What you can't miss at Barcelona Design Week 2022

The brilliant artist and designer Bruno Munari used to say that "a designer is a planner with an aesthetic sense," and that organizing, analytical, and creative essence will be more present than ever in the city during the celebration of the Barcelona Design Week (BDW), organized by Barcelona Centre de Disseny. From June 2 to 22, the Catalan capital is immersed in design in the 17th edition of this great event that, after two years, with the pandemic and its restrictions as things of the past, returns to its original format and with full energy. On this occasion, the festival opts forto bring the world of design closer to citizens and thus show them its remodeling capacity in the face of major social, ecological, technological, and cultural changesthat are currently being experienced. And it does so by occupying some of the main arteries of the city to provide experiences around design. Furthermore, given this increasingly uncertain reality, BDW becomes a call to exchange points of view with the aim of drawing solutions for and by citizens in an intelligent, reflective, hopeful, and responsible way. "We live in somewhat turbulent and complex times and we are all a bit lost. Given this, during BDW we are going to stop, think, and reflect and seehow by creating new presents we can have new futures. In addition, this year is theEuropean Year of Young People and one of the protagonists of this edition are young people, design students, among others, who have to help us design and transform the world," comments Isabel Roig, director of the Barcelona Centre de Disseny. To this end, the great design event proposes an agenda full of activities, among which we highlight the following.

1. The experience

In a current context full of variables, the need for signals, wayfindings, that allow us not only to orient ourselves, but also to unite and build bridges to face uncertainty and change the present, is key. Around this idea arises the installation Wayfindings: The experience, the central space of this edition of Barcelona Design Week 2022, which will host a set of activities and experiences in the Jardinets de Gràcia. Among the events is the Greenhouse of Ideas where artist Jordi Enrich will assemble and inflate his wind igloo in front of attendees, an ephemeral space made of recycled hot air balloon fabric, inside which a series of debates (Findings) around design will take held. It will be from June 16 to 18 at 7 p.m. In addition, the Barcelona studio The Others has designed an interactive experience based on a journey through five cubes where augmented reality can be used to explore the concepts of Wayfindings that invite reflection on the semiotics of design and human nature, and how we design new paths to explore. Active until June 30.

2. Next Gen: seniors - The thinking house

According to the UN, 70% of the population will live in urban areas within 30 years. How to project the urban future in the face of an increasingly aging society? The aging of society and its impact on the future of cities becomes the protagonist of the collaborative project initiated by Barcelona Design Week, Madrid Design Festival and World Design Capital Valencia 2022 together with IKEA. Next Gen: seniors was born to create design solutions for this future. The project lands with an urban installation, IKEA's Thinking House, an ephemeral creative space where professionals and citizens gather to generate ideas for the senior future. Participation is open to anyone, until June 3 in Plaça Josep Antoni Coderch.

3. The Best Design of the Year

In every BDW, the great exhibition organized by the FAD cannot be missed, where the most outstanding proposals in the design and architecture sector from the last twelve months are displayed. The Disseny Hub Barcelona will be the nerve center that will bring together the 500 most valued products and projects of the year in industrial design, graphic design and visual communication, architecture, and interior design. This year, the exhibition features three thematic routes aligned with the principles of the New European Bauhaus: Beauty, Sustainability, and Inclusivity, in addition to another route focused on technological innovation. To encourage family visits to the exhibition, the show includes a free-play dynamic game aimed at children aged 6 to 11, so they can playfully discover what good design is and what values characterize it. Until September 28 at the Disseny Hub.

4. Conference by Carme Pinós

The recently awarded National Architecture Prize winner, Carme Pinós, will give a talk on the creative process in her professional experience and through her works. Author of projects such as the Igualada Cemetery, carried out with Enric Miralles, the CaixaForum in Zaragoza, or the Cube Office Tower I and II skyscrapers in Guadalajara (Mexico), among others, Pinós belongs to a generation where female architects were a minority. Her work, focused on weaving environments respectfully, is presented as a synthesis between reason and emotion. The appointment with the architect will be on June 13, at 7 p.m. at the Disseny Hub.

5. The Food Design Week

Food design could be defined as the discipline aimed at introducing innovation in everything concerning the act of eating and the industrial design of food, from products, services, and experiences to provide not only nutritional benefits but also emotional, social, or cultural ones. Its increasingly present role is highlighted in the Food Design Week, which will take place from June 7 to 14, and in which the city will host food design experiences, special menus, workshops, and activities that will leave no one indifferent. Through 6 routes, it will be shown how this discipline adds an experiential value to restaurants and gastronomic spaces, while solving problems such as food waste, with innovative and surprising ideas.

6. Off BDW

Design in its multiple forms and manifestations makes an appearance in the 80 activities that take place throughout the event in the OFF BDW. Exhibitions, parades, presentations, as well as open doors in creative spaces, conferences and workshops take place throughout the city. Among them, the exhibition Diseño en La Rambla, at Il·lacions Design Gallery; the talk Vivir el "Teinai Na Seikatsu", with the winner of the National Handicraft Award, Yukiko Kitahara, at Espacio Felices (June 14 at 7 p.m.); or the workshop Weaving in community, organized by the company Teixidors and Hotel Neri (June 7, 8 and 9 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.).

7. Design for real life

How has Ukrainian design changed and been reconfigured after the war conflict? Through this exhibition, a strong contrast is established between the objectives sought by pre-war design, focused on solving problems of modern society (ecology, future materials,...) versus that which emerged from February 2022, focused on providing quick solutions to survival needs (shelters, temporary hospitals, resolution of storage problems, etc.). A combination that can lead to a new trend in the development of world design history. Until June 26 at the Disseny Hub.

8. Lettering and accessory personalization with Soy Letrista

Ana Vega, from Soy Letrista and a specialist in lettering, will be in charge of coordinating this workshop organized by Kave Home to foster the artistic talents we all carry within. Attendees will be able to personalize, through the art of drawing letters, some of the firm's kitchen accessories, such as glass jars and complements, perfect for decorating with style and keeping the house tidy. The event is on June 14, at 6 p.m. at Kave Home.

9. Create your sustainable origami light

Recycling and reuse for sustainable development are key to respectful production. This is manifested in this workshop that invites you to make an origami lamp from recycled paper and discarded electrical components. Made with your own hands and personalized, you can take it home once the workshop is finished. It will be on June 21, at 6 p.m. at Faro Barcelona.

10. Turó Park Open Night

The BDW will conclude with the Turó Park Open Night, which will serve as the culmination of an edition where the value of design as a tool for change and expression of our identity will be promoted. A large number of stores, showrooms, and galleries of furniture, home accessories, and art objects, located around the park, will be the perfect setting to soak up good design amidst a festive and relaxed atmosphere. On June 22, starting at 6 p.m. in Turó Park and its surroundings.