COmeta: Design Taking Shape with the Autistic Community

From Real Life to Design

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The 14th edition of the COmeta Laboratory at the Politecnico di Milano's School of Design has concluded. This educational experience centered the quality of life of autistic people in the design process through continuous, direct collaboration with the autism community.

On 22 January, a public exhibition showcased student projects developed through research and design deeply rooted in the lived experiences of autistic people.

Within the Laboratory, research with people was not conceived as a separate preliminary phase, but as a structural element of the entire design process. The perspectives of autistic people informed all stages of the work: from the formulation of research questions to design decisions, from the definition of priorities to the evaluation of final outcomes. This approach resulted in diverse, concrete, and strongly situated projects.

The final examination took the form of an exhibition hosted in the main atrium of the Politecnico di Milano, showcasing the breadth and variety of themes addressed: from sports activities such as swimming and bowling, to food selectivity, as well as more established domains – such as personal hygiene and transportation – reinterpreted through new perspectives. The plurality of contexts explored reflects the complexity of autistic people’s everyday experiences and highlights the role of design as a tool capable of responding to authentic and specific needs.

Each group developed a physical, tangible, and interactive model, allowing visitors to directly engage with the design proposals. The experiential dimension of the exhibition fostered active dialogue and a shared evaluation of the projects, grounded in direct interaction with the artefacts.

Autistic people and organizations within the COmeta network actively participated in the evaluation of the projects alongside the teaching staff, making a substantial contribution to the concluding phase of the Laboratory. This experience demonstrates how genuine collaboration entails sharing processes of knowledge production and rethinking traditional hierarchies within design practice.

The exhibition conveys a vision of design as a practice capable of facilitating dialogue between diverse perspectives and of valuing the complexity of human experience.

This year's final projects are:

Rollie

Group: Basarab Karyna, Coco Martina, Corradi Carlotta, Zanetti Luca Vittorio
A compartmentalised bag designed for open water swimming, created to support autistic people in pursuing their passion for sport independently and in an organised manner.

Dual Grip

Group: Bertinazzo Michele, Frigerio Elena, Gementi Martina, Tagliabue Giorgia
An adaptable aid that alleviates ergonomic problems during independent house cleaning, improving comfort and control of movement.

Vico

Group: Imbornone Francesca, Sambin Andrea Jacopo, Sisti Luca, Zhang Yikang
A “parasitic” coat hanger that facilitates rapid dressing and undressing in small domestic contexts, reducing complexity and stress in daily routines.

Pingo

Group: Bovo Riccardo, Santini Simone, Saporiti Gaia, Sarli Edoardo
Street furniture designed to enable artistic practice in parks and encourage informal socialising.

Aware

Group: Baldan Bembo Rebecca, Stiavelli Lorenzo, Zambelli Matilde, D'Elia Lorenzo
A set of camouflage jewellery that supports multisensory stimulus management, enabling new dynamics of social interaction in public settings.

Stapla

Group: Coral Sofia, Sozio Geremia Antonio, Tracchi Christian, Wyse Edoardo Tomas
A totemic object for managing time in the home, designed for people who tend to hyperfocus or, conversely, are easily distracted.

Hojo

Group: Capoferri Mariavittoria, Pacetti Nicolò, Palladini Filippo, Tomelleri Adele Anna
A bag designed to support daily travel, containing tools for relaxation and release in case of meltdown, accompanied by a do-it-yourself variant.

Shake / Bloom

Group: Bevoni Arianna, Fratepietro Alessia, Lobato Gallego Bárbara, Mariani Carolina Maria
Two complementary projects to promote independence in the kitchen: Shake, a toy product for making ice cream in a fun way, and Bloom, a kit that encourages independent meal preparation through planning.

Numa

Group: Cerboni Filippo, Montrasio Achille, Patuzzo Anna, Rombolà Mattia
A portable, personal object designed to combat the unpleasantness of interacting with public toilets.

Bowly

Group: Esposito Giovanni, Manganelli Jacopo, Paganini Mattia, Tricarico Francesco
A “smart” bowling ball designed to develop micro-motor skills and grip control, with a view to preparing children for the game.

Sfigurine

Group: Bizau Luisa Diana, Candiani Luca, Migliorato Andrea, Previtali Ludovica
A deck of cards that encourages socialisation in unstructured contexts, using irony and the sharing of one's fragilities as a lever for trust.

Armonia

Group: Dixon Samuele, Lovati Simone, Pirozzi Simone, Rimoldi Greta
A kit of wearable accessories for managing sensory stimuli in public contexts.

Onda / Idria / Aura

Group: Di Landri Maddalena, Guarino Maria Elena, Ni Yuxin, Reverberi Valentina, Schmalzbauer Isabella

An integrated system consisting of a swimsuit for menstrual management, a portable box for organising washing processes in and after the shower, and a sports backpack to hold and transport the entire set.

The Laboratorio COmeta thus confirms itself as a space for intersectional dialogue, where design becomes a tool for listening, mediation and social responsibility, facilitating encounters between students, communities, associations and the academic world.

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