Following its huge success last year, Singapore Design Week 2023 (SDW) returns for an 11-day festival from Sep 21 to Oct 1, in celebration of DesignSingapore Council’s (Dsg) 20th anniversary.
Organised by Dsg, SDW is a showcase of creativity and innovation, championing thought leadership and featuring the best of design from Singapore and beyond. It has adopted Dsg’s motto “Better by Design” as the festival theme for this edition.
“Singapore design embodies a universal attitude – the desire to always seek to make lives better using design. The motto ‘Better by Design’ reflects Dsg’s commitment to champion design and creativity that helps us to meet complex challenges and shape a better future,” says festival director Madeleine Ho.
There will be over 80 ground-up events ranging from exhibitions, talks and panel discussions to workshops, tours and retail pop-ups.
Spotlighting the bold spirit of Singapore design are local design curators Jackson Tan, co-founder and creative director of BLACK; Pann Lim, co-founder and creative director of Kinetic Singapore; Ong Ker Shing and Joshua Comaroff, co-founders of Lekker Architects. They will bring the Bras Basah.Bugis arts, heritage and design district to life with specially commissioned installations that will showcase new ideas, and reflect on key issues of today from innovation to sustainability to inclusivity.
Playground of Possibilities at National Design Centre brings together 12 design projects from Singapore tackling some of the most pressing challenges we face today while offering innovative solutions and inspiring provocations.
FI&LD by Lekker Architects offers a new philosophy in inclusive design that is based upon play and improvisation. The School of Tomorrow, curated by Pann Lim of Kinetic Singapore, takes its mission of imparting sustainability in an immersive way. Through classes covering common subjects such as geography, chemistry, and social studies, critical environmental issues are introduced.
A key highlight this year is Design Districts, spanning three key precincts – Bras Basah.Bugis, Marina Bay and Orchard Road. Each district will reflect the unique character and charm of its community, offering a wealth of immersive design experiences within walking distance.
Building on the festival’s distinctive and enduring vision, SDW 2023 continues to explore design through its three defining pillars.
Design Futures explores the design of the future and the future of design in Singapore, with its flagship Design Futures Symposium.
Design Marketplace uncovers lifestyle trends from across the globe with a spotlight on Southeast Asia. It presents FIND – Design Fair Asia, Asia’s most anticipated design trade fair which returns to Marina Bay Sands for its second edition from Sep 21 to 23.
Visitors can also make their way to EMERGE @ FIND, a showcase dedicated to Southeast Asian contemporary design. Curated by Suzy Annetta of Design Anthology, this year’s edition will feature the curatorial theme of “Craft + Industry: Man + Machine”, with works by over 50 emerging and established designers from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Design Impact showcases innovative and impactful design solutions for a better world, celebrating its three key themes of Innovation, Sustainability and Inclusivity through the immersive festival commission at Bras Basah.Bugis.
Click here for more information and full event listing on SDW2023.
