Designblok – Prague International Design Festival

The largest design and fashion show in Central Europe will be held from 4 to 8 October 2023 in two magnificent exhibition buildings in Prague. Designblok will take place for the first time in the Trade Fair Palace, the largest exhibition space of the National Gallery Prague, and for the third time in the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague. This year’s theme, always expressing the main concept of the festival, is JOURNEY.

The exhibition space of the Trade Fair Palace will focus primarily on the presentation of new Czech and international design in the usual Superstudio and Openstudio formats, i.e., international brands and manufacturers on the one hand, and designers and design studios on the other. The Trade Fair Palace will also host another year of the Diploma Selection – an international exhibition and fashion shows, Designerie – the heart of the entire festival – and a stage offering lectures, expert discussions, and other events on a daily basis.

The Museum of Decorative Arts will follow up on the success of the past years by the curated exhibition Family Silver, organized in cooperation with Forbes magazine. The presentation of family businesses tells inspiring stories of entrepreneurial tenacity, “golden Czech hands”, the rescue of traditional factories and craft workshops, and the growth of newly established brands that were created in the past decades on green fields. In addition, this year’s Openstudio in the Museum of Decorative Arts will present the premiere of a special High Craft exhibition, organized in cooperation with Vogue CS magazine. The curator’s choice will present the leading Czech designers and design studios who artfully combine traditional crafts, innovative approaches, and the highest aesthetic standards in their work. The Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague will also host the Art House exhibition – an exhibition on the border between art and design. The curator’s choice will present both Czech and foreign artists some individually, others in collaboration with galleries.

To mark its important anniversary, the Designblok festival is preparing a number of other special projects. For example, the spectacular travelling exhibition called Designblok Cosmos prepared in cooperation with the PPF Foundation, and “Designu neutečeš!” (You cannot escape from design!), a book mapping a quarter of a century of Czech design and its role in society. The first foreign stars confirmed their participation in the 25th Designblok. The unorthodox Dutch designer Ineke Hans will head the international independent jury of the prestigious Designblok Awards. Benedict Hobson, one of the executive directors of the Dezeen server, also accepted the invitation to Prague. With three million monthly readers worldwide, Dezeen is one of the most-read media in the field of design, and for the second time it will accompany the festival as the main foreign media partner. The interest of the international press, as well as world-renowned curators and gallerists such as Rossana Orlandi, Lina Kanafani, and Giulio Cappellini, who regularly return to Prague for Designblok, confirms the importance and exceptionality of the festival in a pan-European context.

Designers, manufacturers, and other companies can apply to participate in the festival until 31 May 2023 via the application form at designblok.cz.

Learn more: https://www.designblok.cz/