London Design Festival 2026: what to see, where to go and how to plan your visit

# Quick orientation

# Where to start Brompton Design District is a clear hub this year. The Lavery at 4 Cromwell Place hosts a programme curated under the theme Perfectly Imperfect, which foregrounds experimentation, collaboration and real-time making. Expect performance, hands-on making and a roster of talks that are free but ticketed.

Practical travel tips: wear comfortable shoes, carry a phone charger, and map events by district to avoid wasting time crossing the city.

# Public and pavement-scale installations

• Soul (Mykola Kabluka) will create immersive light and audiovisual experiences around St Paul's Cathedral — best seen after dark.
• Pangolin Shield (Studio Saar and Atelier One) is a large bamboo pavilion on Aldwych that uses traditional shields to examine colonial legacies and ecological exploitation.
• Station offers immersive spatial sound in a venue that has been closed to the public for over a decade.
• Oasis (Azaz Architects) at The Lavery showcases palm weaving across art, architecture and product design with a suspended installation.

# Museum and venue collaborations

• Level G, pairing new products with the centre's architecture.
• V&A South Kensington runs the Global Design Forum (Sept 12–14) with speakers including Es Devlin and Lakwena Maciver.

# Retail and gallery takeovers

• Sketch (9 Conduit Street) features a large painted installation by Camille Walala at its entrance through November 10.
• Bisazza's flagship is redecorated by author Kate Watson-Smyth, reframing mosaic tile use in contemporary interiors.
• SCP's relocated Clerkenwell Green showroom opens across five floors with work by Bitossi, Källemo, Shore Studios and Very Simple: Kitchen.
• Isabel + Helen, with pieces starting around £250.

# Making, workshops and participatory projects

• POW workshops provide open studio time and classes in wood- and metal-working, with resident makers opening studios and offering discounts/prizes.
• Taipa Lab's brick-making session (Gorst Road, NW10) lets visitors mould and press a brick, inscribe it, and add it to a collective tower.

# Curated displays and pop-ups

• Concierge at The Lavery is a travelling platform by Beverly Nguyen bringing together Vietnamese designers and makers.

# How to plan your visit Book tickets for talks and timed entries early. Group events by district (Brompton, Bankside, Park Royal, Shoreditch) to minimise travel time. Expect plenty of free public work alongside ticketed shows. Bring patience—popular installations are busy in the evenings and at weekends.

# Bottom line The festival offers a mix of spectacle and close-up making: large-scale light and pavilion works are paired with hands-on workshops and showroom openings. If you want to see both finished pieces and design process in action, focus your time around The Lavery and nearby Brompton venues, reserve tickets for talks, and slot in one or two maker sessions for a different view of how design is made.