Step into the future of design as the DesignTO Festival returns for its 14^th year, promising a unique exploration of sustainability, justice, and joy. From January 19 to 28, 2024, Toronto will transform into a hub for more than 100 free events, featuring the creations of 300 artists and designers. Beyond a mere display, the festival is a collective endeavour to shape a more inclusive, environmentally conscious, and delightful world through the lens of design. At its essence, the design festival is guided by three design principles—joy, justice and sustainability. Justice takes centre stage, emphasising fair access, inclusion and representation in the festival’s programming. The commitment to justice extends beyond artistic expression, ensuring that the festival is a platform for diverse voices and perspectives. Sustainability, a principle woven into the fabric of the design event, encompasses ecological, social, economic, local and climate action, reflecting a responsible approach to design.

The DesignTO Festival unfolds as a 10-day odyssey, offering a multifaceted experience that transcends traditional boundaries. From material explorations to virtual journeys into artificial intelligence and video games, the festival mirrors the interconnectedness of art, design, technology and culture. It is an ode to the diversity of contemporary design, promising a plethora of projects that span material and de-material explorations, virtual realms, studio tours, multidisciplinary conversations, product launches, parties and a journey through the past, present and the dynamic evolution of work environments.

Since its inception in 2011, the festival has been a transformative force in Canada, transcending studio boundaries and integrating art and design into the urban landscape. It has been a rallying point for community engagement, celebrating contemporary culture and providing a platform for emerging talent. The festival’s mission is clear—to increase public knowledge and appreciation for design and its impact on creating a sustainable, just and joyful world. STIR unveils the captivating lineup of events in this year’s edition of the festival.

DesignTO Festival Launch Party

The festivities kick off with the festival launch party, an immersive experience taking over the Harbourfront Centre on Toronto’s waterfront. Attendees will be the first to witness Future Matters, a DesignTO-curated group exhibition featuring the works of local and international artists and designers. The night will also feature a multimedia installation by Toronto-based elsewhere Collective and three new exhibitions showcasing works in lighting design, sculpture, glass, textiles, ceramics and more. DJ’s Fly Lady Di and Adeola will provide the soundtrack for a night of celebration.

A Room is a Home, is a Playground

Studio Rat presents A Room is a Home, is a Playground from January 26-28. Interspace transforms into a playground of wonder, which will be a site-specific event championing fun by design.

Art Intelligence: The Near Future of Art in Canada

Art Intelligence celebrates the near future of art in Canada, featuring original artworks by emerging artists such as Hau Pham, Jason Zante, Chico Togni, and more. Visitors can also experience PAAS, Partial AI-assisted Art Sommelier, on-site.

Circular Living Lab

The Circular Living Lab serves as an incubator for circular construction and urban mining in Toronto, supporting innovative designers leveraging the cultural and environmental potential of existing structures. This collaboration between local designers and planners explores deconstruction and reuse.

DesignTO Talks: Dematerialized

DesignTO’s ninth annual symposium, DesignTO Talks: Dematerialized brings together eight multidisciplinary experts to delve into the complexities of dematerialisation in an increasingly digital world. The speakers will focus on topics such as the future of digital artefacts, the ecological impact of computational design, spaces for indigenous self-determinations, immaterial urban practices, material representation in digital environments and more.

DesignTO Talks: Across Land and Water

This engaging presentation and discussion features graphic designer and artist Michele Guevara and interdisciplinary artist Janet Hinkle and their projects Water Weavings and Shifting Grounds, which highlight the relationship between natural and man-made environments. Moderated by DesignTO programs assistant, Kikki Guerard, the event seeks to inspire and cultivate awareness of nature’s fragility, while creating space for honouring the land and water that surround us. 

DesignTO Tours: hollis+morris

DesignTO Tours: hollis+morris offers a deep dive into the new 14,000 square foot Toronto-based studio of hollis+morris where furniture design and lighting are designed, prototyped, manufactured and showcased on-site. As a combo shop, assembly hall, office and showroom overlooking a park, this studio tour and open house provides a behind-the-scenes look at a space for local manufacturing, designed by architect Jonathan Mandeville of Passage Studio in collaboration with the studio’s founder Mischa Couvrette. Located in a former Cooper Canada sporting goods factory, both the building and the products made within open up larger conversations about sustainable design, Canadian manufacturing and growth.

