A Festival of Ideas

As we look to designers to solve our urban, environmental and health-related challenges, the work of design professionals has never been more important. Melbourne Design Week returns for its sixth year to build on the provocation ‘Design the World You Want’, prompting designers, businesses and audiences to envision how design can help to craft a better future for us all. Two thematic pillars guide this year’s program, ‘civic good’ explores the ability for design to transform society beyond the individual, and ‘making good’ reflects on design’s environmental and social impact.

Bringing together the best practitioners from across Australia to present leading designs and ideas, the international design event is already underway, with an impressive program of exhibitions, talks, tours, films and workshops across Melbourne and regional Victoria running until 27 March. Here are a few highlights to enjoy across the next week.

Installation view of design works on display at Melbourne Design Fair from 16 – 20 March, presented by NGV in collaboration with Melbourne Art Foundation during Melbourne Design Week 2022. Photo: Sean Fennessy

As we look to designers to solve our urban, environmental and health-related challenges, the work of design professionals has never been more important. Melbourne Design Week returns for its sixth year to build on the provocation ‘Design the World You Want’, prompting designers, businesses and audiences to envision how design can help to craft a better future for us all. Two thematic pillars guide this year’s program, ‘civic good’ explores the ability for design to transform society beyond the individual, and ‘making good’ reflects on design’s environmental and social impact.

Bringing together the best practitioners from across Australia to present leading designs and ideas, the international design event is already underway, with an impressive program of exhibitions, talks, tours, films and workshops across Melbourne and regional Victoria running until 27 March. Here are a few highlights to enjoy across the next week.

Installation view of design works on display at Melbourne Design Fair from 16 – 20 March, presented by NGV in collaboration with Melbourne Art Foundation during Melbourne Design Week 2022. Photo: Sean Fennessy

One of the newest and most exciting additions to Melbourne Design Week is the launch of Melbourne Design Fair, presented by the NGV and the Melbourne Art Foundation. The Fair is an experience for all who are interested in the opportunity to view, discover and purchase significant works of collectable contemporary design. This inaugural event marks the first of its kind in scale and calibre in Australia. Visitors will discover limited edition, rare and one-of-a-kind pieces in a unique celebration of creativity. The PRESENT platform sees thirteen of Australia’s leading galleries, design organisations, agencies, and studios including Gallery Sally Dan-Cuthbert, Sophie Gannon Gallery, Design Tasmania and Sullivan+Strumpf showcase works by designers they represent. SELECT, the second platform, brings together the work of forty Australian design creatives including Dale Hardiman, Ashley Eriksmoen, Gunybi Ganambarr, Cassie Leatham, Troy Emery and Daniele Poole.

Installation view Melbourne Design Fair from 16 – 20 March, presented by NGV in collaboration with Melbourne Art Foundation during Melbourne Design Week 2022. Photo: Tim Carrafa

One of the newest and most exciting additions to Melbourne Design Week is the launch of Melbourne Design Fair, presented by the NGV and the Melbourne Art Foundation. The Fair is an experience for all who are interested in the opportunity to view, discover and purchase significant works of collectable contemporary design. This inaugural event marks the first of its kind in scale and calibre in Australia. Visitors will discover limited edition, rare and one-of-a-kind pieces in a unique celebration of creativity. The PRESENT platform sees thirteen of Australia’s leading galleries, design organisations, agencies, and studios including Gallery Sally Dan-Cuthbert, Sophie Gannon Gallery, Design Tasmania and Sullivan+Strumpf showcase works by designers they represent. SELECT, the second platform, brings together the work of forty Australian design creatives including Dale Hardiman, Ashley Eriksmoen, Gunybi Ganambarr, Cassie Leatham, Troy Emery and Daniele Poole.

