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Design is rightfully perceived as an intrinsic element of an enterprise, health, and well-being. As the climate crisis, pollution, and resource depletion intensify with each passing day, taking steps towards building a sustainable and circular economy are imperative. This year, London Design Festival 2022 will emphasise the critical role of design in contemporary cities and societies through creative and innovative presentations. With a rich industrial heritage and filled with renowned cultural destinations such as Tate Modern, Shakespeare’s Globe, and Borough Market, the Bankside district is a magnet for visitors to London. This area of landmark commercial and residential developments runs east to west along the Thames from Borough Market to Oxo Tower Wharf.
Through a comprehensive programme and an impressive lineup, the Bankside design district will highlight its thriving creative and design industries. From amongst the showcases spotlighting the best in design, craft, and innovation, we trail through the event roster headlining the design district.
Material Matters
Materials shape our lives in more ways than we can fathom. Material innovation is fundamental in the conspicuous shift toward sustainable practices and, consequently, a better world. Material Matters 2022, a new fixture in London’s design calendar aims to accentuate just that. Material Matters, an expansion of Grant Gibson's successful podcast of the same name, will take over the five floors of Bargehouse, Oxo Tower Wharf. The much-awaited debut will be spread across themes of circular design, craft, workplace, and textiles while establishing an inspirational platform for architects, designers and interior design professionals. The design fair will reiterate the power of materials and materiality through an extensive talks programme, immersive installations, furniture design and product design by contemporary artists, designers and brands like LAYER, Foraform, Smile Plastics, Stuart Haygarth and Tom Robinson.
Public Installations by Better Bankside
Better Bankside, a Business Improvement District established in 2005 will present two public installations in the design district. The company’s collaboration with Fandangoe Kid Studios marks the 50th anniversary of London Pride. The vibrant hand-painted artwork saturates the existing Hope Exchange triangle in colours that celebrate the LGBTQ community in Bankside, London and across the world. The second installation commemorates 25 years of the iconic Shakespeare’s Globe. Better Bankside is set to display an interactive Shakespeare Art Trail with 25 immersive Shakespeare quotes scattered across the region, reintroducing the Great Bard's voice to Southwark, one of his favourite retreats. Photographic and illustration works, textile and graphic design, music and light-based projections, as well as street art and installations, will be used to supplement the Art Trail.
London Design Festival at Oxo Tower Wharf
Visitors will get an opportunity to discover all that Oxo Tower Wharf has to offer during the London Design Festival. With a roster of over 25 designer-maker open studios across two floors, the Oxo Tower Wharf will house showcases ranging from millinery to ceramic design, weaving to leatherworking and much more. The newly announced design fair Material Matters will also take over Bargehouse and gallery@oxo with installations, talks and more. The iconic building morphs into a harbour for the design curious owing to the creative community occupying studio showrooms on the first and second floors that can be visited to browse, buy, commission and learn. Moreover, many studios will be hosting their special events for LDF 2022 in this creative haven waiting to be discovered.
Exhibition by Xena Kalouti
As part of the design event, Jordan-based architect-designer Xena Kalouti's eponymous brand will honour materials, legacy, and traditional craftsmanship via an ensemble of made-to-order design products. Kalouti’s oeuvre positions itself at the crossroads of art, design and architecture, revoking traces of heritage that have faded into oblivion. Her design process stems from an interrogation of local heritage, ritualisation of materials through time and materials’ transformative capacities.
Plato collection by Yasemin Toygar
Istanbul-based designer Yasemin Toygar, debuts into the multisensory world of furniture design with Plato. The designer's namesake luxury furniture firm, located in London, will debut a slew of new designs, including a unique collection of sculptural pouffes handcrafted in an artisanal studio in Istanbul. The collection draws inspiration from geometric still-life and explores the boundaries of sensory meaning in mundane objects. The designs are uplifted by a strong sense of materiality and aim to connect with the viewer on a personal and intellectual level. The designs feature an intriguing harmony between contrasts—softness and rigidity, abstract and material, lightness and heaviness—through the judicious use of materials. The handcrafted and customisable pieces iterate Toygar’s belief that furniture should be a reflection of one’s unique perception of the world.
Night Club
Exhausted from working late hours at the office? One out of every five workers is subjected to a similar ordeal. Night Club is a transformational engagement programme that invites shift workers, employers, sleep scientists and policymakers to navigate the negative impact of working night shifts and irregular hours and find solutions to create healthier working experiences. The experience presents evidence-based sleep health data to workers in situ during their shifts. It will also be a platform for employees to learn how to improve sleep and wellbeing, speak with a sleep expert and share their personal experiences of working night shifts. During the London Design Festival, Night Club will be unveiled in Better Bankside’s Southwark Street Arch to extend a helping hand to shift workers in the locality. The general public will also be given a chance to come at selected times and learn about improving their sleep and supporting those who work shifts.
Everything you need to know about London Design Festival 2022. Celebrating its 20th year, the festival takes over the city of London with installations, exhibitions, and talks from major design districts such as Brompton, Shoreditch Design Triangle, Greenwich Peninsula, Design London, Clerkenwell Design Trail, Park Royal, Mayfair, Bankside, King's Cross, William Morris Line, and Islington.
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