Es Devlin’s Library of Light: A Monument to Memory, Light, and the Imagination at Salone del Mobile 2025
In a city of design firsts and cultural landmarks, a new installation at this year’s Salone del Mobile promises to become one of Milan Design Week’s most unforgettable experiences. Commissioned for the 2025 edition of the Salone and created in collaboration with the Pinacoteca di Brera, Grande Brera, and with the contribution of Feltrinelli, British artist and designer Es Devlin unveils Library of Light — a monumental, kinetic sculpture that invites visitors to step into a revolving narrative of knowledge, memory, and light.
Pinacoteca di Brera – Cortile d’Onore - Salone del Mobile.Milano 2025 - ©Monica Spezia
Known as a “poet of light,” Devlin brings her visionary lens to one of Milan’s most historic locations, the Cortile d’Onore of the Pinacoteca di Brera. Her installation responds to the architecture and legacy of this cultural epicentre — home to the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, the Braidense National Library, and the celebrated art gallery — with a luminous, cylindrical structure that blends physical presence and poetic metaphor.
Spanning 18 metres in diameter, the sculpture is composed of mirrored surfaces and illuminated bookshelves filled with over 3,000 volumes, curated and donated by Feltrinelli around the theme of Thought for Humans — the guiding thread of this year’s Salone. By day, the mirrored top of the sculpture captures and redirects sunlight into hidden corners of the courtyard, casting beams onto columns, porticoes, and statues that had never before been touched by daylight. By night, it transforms into a glowing orb, projecting shadows and light onto the surrounding architecture — a literal and symbolic beacon of knowledge and reflection.
The installation was inspired by a quote from Umberto Eco that Devlin recalled while climbing the tall bookshelves of the Braidense Library: “Books are the compass of the mind; they point to countless worlds yet to be explored.” These words anchor the experience of Library of Light, where movement, light, and literature intersect to form a new kind of kinetic library — one that resonates not just in form but in spirit.
In a deeply personal and poignant moment of the installation, Devlin reflects on the underrepresented presence of women in the historic narrative. While exploring the Cortile, she discovered the statue of Maria Gaetana Agnesi — a trailblazing mathematician and philosopher known for her studies of natural resonant frequencies, including the behaviour of light. Until that encounter, Agnesi’s life and legacy were unfamiliar to Devlin — a discovery that led her to place Agnesi’s voice and story at the heart of Library of Light. “This work seeks to bring her presence from the periphery to the centre,” Devlin explains.
The soundscape of the installation adds another immersive layer. Readings from Carlo Rovelli’s The Order of Time are voiced by actor Benedict Cumberbatch, while Devlin herself reads excerpts from Agnesi’s writings. These voices are underscored by an original composition from British music duo Polyphonia, featuring a solo violin arrangement based on Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61.
Pinacoteca di Brera – Cortile d’Onore - Salone del Mobile.Milano 2025 - ©Monica Spezia
Each evening at 8:00pm, visitors will gather as the installation “reads aloud” — the voice of the library itself reciting selected passages, their words flowing across LED displays. Visitors are also invited to interact with the space throughout the day, browsing the books, contributing volumes of their own, and participating in a living archive that will ultimately become part of the Milan Library System — a cultural gift to the city that will continue long after the installation is gone.
Library of Light is more than an installation; it is a living testament to the enduring power of books, light, and shared experience. It reflects the synaptic sparks between minds, between the past and future, and between the reader and the world.
Exhibition Details
Dates: 7–21 April 2025
Location: Cortile d’Onore, Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan
A project by Salone del Mobile
In collaboration with Pinacoteca di Brera and Grande Brera
With the contribution of Feltrinelli
Supported by A2A Energia
Opening Hours: 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Admission: Free
