Next year it’s back to business, from the launch of Manchester’s Factory International to the relaunch of a historic theatre in New York. Here are the events and openings we’re looking forward to in 2023.
Dhaka Art Summit, Bangladesh
When: 3-11 February 2023
The international, non-commercial exhibition platform for South Asian art and architecture examines work as it relates to the subcontinent. This year founders at the Samdani Art Foundation have commissioned young Bangla and diaspora artists to contribute pieces speaking to themes of climate and flooding affecting the nation.
Palm Springs Modernism Week, USA
When:16-26 February 2023 and 19-22 October 2023
Palm Springs takes advantage of its supreme climate in February to hold its annual Modernism Week, inviting midcentury architecture buffs for a schedule of home tours, lectures, bike tours, live music and parties among the palms. Then, in autumn, they turn around and do it all again.
Exhibit Columbus in Indiana, USA
25 February 2023, August 2023
The modernist roots of this small midwestern city are little known outside the state, so on select dates in 2023, the city will host exhibitions, symposia and guided tours to explore and relish Columbus’s design heritage. During summer, site-specific pavilions and installations will also pop up in the city.
African Grove Theatre opening, New York, USA
Spring 2023
The new memorial will sit atop the footprint of the original African Grove on NYU’s campus, built in 1821. It will stand as a tribute to black theatre history and its impact on American culture and will also be used by the Tisch School’s graduate acting programme and professional directors to highlight and promote Black theatre.
Architecture + Design Film Festival in Winnipeg, Canada
26-30 April 2023
This underrated Canadian Mecca of modernism punches above its weight when it comes to culture. For this week in April, the Winnipeg Architecture Foundation rounds up a schedule of critically acclaimed films emphasising the crucial nature of architecture in everyday life.
Venice Architecture Biennale, Italy
20 May-26 November 2023
The 18th international architecture exhibition will be a ‘laboratory of the future’, curated by Lesley Lokko, founder of the African Futures Institute (AFI) in Accra, Ghana. The ‘laboratory’ to which she refers and plans to spotlight is Africa, the world’s youngest and fastest-growing continent.
Melbourne Design Week, Australia
18-28 May 2023
Australia’s design capital draws from the country’s best designers for an 11-day programme of exhibitions, talks and workshops from a diverse group. A focus on collectable design pushes this festival into the world’s top rankings for conceptual and high-end work. It presents a fantastic opportunity to connect with the city’s creative heart.
London Design Biennale, UK
1-25 June 2023
The fourth edition of this global exhibition is led this year by Aric Chen, artistic director of Het Nieuwe Instituut in the Netherlands. Chen asks designers to contribute work on the year’s common theme – The Global Game: Remapping Collaborations – imagining new methods of international collaboration through the medium design. It takes place at Somerset House.
Manchester International Festival, UK
29 June-16 July 2023
The new Factory International cultural space as the festival’s new permanent venue, there’s extra reason to travel for this 18-day creative extravaganza melding art with performance, music and design. Yayoi Kusama’s new show You, Me and the Balloons will launch on opening night in the Castlefield exhibition space.
Singapore Design Week
September 2023
An annual 10-day hub for Southeast Asian designers, SDW is hugely popular among European exhibitors, too. And the show is concentrated in the city’s National Design Centre, with both the blockbuster showcases and grassroots pop-ups in the same place, so navigating everything is easy.
