After an – inevitably – lower-key edition last year, LDF 2021 opens on the 15th of September and sees massive city-changing projects such as the official opening of Design District to smaller brands like TAKT and HØLTE who have been making waves in sustainability.
Following the grand opening on the 15th, Design District will be open for the public to explore throughout September, with Open City architecture tours and a packed programme of exhibitions and discussions will feature an A-list roster of thinkers and makers. Two of the district’s 16 buildings will be given over to exhibitions featuring emerging talents in art and design; the transparent, caterpillar-like, greenery-filled Design District Canteen by Selgascano will be open for food and drink; and there’ll be opportunities to explore the for-creatives, by-creatives members’ workspace Bureau.
New brands will make their debut on the global stage – LDF will host Finland’s unapologetically ‘brutal’ new furniture house, Vaarnii – and exciting emerging talents will gain a much-needed platform through initiatives like Discovered and Designposts.
In a first for the festival, LDF’s 10 districts will each be celebrated with a distinctive sculptural waymarker. AHEC has joined forces with furniture studio Benchmark and Sebastian Cox, selecting 10 student designers and recent graduates to create ‘Designposts’. These public landmarks welcome visitors to each district while also expressing facets of the area’s unique character, culture and creative heritage The designers have been selected from two of the city’s leading design schools: four from London Met picked by Peter Marigold; and six from the Bartlett chosen by Izaskun Chinchilla. From a William Morris-inspired homage to the natural beauty of Walthamstow to a celebration of the Shoreditch streetscape, the red oak structures celebrate London, while giving the emerging design generation a high-profile platform to shine.
Locations: Islington, King’s Cross, Mayfair, Southwark, Shoreditch, Park Royal, Clerkenwell, Walthamstow, Greenwich Peninsula, Brompton
LDF Opening times: 24-hours, 18-26 September
