenapoleone 6/A, in the heart of Milan’s fashion district. The space originally opened in April 2025 as Ephemeral, a temporary 300 square metre boutique spread over two floors. It was conceived as a space that would bring together fashion, art, music and design during Milan Design Week. Today, however, the address at 6/A remains an Antonio Marras boutique and is listed as the brand’s Milan Montenapoleone store.
From the beginning, the space was intended to be different from a traditional retail environment. Rather than creating a neutral background for the clothes, Antonio Marras filled the store with objects, furniture and references that form part of his visual world.
A Store Designed by Antonio Marras
The interior of the Montenapoleone space was designed by Antonio Marras himself. Antonio has described his idea of a shop as being similar to a house. In Italian, abito and abitare share the same root, and for him a place should surround, protect and welcome people. The idea is reflected in the way the store is assembled, with furniture, objects and decorative elements rather than a conventional shop interior.
Antique wardrobes, drawers, ceramics, tables, modernist chairs, mirrors, amazing rugs, sculptures and plants are brought together throughout the space. Each element forms part of a larger, eclectic composition.
From a Surreal Cityscape to Versailles
The experience begins with an unusual cityscape. Stacked wardrobes and drawers create an almost architectural landscape, while cuckoo clocks and mirrors add another layer to the scene. Some of these details also refer to Marras’ personal memories. Further inside, the space changes again. The lower level refers to Renaissance courtyards, using painted perspectives and optical illusions to create a sense of changing architecture. The journey eventually leads to a room inspired by the grandeur of Versailles, with mirrored surfaces creating an almost theatrical setting.
Maria Lai and the Sardinian Connection
Sardinia is an important part of Antonio Marras’ work, and this is also visible inside the Milan store. Among the elements incorporated into the interior are the ants of Sardinian artist Maria Lai. Marras created a small installation in which the ants appear to emerge from a hole and move along the wall. The motif was connected to the collection presented at the time.
Maria Lai, who was born in Sardinia, has been an important artistic reference for Marras. Her work and the cultural history of Sardinia appear repeatedly in his creative world. During Milan Design Week 2026, Sardinian craftsmanship was also brought directly into the Montenapoleone store. As part of ‘Trame Vive’ as the event for Milan Design week was called, embroiderers from the Antonio Marras atelier in Alghero worked inside the flagship store, making embroidery part of the public experience.
This was also what I encountered during my visit. I met several of the women working inside the store and spoke with them about what they were doing. The presence of the embroiderers brought the process of making into the middle of one of Milan’s most prestigious shopping streets, connecting the Montenapoleone store directly to the craftsmanship of the Antonio Marras atelier in Alghero.
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This article is part of The Collectible Edit
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