The architecture of a dream

Turning thirty has always had a particular significance. Not just for the Festival, which celebrates its anniversary this year, but especially for young people. It carries a weight of quiet expectation, marking an age by which you should have everything figured out, maybe have already started a family, definitely own a house. However, in this precarious world, which is growing more expensive by the day, it seems impossible. A shared worry, something that Gen Z and Millennials think about constantly. Writer and translator Vincenzo Latronico and illustrator and graphic designer Olimpia Zagnoli bring this issue to the stage of Mantova's Teatro Bibiena, the 18th Century theatre's splendour clashing with talks on the relentless pursuit of an ideal living space.

Zagnoli began documenting apartment viewings on Instagram in 2015 under the project Casa Futura (Future Home). What started as a personal archive to allow her to free up space in her gallery and remember floor plans and interior details, ended up becoming a seven year project. Her account resonated broadly, revealing that the solitary, disheartening search for a living space in Milan was a deeply shared cultural experience.

Latronico addresses these dynamics in his novels, including Le perfezioni (Perfection) and the newest Una splendida rovina (A Lovely Ruin). "The real estate writer" confesses his addiction to real estate listings, which he finds more compelling than libraries. Latronico's narratives explore how digital aesthetics, gentrification, and interior design shape contemporary identity. His characters attempt to curate stability in environments defined by mobility and impermanence: a house takes on even more importance now that it cannot be taken for granted.

During their discussion, mediated by Marianna Albini, both artists rejected the corporate metaphors often applied to modern life, such as viewing personal growth as productivity. Instead, they framed the domestic sphere as an intimate sanctuary where personal choices inevitably reflect broader economic realities, reinforcing the truth that the personal remains profoundly political.