First look at London Design Festival 2024, a global showcase of creative talent
London Design Festival 2024 programme announced, with special commissions across the city's landmarks by emerging talent and forward-thinking brands (14 - 22 September 2024)
The London Design Festival 2024 programme has been announced, with a focus on international talent and a renewed mission to celebrate ‘creativity, innovation and the power of design to shape our world’. Supported by the Mayor of London and Bloomberg Philanthropies, the London Design Festival’s next edition will take over the city with installations and exhibitions at key cultural institutions and design districts
London Design Festival 2024: what to expect
Landmark projects across London include an installation by ‘a future facing designer’ in collaboration with London Design Festival partner Johnnie Walker, and Vert, an installation at the Parade Ground at Chelsea College of Art by Diez Office and AHEC, in partnership with climate farming experts OMC°C. An innovative proposal for cooling cities, the installation will include a structure made from American red oak holding a biodegradable net with a curated selection of around 20 plant species. ‘The living ecosystem will support local biodiversity, serve as a habitat for essential insect populations, enrich the urban environment, and provide a sheltered space where visitors to the Festival can gather and relax.’
Meanwhile, Duo by Turkish designer Melek Zeynep at the Royal Naval College’s Painted Hall is a symbolic installation comprising a series of prisms, ‘encapsulating the essence of 'two': a dialogue, a duality, an agreement, and the dynamic interplay between the centre and periphery.’
Other festival commissions include a partnership between London Design Festival Emerging Design Medal winners, Power Out of Restriction (POoR Collective) and Battersea Power Station, which will result in a community-led riverside installation by the London-based collective, and Craft x Tech Tohoku Project, launched in Japan this past May and on view at the V&A’s Prince Consort Gallery.
Also at the V&A will be Giles Tettey Nartey’s ‘Communion’, originally created in partnership with AHEC for Wallpaper’s Class of ‘24 exhibition at Triennale Milano, and further commissions by emerging designers Arjun Singh Assa, Liang-Jung Chen, and Angela Ford, as well as Modular by Mensah with Bridge of Weir Leather and Muirhead.
The return of Material Matters
A regular highlight of London Design Festival is the Material Matters fair, established in 2022 by Grant Gibson off the back of the design podcast of the same name. Set at Bargehouse, Oxo Tower Wharf, from 18-21 September, the fair showcases brands and designers united by 'an innate sense of material intelligence and the desire to make the world a slightly better place.'
‘London Design Festival 2024 promises to be another strong year,’ says Ben Evans, London Design Festival Director. ‘The lineup is set to offer fresh perspectives and innovative ideas that will captivate and inspire our audiences. Equally important, the Festival continues to champion inclusivity and provides crucial opportunities for emerging talent to shine. We take great pride in the Festival's role in expanding the reach of designers and creative businesses, reaffirming design's profound impact on our society.’
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
London Design Festival 2024 runs from 14 - 22 September
Rosa Bertoli was born in Udine, Italy, and now lives in London. Since 2014, she has been the Design Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees design content for the print and online editions, as well as special editorial projects. Through her role at Wallpaper*, she has written extensively about all areas of design. Rosa has been speaker and moderator for various design talks and conferences including London Craft Week, Maison & Objet, The Italian Cultural Institute (London), Clippings, Zaha Hadid Design, Kartell and Frieze Art Fair. Rosa has been on judging panels for the Chart Architecture Award, the Dutch Design Awards and the DesignGuild Marks. She has written for numerous English and Italian language publications, and worked as a content and communication consultant for fashion and design brands.
-
Out of office: what the Wallpaper* editors have been doing this week
Investing in quality knitwear, scouting a very special pair of earrings and dining with strangers are just some of the things keeping the Wallpaper* team occupied this week
By Bill Prince Published
-
Layover in style at Melbourne Airport’s new hotel
Ibis Styles Melbourne Airport hotel by FK brings together elegant rooms, co-working lounges and leisure facilities in a striking aircraft wing-inspired design
By Daven Wu Published
-
Forged in the California desert, Jonathan Cross’ brutalist ceramic sculptures go on show in NYC
Joshua Tree-based artist Jonathan Cross’ sci-fi-influenced works are on view at Elliott Templeton Fine Arts in New York's Chinatown
By Dan Howarth Published
-
‘At its best, it's all an act of love’: Apparatus’ Gabriel Hendifar on building a cult design brand
For our interview series with those lighting up London Design Festival 2024, Apparatus’ co-founder Gabriel Hendifar reflects on the New York brand's future, and its first year in London
By Ali Morris Published
-
‘If there wasn't a demand for design that fits the psyche of the day, we'd still be sitting on Victorian furniture,’ Sheridan Coakley, SCP founder
As part of our London Design Festival 2024 interview series, Sheridan Coakley speaks about four decades of the fair
By Ali Morris Published
-
‘If kids grew up going to London Design Festival they would learn so much’: architect Shawn Adams
In the first of our interviews with key figures lighting up the London Design Festival 2024, Shawn Adams, founder of POoR Collective, discusses the power of such events to encourage social change
By Ali Morris Published
-
Wallpaper's London Design Festival 2024 itinerary: don’t miss a thing
What to see at London Design Festival 2024 (14 – 22 September), from Annie Frost Nicholson's interactive Juicy Booth to rare furniture designed by Pierre Jeanneret and Le Corbusier
By Tianna Williams Last updated
-
‘The future is hypermobile’: portability guides Tom Dixon’s Coal office exhibitions
London Design Festival 2023: at Coal Office, Tom Dixon explores themes of hypermobility in collaboration with cutting-edge contemporary brands, mixing AI, tech and research
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
Ozwald Boateng reimagines Poltrona Frau classics
Savile Row tailor Ozwald Boateng was invited by Poltrona Frau to interpret its iconic designs through colour and pattern, marking the beginning of an ongoing collaboration
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
Jasper Morrison explores infinite possibilities of bamboo in London exhibition
London Design Festival 2023: Jasper Morrison collaborates with Japan Creative to showcase the versatility of bamboo
By Danielle Demetriou Published
-
At London Design Festival, VitrA London transforms through design and play
VitrA London presents ‘Playscape’ by 2LG Studio, an installation coinciding with London Design Festival inspired by sci-fi aesthetics
By Rosa Bertoli Published