London Design Festival at the V&A

The London Design Festival 2011 at the V&A is now over. We will be announcing events at the V&A in 2012 in May 2012.

The London Design Festival returned to the V&A for the third consecutive year in 2011. As well as hosting a series of exhibitions, talks and workshops, the V&A hosted 13 specially commissioned installation and included some of 2011's most important landmark projects. 

Download a PDF map: London Design Festival at the V&A [PDF 135KB]

A standout installation of the programme was the transformation of the Museum's Grand Entrance by award-winning architects Amanda Levete Architects (winner of the V&A's recent international competition to design a new courtyard and underground extension). A majestic three-dimensional latticework spiral made from red oak spanned the height of the Museum doors (see main image). Opening up long views along Cromwell Road, the installation took the V&A out onto the street, and exuberantly celebrated the London Design Festival's residency at the V&A. Timber Wave - supported by The American Hardwood Export Council with lighting designed by SEAM Design - built on a collection of installations that demonstrate the enduring qualities of American hardwood.

Inside the V&A, France's most accomplished design duo, the Bouroullec Brothers, createdTextile Field - an expansive, coloured foam and textile installation with gentle inclinations that produced a sensual environment on which visitors could comfortably lounge and immerse themselves in the stunning Raphael Gallery (see image left). The 30-metre long installation was supported by Kvadrat - continuing a tradition established by the Danish materials manufacturer to continuously push the aesthetic, technological and artistic boundaries of textiles.

Renowned New York-based design gallerist and curator Murray Moss collaborated with industry leader Materialise, Belgium to create a special exhibition which pushed the parameters of 21^st century 3D 'printing'. A series of unique 'printed' works, using cutting edge laser and digital technologies to build three-dimensional objects, were placed throughout the Museum's most important galleries, wittily referencing eight of the Museum's key pieces and spaces. Among these 'printed' works, The Fractal.MGX table, recently acquired by the V&A for its permanent collection, is based on growth patterns seen in nature, which can be described with mathematical algorithms. This object is impossible to produce in any other manufacturing technique, and reinforces the growing bond between nature and mathematical formulas. Renowned milliner Stephen Jones re-imagined, using computer scanning technology, a special reproduction of the Museum's renowned 1827 bust of Lady Belhaven, adding, of course, a contemporary hat (Dorothy and Michael Hintze Sculpture Galleries). 

The London Design Festival at the V&A programme also included a site-specific installation in the Tunnel entrance, designed by Berlin-based, Israeli design outfit Betatank; a curated show of the best graduate talent from across the University of Arts London and a digital world brought to life by Beyond the Valley. There was also be a showcase of new acquisitions for the Museum with the money raised through the new Outset Design Fund to benefit the V&A, supported by the London Design Festival. Our VIP room was created specially by Nigel Coates, featuring his new hm63 range of furniture produced by Hitch Mylius. 

The V&A also invited another five cultural figures to contribute to the V&A and Me Designer Maps series launched at last year's Festival. Aimed to provide an inspirational and insightful tour across the collections, visitors were be led by choices from Tom Dixon, Lulu Guinness, Annie Lennox and A.S. Byatt.