The dog days of summer are over, the kids are back to school, and London’s art and design scene is kicking off its busiest period, starting with the launch of the 2024 edition of the London Design Festival on 14 September.
Now in its 21st year, the festival (which runs until 22 September) spans the entire city with design districts in Brompton, Shoreditch Design Triangle, Clerkenwell, Chelsea and the South Bank, and events and openings in every pocket of the city’s boroughs.
Here are some of the events that have piqued our interest.
Faye Toogood: Squashed Space at Poltrona Frau
Designer Faye Toogood is heading to Fulham this LDF to take over Italian brand Poltrona Frau’s flagship store for her installation, Squashed Space. The room is draped in leather and dressed to frame her Squash collection, which Toogood describes as a mix of ‘English Folk with Italian Horsepower’ with sumptuous colours, forms and textures. Pieces include the Squash Armchair, Ottoman, Side Table, the Squash Mirror and Rug.
14-22 September at Poltrona Frau Flagship Store, 147-153 Fulham Rd, London, SW3 6SN
PoOR Collective at Battersea Power Station
Last year’s winner of the Emerging Design Medal has not one but two installations at Battersea Power Station during London Design Festival. Earlier this summer, the collective—which comprises architects Larry Botchway, Shawn Adams, and Ben Spry and accountant Matt Harvey-Agyemang— unveiled collaborative artwork, ‘Together We Rise’ inside the former Turbine Halls, hanging 100 flags from its ceiling to depict the celestial movements of the sun above the Thames. For part two, dubbed ‘Together in Battersea’, they enlisted teenagers from the local community to answer the question: ‘What does Battersea mean to you?’
The installation will be unveiled in Turbine Hall A on 20 September 2024 and displayed until 20 October 2024. Battersea Power Station, Circus Rd W, London SW11 8AL
MillerKnoll’s showroom opening, Clerkenwell
While London’s design scene has undoubtedly diversified in the last decade, Clerkenwell remains its undisputed heartland, and it’s within its cobblestone streets that MillerKnoll is opening its flagship store in The Sans building next to St John’s Gate. The 1,700 sq ft former office space has been overhauled and remodelled as a showroom for the company, which is one of the biggest global manufacturers of home and office products with brands including Herman Miller, Knoll, and Maharam. Visitors can peruse the new space and MillerKnoll’s wares or stop by for one of the programmed talks (details of which are on LDF’s website) on 17 or 19 September.
17 and 19 September, The Sans 20, St John’s Square, London EC1M 4AH
Sketch Art & Design Exhibition, Mayfair
With its vibrant India Mahdavi-designed interiors, we never need an excuse to stop by Mayfair stalwart Sketch. But things get even more interesting during LDF when the restaurant hosts its annual Art and Design Exhibition. This year’s edition promises site-specific handmade forms by La Manufacture Cogolin, Lasvit, and Julian Carter Design, taking over three distinct spaces within Sketch.
14-22 September at Sketch, 9 Conduit Street, Mayfair, London W1S 2XG
Duo installation at Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich
It’s hard to compete with the wonder of the intricate Baroque ceilings of the Old Royal Naval College’s Painted Hall. Still, Turkish artist Melek Zeynep Bulut comes close with her installation Duo. The structure takes the shape of a rectangular prism, mimicking a ghostly architectural threshold while playing with ideas around solidity and form. Its mechanical system of magnets, sensors, perception-altering surfaces, and acoustic reflectors are activated and altered by the viewer’s presence, triggering what Bulut playfully calls a ‘game of perception’.
The installation also heightens the sense of contrast and wonder at the setting, forging a dialogue between past and present, old and new. ‘Essentially, Duo is a portal, and all my works are portals, offering spaces for dimensional transition and equilibrium,’ she explains.
Dates TBA. The Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich, London SE10 9NN
Henge London’s opening on Brompton Road
The Brompton Design District is officially pre-teen, celebrating its 12th year. This year, a new player boldly announces itself on the scene: Italian design brand Henge officially launches its flagship store on Brompton Road. The 600 sq m space has four living areas, displaying two monumental kitchens, lighting designs, and boiseries. (The new Floyds collaboration with Venini, designed by Ugo Cacciatori, will be on show.) But the space goes beyond a simple showroom—Henge London is envisaged as a ‘home away from home’ for architects and clients travelling through central and northern Europe, similar to its Milan showroom at 34 Via della Spiga.
254 Brompton Road, South Kensington, London SW3 2AS
Vert by Diez Office x AHEC w/ OMC℃, Chelsea
How can we tackle rising global temperatures and dwindling biodiversity in our cities? Vert is a modest and accessible collaboration between Diez Office, the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), and urban greening specialists OMCºC, showing how we can make micro-ecosystems that nurture insect populations. The red oak glulam structure is covered in biodegradable sails to support around 20 species of climbing plants that absorb carbon dioxide and create shade, allowing insects and bugs to thrive in a multitude of spaces and environments. It’s also a peaceful place to stop and catch your breath between events. Find out more about the installation.
14-24 September at Parade Ground, Chelsea College of Arts, 16 John Islip St, London SW1P 4JU
Materials Matter Fair, Bankside
Grant Gibson established Material Matters in 2022 as the physical manifestation of his design podcast of the same name, celebrating brands and designers who champion ‘an innate sense of material intelligence and the desire to make the world a slightly better place.’ The fair takes over Bargehouse, Oxo Tower Wharf’ from 18-21 September and is a great place to spot emerging artists and designers.
18-21 September at Bargehouse, Oxo Tower Wharf, London SE1 9PH
10 Years of Making It Together: Blackhorse Workshop’s Celebratory Weekend
Blackhorse Workshop in Walthamstow has been nurturing the capital’s creatives for a decade, serving as a workspace for artists and designers and teaching Londoners how to make furniture, forge objects and weld. This open house weekend celebrates the maker spaces’s monumental milestone while offering an opportunity for visitors to try their hand at creative crafts and tour the facilities.
10 Years of Making It Together open house takes place on 21-22 Sept 2024 at Blackhorse Workshop, 1-2 Sutherland Road, Path, London E17 6BX
Unbroken Threads: Creative Resistance for Palestine
Curated by the Royal College of Art Palestine Society, Beyond Borders deep dives into Palestinian culture and heritage. Featuring 23 works by solo and collaborative artists, the exhibition promises personal stories and architectural analysis and serves as a powerful statement of resilience against displacement and erasure.
21-22 September at Inhabit Hotel, 25-27 Southwick St, Tyburnia, London W2 1JQ
The North Arch: Redefining Community Spaces, Shoreditch
We love to see how other people work, especially artists. Beck Road’s artistic community space, The North Arch, has undergone a redesign courtesy of young guns A347, aka Luke Deering and Joni Lettmann—fresh graduates from the RCA’s MA Architecture programme. The North Arch is the pair’s first spatial project, and for LDF, they’re inviting the community inside to explore the artist hub, as well as presenting an exhibition on the processes behind their interventions, including a dive into the site’s creative history.
