By Liberty Paananen
The exhibitions and events on display at Helsinki Design Week are exploring systemic problems, pushing boundaries, opening dialogues and creating new solutions for professional and private life.
The city-wide festival runs from 5-15 September 2019, with over 200 events on display including; installations, seminars, fashion shows, workshops, children’s events and much more. HDW tackles the discussions of Climate Change, Urban Planning, Recycling, Sustainability and other topics at the epicentre of today’s society. With innovative, upbeat, colourful and challenging designs, HDW displays eclectic, hopeful, pragmatic and inspiring installations.
Errottaja 2 Palace Opens
The neo-Renaissance palace, Erottaja 2 and, gallery at Aalto University campus in Otaniemi have become two dedicated exhibition centres for the design festival alongside the museums, markets and seminar halls participating.
Errottaja 2, is open to city residents for the first time. Here, you can borrow books, enjoy a cup of coffee or glass of wine and enjoy the exhibitions which are set to the backdrop of the palace’s architecture.
The exhibitions found here are: “The Room with a View” and “Design Partners 19”. “Room With a View” exhibition consists of around thirty rooms; with each room offering a different perspective on design work across furniture design, glass art, fashion and more. “Design Partners 19” similarly offers a range of perspectives on design as the exhibitions brings together creators from different disciplines in a common space.
To visit the installations at Erottaja 2, you will need to purchase an exhibition ticket. Tickets cost 18€. However, by registering for a Helsinki Design Week Festival Pass (free of charge) you will receive 50% on the HDW main exhibition ticket price, tickets for the Design Museum and Habitare.
You can register for a Helsinki Design Week Festival Pass here:
https://www.helsinkidesignweek.com/fi/festival-pass/
Design for a Cooler Planet
At the second exhibition centre, Aalto University hosts the unique Designer for a Cooler Planet exhibit which presents solutions for more sustainable lifestyles. Exhibitions here include: “Envisioning the Future of Packaging”, “ChemArtsing with Bio-based Materials”, “Circwood: Recirculating Wood Within the Built Environment”, “New Silk- What can we learn from Spiders?”, “Urban Facades” and much more.
Children’s Design Week
Throughout the festival, there are plenty of exhibitions and workshops tailored for children and over the weekend 14-15 September, there will be non-stop workshops at Annantalo, which you do not have to pre-register for. These events range from DIY Lampshade making to a pop-up bike school and arts and crafts that explore how to protect the climate.
Find out more about Children’s Design Week here: https://www.helsinkidesignweek.com/events/hdw-childrens-design-week/
To view the whole programme for Helsinki Design Week visit: https://www.helsinkidesignweek.com/programme/
Photo: Helsinki Design Week
