Polish design activates a cross-disciplinary voice at the London Design Festival 2026

A deliberate, impactful presence of Polish designers has come alive through compelling activations across the city of London. With exhibitions and events spanning Mayfair Design District and the Shoreditch Design Week at the London Design Festival 2026 and the London Fashion Week, pioneering cross-disciplinary designers have established a meaningful dialogue between the Polish and London design communities, while platforming the country’s craftsmanship and material intelligence on a global scale.

With the international exhibition series Curated Connections, Mayfair Design District 2026 features a notable Polish design presence at Mint Gallery and Mandarin Oriental Mayfair.

Curated by On&On Designs in partnership with Creative Project Foundation and the Polish Cultural Institute in London, Curated Connections is funded by the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage under the Creative Industries Institute. As Anne Laure Pingreoun-Lastro, co-founder of Mayfair Design District, explains in an official release, “This year, Mayfair Design District asks ‘What Matters Now,’ exploring the ideas, materials and connections that give design meaning. Polish design brings a distinctive voice to that conversation.”

At the Mint Gallery, new works by Mati Sipiora, Formsophy and Tomek Rygalik are presented as part of the new exhibition, Blueprint, that focuses on the role of traditional craftsmanship in contemporary design, on view from September 12 – 20, 2026. Mandarin Oriental Mayfair features objects by Aneta Kocia, Magdalena Zarychta and Zieta Studio in an exhibition titled Reflections, which showcases ceramics, glass and metalwork to explore the role of light and materiality in perception.

Zieta Studio and Pani Jurek Studio also take part in the 2026 edition of Material Matters London, a major design fair at Shoreditch Design Week. Both studios’ installations are presented at UNLOCKED Shoreditch, alongside 40 exhibitors “each selected for their commitment to material intelligence”, as the official release states. “Supporting Polish designers on international stages such as Material Matters is central to our mission. Zieta Studio and Pani Jurek represent two very different, but equally rigorous approaches to materials and we are proud to help bring this conversation to London within Shoreditch Design Week,” says Anna Tryc-Bromley of the Polish Cultural Institute in London.

Zieta Studio presents Whispers Bench, an inflatable metal sculpture and seat lit by a constellation of Lampin lighting pieces. Polish designer and studio head Oskar Zięta explains, “Whispers began as a public sculpture, and at Material Matters it becomes something more intimate; a bench, a resting point, a place to pause inside the same structural language as you enter the fair.”

Warsaw-based Pani Jurek Studio, run by Magda Jurek and Michał Borecki, presents OP Ceramic Modular System, an interactive installation that comprises rotating ceramic tiles. “The OP objects are a tribute to colour, its ability to surprise, transform and delight and a way to shed light,” Jurek and Borecki explain. “Bringing the OP Collection to London lets us test our ideas about colour and light in a completely new space. Material Matters gathers people who think seriously about materials and is exactly the kind of conversation we want to have around our ceramics.” Both installations will be on view from September 15 – 17, 2026.

The cross-media platform Material Matters also includes a dedicated Café Conversations talks programme. This year, Agata Zięta and Borecki are discussing Local Knowledge, Global Design: Poland's creative industries with Samta Nadeem, curatorial director at STIR, and Grant Gibson, founder of Material Matters. The talk explores material intelligence in Polish design and its growing international reach and relevance.

Running from September 19 – 21, 2026, BEYOND LIMITS will showcase 12 of Poland’s pioneering fashion and jewellery designers. The three-day showcase will take place as part of the official Fashion Scout London Fashion Week programme, featuring a distinct, multifaceted view of the ambition and interdisciplinarity of the contemporary Polish design scene. According to the official release, “The project explores the point at which fashion moves beyond its utilitarian function and becomes a vehicle for artistic expression, cultural identity and exceptional craftsmanship. The designers explore the dialogue between tradition and innovation, heritage and experimentation, craftsmanship and contemporary design.” The project is by Creative Industries Institute (IPK), and GQ Poland is its exclusive media partner. Featured fashion designers include Hubert Pelc, Robert Czerwik and Michał Szulc. Jewellery designers Radek Anais Laró, Stettin Jewellery and more will showcase their work as well.

Polish design takes a prominent space in London this year through collaborative showcases and cross-disciplinary engagements, marking the emergence of a distinct cultural identity on a global stage.