The 24th Triennale Milano International Exhibition, Inequalities, is now open in Milan and runs until 9 November. After exploring environmental sustainability with Broken Nature in 2019 and the mysteries of the universe with Unknown Unknowns in 2022, the Triennale concludes its trilogy on major contemporary issues by turning its attention to a subject even more closely tied to daily life: inequality.
It is a complex topic, often resistant to simple definitions, but the Triennale has chosen to approach it through a wide-ranging, multidisciplinary project. The exhibition addresses economic, ethnic, geographic, and gender divides that shape the contemporary world, along with their impact on quality of life, access to resources, and people’s future prospects.
“We will speak about inequality by looking at cities and spaces, but also at bodies and lives,” said Stefano Boeri, President of Triennale Milano, at the exhibition’s opening in May. “We will show how immense wealth is concentrated in the hands of very few, and how being born into poverty often becomes an irreversible condition. But we also want to highlight good ideas and the best projects that turn inequality into fertile difference and shared value.”
The exhibition spans roughly 7,500 square meters inside the Palazzo dell’Arte and brings together 28 curators and 341 contributors from 73 countries. Among the prominent figures are Pritzker Prize-winning architect Norman Foster; architecture scholars Beatriz Colomina and Mark Wigley from Princeton and Columbia Universities, respectively; Hans Ulrich Obrist, director of London’s Serpentine Galleries; and Theaster Gates, an artist known for his work across visual art, sculpture, and social activism. The exhibition also features projects by renowned architects such as Kazuyo Sejima, Alejandro Aravena, and Elizabeth Diller of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, alongside works by Israeli artist and filmmaker Amos Gitai.
The exhibition route follows two principal threads. The ground floor focuses on the geopolitics of inequality, particularly as it relates to urban environments, where the divide between wealth and poverty becomes increasingly visible. The first floor shifts the lens to the biopolitics of inequality, exploring the social, economic, and gender factors that shape bodies, lifestyles, mobility, and people’s expectations for the future.
Alongside the exhibition itself, the Triennale has organized an extensive program of talks and performances running through the autumn. The performances address the inequalities inscribed in bodies, as well as individual and collective fragility, fears, and aspirations, interpreted through diverse geographic and artistic perspectives. The aim is to show that inequality is not merely data or statistics, but a lived experience, often painful, that leaves its mark on people’s bodies.
In June and July, the Triennale also brought the topic of inequality into Milan’s neighborhoods with a tour across eight city districts. A mobile unit, transformed into an exhibition space and workshop, offered opportunities to engage with children, teenagers, and families, combining creative activities with conversations about how inequality appears in daily life.
Inequalities stands out as one of Milan’s most substantial and ambitious exhibitions of the year. It does not offer simple answers but instead pursues an inquiry into how deeply inequality is embedded in contemporary society, and how essential it is to keep discussing it.
Where: Triennale Milano, Viale Alemagna 6, Milan
Dates: 13 May – 9 November 2025
Theme: Inequalities – inequality in the contemporary world
Lead Curators: Stefano Boeri, Norman Foster, Beatriz Colomina, Mark Wigley, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Theaster Gates, among others
Official Website: triennale.org
