Established in 2003, the London Design Festival is a citywide celebration that brings together a global community of designers, artists, architects, and retailers to activate projects responding to the transformative power of design.
In 2016 over 400 events and installations will take place, from an engaging programme at the Victoria and Albert Museum to large scale installations across landmark locations. These interventions reflect the stimulating diversity of creative thinking, and are all united in their ability to inspire, entertain and arouse curiosity.
The Festival is a platform for innovative design initiatives, showcasing ideas from more than 300 partners who represent the best of London’s design community. Widespread participation reflects the role of creative businesses as a leading force in the city’s economy, which represents the UK’s fastest growing sector.
This year, the Festival welcomes British Land as Headline Partner for the first time. The company has a long history of working with leaders in architecture, art and design to enhance and enliven places and environments in tune with modern lifestyles.
British Land and the London Design Festival will work together for the second time to host the prestigious awards evening, The British Land Celebration of Design.
This year’s awards for design will be again chosen by an illustrious selection board of established designers and previous winners including Dr Martin Roth (Director, V&A), Paul Thompson (Rector, Royal College of Art) and Justine Simons (Head of Culture, Mayor of London). Winners will be selected from a wide range of design disciplines, chosen for their exceptional contribution to their design field.
A dinner to celebrate the winners will be held during the Festival at the iconic new development at the Tate Modern.
The Festival has worked closely with the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) for several years on creative projects, resulting in successful collaborations such as Timber Wave, Endless Stair and The Wish List, all exhibiting the versatility and potential of sustainable timbers. This year AHEC, award-winning firm Alison Brooks Architects, Arup, Merk and the London Design Festival collaborate to create a new installation, The Smile.
Alison Brooks has designed an urban installation for this year’s London Design Festival that showcases the structural and spatial potential of cross–laminated hardwood, using American tulipwood. The Smile is a structure that can be inhabited and explored, and which offers a new way of looking at the city.
Using construction sized panels of hardwood CLT for the first time, Alison Brooks’ concept is of a 3.5m high and 36m long curved rectangular tube - a very pure and efficient structural form, and the first ever mega-tube made of timber.
The timber tube is curved into a long upside down arc – hence its name – which, like a wheel, only touches the ground at one point. The, curved form allows the Smile to cantilever out from its centre point to reach out into space. The cantilevers hover above the ground, creating sheltered outdoor spaces. Each end of the tube is open to the air; cinematic apertures that offer balcony views to the landscape. At night these apertures will project light from each end, creating an endless smile.
As the core location of the Festival, the V&A will again house a broad range of commissioned activity across the Museum such as the exhibition "Foil" by Benjamin Hubert and "Liquid Marble" by Mathieu Lehanneur. Installations, events, talks and workshops will take place, including the hugely popular weekend events, Graphics and Digital Design.
The unique collaboration between the V&A and the London Design Festival began in 2009 and has offered a packed programme of lunchtime lectures, gallery talks, hands-on workshops and provocative debates every year.
Each day of talks at the V&A is themed, helping visitors and participants to make the most of their time and interests during the Festival.
This year, the themes are: Graphics (the weekend of 17 and 18), Future / Liveable Cities (Monday 19), Makers (Tuesday 20), International (Wednesday 21), Engineering (Thursday 22), Working in Design (Friday 23), and Digital Design (the weekend of 24 and 25). On Friday 23 September the Museum will remain open until 10pm, with activities including music, talks and tours.
The first ever London Design Biennale will take over the entirety of Somerset House this September (7 – 27 September), bringing together some of the world’s most exciting and ambitious designers, innovators and cultural bodies for an exhibition exploring the role of design in our collective futures.
A group of more than 36 nations from six continents are developing presentations that will explore the Biennale’s inaugural theme Utopia by Design, addressing issues such as sustainability, migration, pollution, water and social equality.The UK will be represented by London-based designers Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby, with an installation curated by the Victoria and Albert Museum. Other leading institutions, museums and organisations representing their countries include the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum (USA), DAMnation (Belgium), German Design Council, Directorate-General for the Arts (Portugal), Moscow Design Museum (Russia), Triennale Design Museum (Italy), India Design Forum, Southern Guild (South Africa), and The Japan Foundation.
This will be a centrepiece of UTOPIA 2016 – Somerset House’s year-long programme celebrating the 500th anniversary of the publication of Thomas More’s inspirational text, Utopia.
As part of the activity during the Festival, a number of large group shows will take place across London, featuring work from a local and international network of both new and established exhibitors. Exciting and innovative design will be debuted at these ‘Design Destinations’, which are key events for both designers and manufacturers aiming to build their presence and reach new audiences.
Design Destinations comprise:
- 100% Design at Olympia London (21-24)
- Decorex International at Syon Park (18-21)
- designjunction at King’s Cross (22-25)
- Focus/16 at Design Centre Chelsea Harbour (18-23)
- London Design Fair (including the Tent London & Super Brands London) at Old Truman Brewery (22-25)
In 2016, there will be eight official Design Districts spread across the capital during the Festival. Design Districts are areas where there are distinct concentrations of design activity and events that can be traversed easily on foot. Each District is organised locally and independently under the umbrella of the London Design Festival. This year will see a new Design District, Brixton, take part in the Festival.
The Districts now comprise: Bankside Design District, Brixton Design Trail, Brompton Design District, Chelsea Design Quarter, Clerkenwell Design Quarter, Islington Design District, Queens Park Design District, Shoredict Design Triangle.