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London's third Design Biennial to be directed by Es Devlin and will explore the theme of 'Resonance'

2019-02-27T14:54:00-05:00

The third edition of the London Design Biennale, which will take place from September 8th, 2020 through the 27th, will explore the theme of 'Resonance.' With Es Devlin at the helm as artistic director, the Biennale will showcase the responses of over 50 participating countries, cities and territories to the prompt laid out by the notable artist and designer.

"We live in an age of hyper resonance, the consequences of which are both exhilarating and devastating," cautioned Devlin. "Everything we design and everything we produce resonates."

As someone who has created stage sets for the Weeknd, Beyoncé, Adele, and the like, Devlin is well-acquainted with space in the digital era. Known for her artistically and technically ambitious approaches, she regularly harnesses the power of fast-paced technology to grab a mass audience.

Devlin's set design for Lady Gaga's Monster Ball US Theater Tour (2009/2010)

"In our global, digital era, design can reach instantly across borders and bridge cul...

Archinect's top picks for the London Design Festival

2016-09-10T01:07:00-04:00

London Design Festival is always a highlight of the city's cultural landscape, and this year is no exception, with a number of new events added as well as many returning exhibitions.

Here are Archinect's top picks for London Design Festival 2016:

London Design Biennale at Somerset House:

7-27 September. Open daily from 11AM. Somerset House, Strand, WC2R 1LA Tickets on sale via Ticketmaster

The heavily anticipated London Design Biennale is launching this year for its inaugural exhibition. During its three-week takeover, the Biennale will showcase installations, artworks, prototypes, and designs from over 37 different countries and territories, all exploring the Biennale's 2016 theme: "Utopia by Design".

Highlights from the Biennale include:

Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby's 14-metre, kinetic sculpture that highlights wind energy usage in the UK.

Lebanon's Annabel Karim Kassar's Beirut street scene. The work explores social interactions and use of space, through a s...

The Wish Machine by Autoban, part of the London Design Biennale, invites visitors to walk through a tunnel made of transparent hexagonal tubes

2016-08-18T11:38:00-04:00

This September the first ever London Design Biennale will take place at Somerset House with featured projects from over thirty countries. The inaugural show is themed 'Utopia by Design' and celebrates the 500th anniversary of the publication of Sir Thomas More's classic, Utopia (1516).

Turkey's contribution to the biennale is 'The Wish Machine' designed by Istanbul-based multidisciplinary design studio, Autoban. The installation is inspired by the cultural tradition of threading a note or memento to the branch of a tree as an act of hope born out of hopelessness.

' The installation located in West Wing G1A at Somerset House appears as an interactive pneumatic system operating in a mirrored space. Visitors will be invited to walk through a tunnel that is made of transparent hexagonal tubes. They will share their hopes and wishes, vision of utopias, and aspiration for the future, by writing them on paper, and feeding them to the Wish Machine through a lid at the dead end. Notes will the...

London will host its first Design Biennale at Somerset House in 2016

2015-07-18T03:25:00-04:00

London is ready to join the design biennale club as it begins working toward launching its very first international design biennale at the Somerset House on September 7-27, 2016**. Modeled after the biannual Venice architecture and art events, London plans to gather up to 40 countries that will contribute representative design installations and exhibitions in response to a particular theme. The Neoclassical Somerset House, a former royal-palace cultural hotspot near the banks of the River Thames, will serve as an elaborate backdrop for the event.

With Dr. Christopher Turner as deputy director, participants will address the theme "Utopia by Design', in marking the 500th anniversary of the publication of Sir Thomas More's fictional classic Utopia.

"Participants are encouraged to interrogate the history of the utopian idea and engage with some of the fundamental issues faced by humanity, suggesting solutions to them that use design and engineering. Their responses will not only show desi...