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At the latest iteration of London’s most important annual design event, London Design Festival, the Greenwich Peninsula is lit up with a series of creative showcases, engaging talks and open studio visits. A permanent home to various creative industries in London, the historically and culturally rich Greenwich Peninsula, surrounded by the Thames on three sides, makes for an attractive location to come together and experience the many wonders of nature, history and design. The Greenwich Peninsula is one of the 12 design districts that sit under the London Design Festival, returning for the 20th time this year from September 17 to September 25, 2022. Besides being the newest district at the design fair, it is also the largest destination for contemporary design at LDF. From September 19 to 25, this design district in South East London aims to host various programmes celebrating the achievements in its first year, and showcasing the diversity now apparent in the creative industry. This district, which also hosts Design London and houses The O2 auditorium, a landmark building in London, United Kingdom, welcomes designers and design enthusiasts to the heart of Greenwich Peninsula, to experience Design District Creates, a multidisciplinary design event centred around imagination and ingenuity.
“It’s fantastic to be reaching our first birthday nearly fully let. We’ve had excellent support from our brilliant community of creatives, and they’ve really benefited from being around so many like-minded people. We’ve seen many tenants and Bureau members collaborate together and build strong working relationships that foster the feeling of community in the district. The kindness and openness among this community was very much hoped for, but it has been a brilliant surprise to see the extent to which it has taken hold,” says Helen Arvanitakis, Director of the design district, delineating the progress of the area after its inauguration last year.
The Greenwich Peninsula has evolved into a creative hotspot over the past year. With almost every creative sector now represented in the area and nearly every workspace now occupied, it enjoys an enviable reputation in the city. The Bureau, which is the flagship coworking space for creatives in the district, has an occupancy of 92%, making it a creative hub in the midst of the flourishing district. During LDF 2022, visitors can witness how this space has emerged at Design District Creates, which is lined up with a series of programmes ranging from industry talks, workshops, and pop-up installations to open-studio events and retail experiences.
STIR briefly visits the diverse programmes on show in the district, offering thus a glimpse of things to look out for.
Bureau Talks
Hosted by Bureau, the district’s co-working space for creatives, Bureau Talks is a series of three talks by leading voices in the creative industry. One of the most stimulating events in the district, it is concerned with addressing some of the key issues that plague the design industry today. The event is designed as an interactive programme, complete with panel discussions and Q&As. The talks highlight past factors that have shaped each designer’s journey as well as the evolution of the creative industry, the shift towards sustainability as well as its role in transforming the design industry, and the change expected in the industry in the digital future.
One of the Bureau Talks, namely The Right Stuff: The future of making and re-making, explores the necessity of sustainability. It features the likes of British fashion journalist Tamsin Blanchard, artist and designer Helen Kirkum and Piarve Wetshi, co-founder of fashion agency Colechi, and questions the practices adopted by designers and brands in the industry in its quest for a sustainable future. The talk takes place on September 20, 2022.
In Whatever doesn’t kill you: How to make better mistakes, taking place on September 21, 2022, British designer Tom Dixon, journalist and editor Harriet Quick and architect Farshid Moussavi OBE RA talk about their failures and the learnings derived from them. Simply described, it is an event that celebrates “creative screw-ups” and the lessons learnt from them.
The third Bureau Talk, namely New Realities: How to make it in the metaverse, focuses on the metaverse and the impact that its expansion has on the lives and work of designers. The lineup for this talk includes Scarlett Yang, a multidisciplinary designer; Ommy Akhe, a creative technologist and designer and Moin Roberts-Islam, Technology Development Manager at Fashion Innovation Agency at LCF. All three speakers, associated with the digital realm, come together to discuss the practicalities and possibilities of the metaverse on September 22, 2022.
Design District Experience Trail
Several creative studios on the Greenwich Peninsula open their doors to visitors during the design festival so that visitors can see their processes and work firsthand. While artist and designer Helen Kirkum showcases how head-turning trainers can be built using recycled and dead-stock materials, lighting design studio Haberdashery offer views into the many forms of light in their space. Uncommon Projects, a plywood manufacturer, displays formally designed kitchens as well as skincare and scent specialists. Homework reveals the process of fragrance creation from natural products. A few other experiences that one can hope to witness in the area include views of ceramics brand Made by Manos’s workshop, insight into the craft of leather making at Ryan London, a peek into professional photography at The Photography Foundation, and a live view of inksters in action at the tattoo studio Aura Ninety Four.
Retail Trail
While the entire Greenwich Peninsula is washed in a creative aura, the Retail Trail in the district offers the chance to carry some of this magic back home. The trail, dotted with pop-up shops that house product design creations by the resident creative community there, presents the opportunity to witness and acquire exclusive products. A few of these include flowers by Bloom East; candles and room fragrances by Homework; bicycle bags by Wizard Works; trivets by Uncommon Projects; coasters by Made by Manos; and limited-edition scarves by LGBTQ+ artspace QUEERCIRCLE in collaboration with Begg x Co.
Another interesting affair at the district includes an interactive peninsula trail themed around the (Greenwich-appropriate) concept of time. The walk, curated by Creative Quests, confronts the participants with a provocation at each of its 12 stops. A sensory design exhibition by Here.We.Go. Studio, an installation by Korean artist JeeYoung Lee and a pop-up art installation by designer Bibi Ahmed are a few other interesting experiences in the district.
The walks, street art installations, studio visits and interactive talks at Greenwich Peninsula come together to further add fervour to this creatively charged district.
The Greenwich Peninsula design district will remain open to the public from September 17 to September 25, 2022.
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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