Of
Silvia Calvi
We asked eight illustrious faces to talk about the city they would like in the year that begins: some imagine it less rushed, some with more space for young people. But everyone, absolutely everyone, wants it to be welcoming
Eight characters from Milan or very close to the city. Some historian friends of Courier and others at the center of the cultural life of the city and the country. Figures loved and known by the public, also representative of the many Milanese authors and artists who, with their work as writers, poets, playwrights and actors, contribute every day to making our city richer, more beautiful and more stimulating. We asked some of them to dedicate a thought to Milan. Here then, in alphabetical order, are the best wishes from Gigio Alberti, Gianni Biondillo, Luca Crovi, Andrea Kerbaker, Vivian Lamarque, Paolo Maggioni, Alessandro Robecchi and Marina Visentin. Happy New Year everyone!
In search of beauty, like Stendhal
We know that Stendhal was completely in love with our city: «among the people of Milan, born for Beauty, they focus on the degree of beauty of the façade of a new house for a month at a time». I would like to be that Stendhal over there, to be able to see today, all around, that search for Beauty from two centuries ago. But I still try to love you a little, city, even if dirt has invaded us like Russia and Ukraine, even if the degree of beauty of the facades has been bombarded with graffiti, even if our beautiful Cathedral is witnessing in astonishment the occupation of its square which has also fallen into enemy hands. I hope that a good breath reaches you, reaches us all. May these last few years have only been our Bad Copy and that tomorrow the Beauty begins. The nib shines, let’s get started.
Vivian Lamarque
Beyond the skyscrapers built in the courtyard: time to think
To paraphrase «Miracle in Milan», I would like to live in a place where «Buon anno» really means «Happy New Year». So, without tirade, I wish an excellent 2026 to all the Milanese (that is, those who have lived here for at least a quarter of an hour) who toil, work and study to run this glittering amusement park for millionaires. And also to those who have built a skyscraper in their backyard. And to those who want more peace than war. And in general to those who think that in a place you really feel good if everyone feels good there, and that the inclined plane can be straightened. And there are already quite a few people to wish 2026 a better than 2025 in this city and everywhere. Maybe they are boring and generic wishes, there’s no rush, we’ll think about it after the panettone and sparkling wine, but let’s think about it, though! Happy New Year indeed.
Alessandro Robecchi
A good wind that sweeps away smog and resentment
Many windy days and blue skies, this is my wish for Milan and the Milanese for the coming year. Wind that sweeps away the clouds, the fine dust, the anger, the boredom, the remorse, the regrets, the resentments. Wind that cleans the air and helps us breathe better. To see this city and those who live there better. Wind that becomes energy, opens the gaze, makes the senses more acute, capable of understanding the needs of children and the dreams of adolescents, the fears of women, the dismay of men, the tiredness of the old, the many daily hardships that are reflected on the faces of the strangers who inhabit this city space, sometimes welcoming and sometimes not. Good wind to us, to each of us, but yesespecially to those who try to make Milan a better place to live every day. Better for everyone.
Marina Visentin
Time to rediscover irony
It would be easy to hope that 2026 will be the year in which some fundamental balances are found in Milan: between the very rich and groups with little or no protection, between skyscrapers and “normal” buildings, between architects and civil society, between local powers and those who govern us in Rome, and so on. But I think that most of all we should hope for a rediscovery of irony: what today seems a little set asidebut, from Porta’s irreverent rhymes to Gadda’s biting prose, it has always been part of our cultural tradition, allowing us not to feel too sorry for ourselves as we went through the storms or simple thunderstorms of history. And – speaking of Gadda – 2026 will be the 100th anniversary of Bagutta, the only prize that recognized his stature: I hope that many glasses will be raised for what was the first Italian literary prize.
Andrea Kerbaker
Let’s give our kids a home
I wish Milan to return to being the city that doesn’t ask where you were born but what you can do, the city that innovates, invents, changes, and which, however, as it moves, does not forget the slowest, the last, giving everyone (really everyone) an opportunity. I wish Milan more courage and foresight in its urban planning choices. I hope for the project of an infrastructural ring that connects the railway yards and also a large orbital parkas in every self-respecting major metropolis in the world. I wish Milan to remember its young people, who are running away, frustrated, even if they would like to stay. We must believe in them, give them an affordable home, a decent salary, a living space where their talent can express itself. Talent that we need more than air (unbreathable, unfortunately).
Gianni Biondillo
Let’s go out and meet in a city of all
My wish for the new year is perhaps a a little anti-historical, but I hope that Milan begins to lose its vocation as a city of the rich and extends his arms to welcome everyone. And then that people begin to spend more time away from home, that oratories, pitches, theatres, cinemas and churches, all possible meeting spaces, begin to fill up again. In short, in the new year the Milanese will go out again: only outside the house, in the street there is hope of meeting and discussing with others to produce many small changes. The Olympics are welcome, the first of the new year’s events, but it is not through big events that change can happen and that can involve everyone, even kids… And given that there are fewer and fewer kids in Milan, my hope is that next year there will be even more kids.
Gigio Alberti
The Games are coming, but it will be a year of spirituality
I count the days, like many Milanese. The occasion is unforgettable, the embrace of the five Olympic rings gives a dream and a goal: to give back to the city its deepest, most supportive, inclusive soul. Because if it is true that every competition involves a wild chase to victory, the Olympics also convey the strength of participation. It’s a good metaphor for Milan today; metropolis that knows how to attract and run strong but which must not forget its inclination to take care of those who don’t succeed to keep up. It is not just a duty but a way of keeping one’s richest history alive: a large city vibrant in its contradictions, not just a free port for those with a successful life. And in this flying high, numerology comforts us: 26 indicates relationships, emotions, responsibility, spirituality. Happy New Year, Milan!”.
Paolo Maggioni
Always in a hurry, but let’s think about traditions
To my city which is a metropolis that is always in a hurry, projected forward, as if only speed gives it breathing space, I hope for a little slowness to be able to better observe its new changes and I wish you a happy recovery of your memory. As a graduate in ancient philosophy, I perceive how the past is important for Milan and constitutes its irreplaceable energy. So I hope that my city gives itself some time for itself, its traditions and its language: “in Milan what can’t be done tomorrow”. To ignite the emotions before the eyes of the Madunina I hope there will be casoela, buseca and risot with the OSS bus in the new year together with the poetry, theater and songs of the Gran Milan.
Luca Crovi
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December 31, 2025
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