Clerkenwell Design Week made a triumphant return to London between 21-23 May, marking its 15th year as a global design festival.
Building upon its 2023 edition, which drew over 37,000 visitors, CDW elevated the experience with new venues, expanded exhibition spaces, thought-provoking installations and a stronger-than-ever line-up of both British and international brands. More than 600 curated events throughout the EC1 neighbourhood were complemented by a network of over 160 local design showrooms and 300 exhibitors in over 12 venues opening their doors.
Marlon Cera-Marle, design division director of Media 10, organiser of the annual design festival said: “It remains one of the most attended specification events in the calendar, and serves as an important platform to discover new talent and ideas.”
He added: “We were excited to showcase an unprecedented number of participating brands, reflecting strong demand from both home and overseas. We expanded our exhibition and installation spaces, including a revamped, pedestrian-friendly Clerkenwell Green. There was a lot of excitement from the mix of diverse brands, showrooms, partners, features and special events.”
The 2024 festival welcomed three new exhibition venues, including Contract and Work on Clerkenwell Green, a pop-up space at The Goldsmiths’ Centre, both showcasing the latest designs for commercial and workplace interiors, and The Edit in Bourne and Hollingsworth, featuring some of the world’s leading contemporary design brands.
This year also saw the British Collection double its size, taking over the entire crypt of St James’s Church, including the Tom Dixon-furnished vestry, which hosted the popular ICON Talks series. Meanwhile, other returning venues housing an array of product-focused exhibitions were:
- Design Fields: Home to contemporary furniture with an international focus, including over 35 Italian furniture and decorative brands;
- Light: Home to global lighting companies and installations with more brands participating this year, as well as Darc’s curated talks;
- Project: Home to contract furniture and surface design;
- Elements: Home to architectural hardware and finishes;
- Detail: Home to luxury interiors;
- Platform: Home to emerging design talent and brands;
- Ceramics of Italy: Home to Italian ceramic and porcelain tile brands; and
- Old Sessions House: An atmospheric home to brand activations and presentations, as well as the festival hub which offered CDW visitors free access throughout the event.
Together, these unique exhibition venues presented over 300 design brands and new talent, covering furniture, lighting, textiles, surfaces, home accessories and product design. Participants included SCP, Benchmark, Ercol, Another Country, Fora Form, Umage, Lammhults, Blå Station, Ethimo, Origin, Ultrafabrics, Romo, Granite and Smoke, Schotten and Hansen, Very Good and Proper, Dare Studio, Pooky Lighting and Lladró.
Local showroom partners (over 160 established names), hosted product launches, talks and workshops; including Fritz Hansen, Mater, Modus, Norr11, Flokk, Arper, Allermuir, Lintex, Cosentino, Ideal Standard, VitrA Bathrooms, Modulyss, Camira Fabrics, Tarkett, Iris Ceramica, Domus Tiles and Parkside.
CDW included unique destinations across Clerkenwell – including Paxton Locher House (hosting a selection of Danish design brands), Brewhouse Yard, Cowcross Yards (presenting Ukrainian design), and Marx Memorial Library. The spaces were transformed by a selection of international brands and trade institutions. Local architecture studio Groupwork was again home to the latest presentation from British furniture brand, Case Furniture.
There were specially commissioned, site-specific installations throughout Clerkenwell, plus ‘activations’ in Clerkenwell Green from brands including Dyson, Geberit, Albion Stone, Hutton Stone, Stone Federation, Texaa, Material Bank, Universal Fibers, Silen, and Bert Frank.
Conversations at Clerkenwell, a schedule of daily talks exploring industry topics, returned for 2024, curated by brand consultant Katie Richardson. The talks were hosted in a purpose-built theatre in Spa Fields, featuring expert speakers from the design, architecture and business sectors.
Meanwhile, hosted in a temporary structure next to Design Fields, Design Meets featured representatives and speakers from trade bodies and associations, in a series of intimate, industry-led talks.
Last but not least, over the three days of CDW, various design studios invited visitors to take part in host of creative workshops as part of the Fringe programme. Architects and interior designers took the opportunity to join guided specialist tours at the 2024 event, focused on everything from ceramics to materials, and enriching their experience throughout the festival.