DesignTO: Spaces and Sanctuary

This walking tour invites participants to explore three installations in the Yonge+St. Claire neighbourhood. The tour starts at ‘Santuario’ (with Oliviana Cinco) located at 45 St. Clair Avenue West, followed by ‘At what point does irrational thought become rational?’ (with Eric Lachance), and ‘Golden Beauty Supply’ (with Ehiko Odeh), all within a short walking distance of each other. With firsthand insights from the artists and designers, the tour delves into the installations, their stories, and how they came to be.

DesignTO Youth: touchbase

This is a group exhibition featuring 10 young artists and designers. Inspired by a six-week workshop series, aimed at demystifying the creative process and dissecting artistic practice, these youths have created new work reflecting themes of identity, resilience and cultural heritage. Inspired by talks and workshops from Wolari studio (Isabelle Ofume and Dana M), Jananda Lima, Zahra Siddiqui, Alita (Alexandra Gonzalez) and Whak&Mo, the youth are prompted to consider the complex role of artists and designers in society and how critical thinking can be used to generate creative solutions.

Future Matters

This is a multidisciplinary exhibition, featuring the works of eight local and international artists and designers exploring the themes related to material expression, innovation and environmental sustainability. Featuring Yassine Ben Abdallah, Nada Al-Obaidi, Safaa Alnabelseya, Sonny Assu, Adrian Chiu, Morgan Possberg Denne, Julia Rose Sutherland, Cole Swanson, and Elaine Whittaker, the group exhibition includes a broad range of works in sculpture, video, installation, photography, and textiles to explore the intersection of traditional and futuristic materials and practices.

Golden Beauty Supply

Part artistic intervention, part hair salon, Ehiko Odeh’s installation art pays homage to the Golden Beauty Supply, an institution of Black haircare and beauty in Toronto, located at 860 Bathurst Street.

Juliet: A Journey from Verona

Juliet: A Journey from Verona celebrates the passion, innovation, and artistry of product design. The installation at General Hardware showcases the creative process of Juliet seating collection as designed by Republic of II by IV in collaboration with Suite 22.

Look

Waterloo-based sculptor Sharl G. Smith’s window exhibition, Look at Aquavato, invites viewers to experience hand-woven beadwork sculptures from January 19-28, 2024. Her Shelter II installation is made of stainless steel spheres and braided stainless steel cable.

Lucid Ideas

This is a group prototype exhibition exploring translucency in design. The exhibition from January 19-February 16, 2024, features new work by designers from Canada and other countries. From glass and resin to paper and plastic, every material can be manipulated in some way to design what is seen and how it’s perceived. To what extent can the process of obscuring light be transformative? This exhibition highlights various examples of how translucency can be considered in homeware design.

Mjolk

Mjolk is proud to present three new works during DesignTO from January 25-31, 2024. They include an art glass by Luca Nichetto made in Murano, Italy and a wall lamp and sofa by Thom Fougere made in Canada.

Museum of Contemporary Work

This is an exhibition highlighting artefacts from the recent past, present and future of work. The objects, both real and fictional, explore themes like identity, inequity, meaning, and motivation, telling stories of how our daily labours are changing and how they are changing us.

Pretty Secrets

Pretty Secrets is a cheeky invitation into the desires of a dozen international emerging designers. Drawing inspiration from personal cultural diasporic craft techniques and material relationships, they believe the future of design is in peering backwards while looking forward.

DesignTO Festival Edition: SHEEEP Radio

On January 27, 2024, SHEEEP Radio will present an open discussion with two mid-career and emerging designers as they reflect on the realities of their design practices. Hosted by artist and architect Reza Nik, each session is structured with the same six questions. For the festival, this will be SHEEEP Radio’s first in-person discussion. Topics will reflect and expand on past conversations, such as realising personal aspirations while navigating the binding environment of the industry, embracing change, and adapting to explore new pathways. 

Urban Canvas: Empowering Youth through Public Art and Creative Media

Urban Canvas organised by Urban Minds hosts a panel discussion on the transformative power of public art and creative mediums in urban design to engage and empower youth. Taking place at Innis Town Hall Theatre at Innis College, the dialogue features diverse experts at the intersection of creativity, urban design and youth empowerment. These creative mediums include public art and installations, mural art, photography, videography, designs and more in our urban spaces.

In days to come, the city will host a myriad of events, each offering a unique lens into the world of design. From studio tours to multidisciplinary conversations, the design festival promises a tapestry of possibilities. As Toronto embraces this vibrant canvas of creativity, visitors can look forward to a time of exploration, connection and the discovery of the extraordinary in the ordinary. The stage is set, and DesignTO invites us all to be a part of this collective celebration of art, design and innovation.

The 2024 DesignTO Festival will run from January 19 to 28, 2024 across the city of Toronto