The third edition of MI/ARCH (International Architecture Festival organized by the Milan Polytechnic with artistic direction by Stefano Boeri) takes place from 7 to 10 October, mostly at the Patio Ipogeo of the School of Architecture, a multipurpose space designed by Vittoriano Viganò and built from 1970 to 1983 for the expansion of the Department of Architecture.

For four days MI/ARCH will propose – in an incredible number of free events open to the public – the idea of architecture as a weave of art, technique and social projects. After the leading international architects who have redesigned Milan, who gave lectures at the first edition, and the tribute to Gio Ponti last year, this third edition of MI/ARCH will transform the Patio into a place full of architectural “Sparks”: Italian and international.

At MI/ARCH there will be many protagonists of international architecture, including Tony Fretton, Rudy Ricciotti, Ma Yansong, Xaveer De Geeyter, Julien De Smedt, Joseph Grima, Pier Vittorio Aureli/Dogma, Iwan Baan, Benedetta Tagliabue, and in the successive weeks two special events with Mario Bellini (22 October) and Steven Holl (who will receive an honorary degree on 18 November).

With them, the most interesting voices of Milanese and Italian architecture: from Cino Zucchi to Stefano Boeri, Andrea Branzi to Vittorio Gregotti, Italo Rota to Alessandro Scandurra, Renato Rizzi to Maria Giuseppina Grasso Cannizzo, Mauro Galantino to Beniamino Servino.

But MI/ARCH will also be a stage for a new generation of emerging architects on the European scene, like Onsitestudio, Rotor, Baukuh, Unlab, SPSK, Labics, Dontstop, Davide Rapp, Matilde Cassani, stARTT and BuildingBuilding.

The roster is completed by big names of contemporary design in Milan: Enzo Mari, Patricia Urquiola, Mario Bellini, Antonio Citterio, Michele De Lucchi, Piero Lissoni and Fabio Novembre.

Together with the Schools of Architecture and Design of the Polytechnic, the magazines Domus, Interni and Lotus and the academies of Milan will organize events and encounters.

From the patio, visitors can take part in MiArch/OFF, with guided Vespa and bus tours of the architecture of 20th-century Milan.

For the complete program: https://www.eventi.polimi.it/#miarch2015