Finn Juhl's Archive of Drawings Unfolds at Exhibition in Milan
During Milan Design Week, an extensive collection of watercolors and drawings by Danish designer Finn Juhl is presented in a new exhibition at the Italian gallery Settantaventidue.
Opening on April 21, 2026, the exhibition highlights a rarely explored dimension of Finn Juhl's work: his practice with exhibition design and interiors – from the Danish Pavilion at the Milan Triennale to the Good Design exhibitions in Chicago in the 1950s. Rather than focusing solely on furniture as isolated objects, the exhibition reveals a designer deeply engaged with the relationship between space, atmosphere, and perception.
While Finn Juhl is known worldwide for his iconic furniture, the exhibition brings renewed attention to his work with exhibition design and interiors – an aspect of his practice that was highly acclaimed in his own lifetime, yet remains largely overlooked today. Brought together for the first time for this exhibition, the extensive collection of watercolors and sketches demonstrates Finn Juhl's intuitive grasp of space, proportion, and light, as well as a rare ability to integrate furniture as active, atmosphere-defining elements within a unified spatial experience.
With their organic lines and painterly character, the drawings transcend their function as prepatory tools, instead standing as independent works of art that establish a poetic and intellectual framework for a deeper understanding of his approach.
Settantaventidue is a non-profit gallery and cultural venue located by the Navigli canals in Milan, known for combining design, architecture, contemporary art, sound art, and music. The gallery's architecture creates a labyrinth of rooms varying in shape and size, where visual art, sound art, and architecture are experienced in dialogue. During Milan Design Week, a series of concerts in the gallery's sound space will further activate the exhibition, enhancing the spatial and sensory qualities of the watercolors.
With his sculptural approach to form and proportion, Finn Juhl stands as one of the most significant figures of Danish modernism. As a self-taught furniture designer, he challenged both the heavy furniture tradition and the strict norms of functionalism in the 1940s and 1950s, introducing a more expressive, organic, and artistic approach to furniture design.
The exhibition is realised in collaboration between Designmuseum Danmark, Settantaventidue, and House of Finn Juhl, presenting a rare and significant collection of Finn Juhl's drawings. It invites audiences to experience his design practice from a new perspective and underscores his significance as one of the most prominent designers of the 20th century.
Exhibition: Watercolors by Finn Juhl, Gallery Settantaventidue
Milan Design Week: April 21-26, 2026, 11:00 am - 7:00 pm
Exhibition dates: April 21 - June 15, 2026
Address: Via Lodovico Il Moro 1, Milan