Installation view Melbourne Design Fair from 16 – 20 March, presented by NGV in collaboration with Melbourne Art Foundation during Melbourne Design Week 2022. Photo: Tim Carrafa

A key display is by Agency Projects, a not-for-profit organisation showcasing acclaimed winners of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award: Pedro Wonaeamirri from Jilamara Arts & Crafts Association in the community of Milikapiti (Tiwi Islands) and Regina Pilawauk Wilson from Durrmu Arts Aboriginal Corporation based in Peppimenarti (West Daly). Today is the final day of Melbourne Design Fair, and I encourage anyone who is interested in supporting Australian design to visit this wonderful event at 28 Duke Street, Abbotsford.

Installation view of Agency Projects presenting works by Pedro Wonaeamirri of Jilamara Arts and Culture on display at Melbourne Design Fair from 16 – 20 March, presented by NGV in collaboration with Melbourne Art Foundation during Melbourne Design Week 2022. Photo: Sean Fennessy

A key display is by Agency Projects, a not-for-profit organisation showcasing acclaimed winners of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award: Pedro Wonaeamirri from Jilamara Arts & Crafts Association in the community of Milikapiti (Tiwi Islands) and Regina Pilawauk Wilson from Durrmu Arts Aboriginal Corporation based in Peppimenarti (West Daly). Today is the final day of Melbourne Design Fair, and I encourage anyone who is interested in supporting Australian design to visit this wonderful event at 28 Duke Street, Abbotsford.

Installation view of Agency Projects presenting works by Pedro Wonaeamirri of Jilamara Arts and Culture on display at Melbourne Design Fair from 16 – 20 March, presented by NGV in collaboration with Melbourne Art Foundation during Melbourne Design Week 2022. Photo: Sean Fennessy

Collingwood Yards is one of eight major Melbourne Design Week hubs with a generous line-up of programs to be enjoyed. Holding Space is a series of breakfast talks by Agency Projects which begin on Monday and run throughout the week. Hear from Jenna Lee, Hannah Presley, Lisa Waup, Peta Clancy and Kait James across the five talks as they lead conversations around Indigenous thinking in the world of contemporary design. These important discussions provide a space to discuss the need for education and discourse around traditional and ongoing Indigenous design processes.

Regina Pilwuk Wilson. Image courtesy of Agency Projects, the artist and Durrmu Arts Aboriginal Corporation

Collingwood Yards is one of eight major Melbourne Design Week hubs with a generous line-up of programs to be enjoyed. Holding Space is a series of breakfast talks by Agency Projects which begin on Monday and run throughout the week. Hear from Jenna Lee, Hannah Presley, Lisa Waup, Peta Clancy and Kait James across the five talks as they lead conversations around Indigenous thinking in the world of contemporary design. These important discussions provide a space to discuss the need for education and discourse around traditional and ongoing Indigenous design processes.

Regina Pilwuk Wilson. Image courtesy of Agency Projects, the artist and Durrmu Arts Aboriginal Corporation

Melbourne Art Book Fair is always a highlight on the Melbourne Design Week calendar, and this year it returns with a more expansive program of book launches, author talks, workshops, activations and exhibitions ever than before. Today marks the final day of the annual Stallholder Fair hosted in NGV’s Great Hall. Visit today to see stalls from over 90 publishers, including the NGV design store, independent publishers, established publishing houses and art galleries presenting books, magazines, zines, art prints and more. For those unable to visit in person, the Publisher Marketplace extends this diverse range of art publishers, artists, and designers to the online sphere. A two-day regional book fair at Castlemaine Art Museum closes out Melbourne Art Book Fair next weekend, with stalls and panel discussions taking place in their stunning 1931 art deco building.

Melbourne Art Book Fair 2022 at NGV International

Melbourne Art Book Fair is always a highlight on the Melbourne Design Week calendar, and this year it returns with a more expansive program of book launches, author talks, workshops, activations and exhibitions ever than before. Today marks the final day of the annual Stallholder Fair hosted in NGV’s Great Hall. Visit today to see stalls from over 90 publishers, including the NGV design store, independent publishers, established publishing houses and art galleries presenting books, magazines, zines, art prints and more. For those unable to visit in person, the Publisher Marketplace extends this diverse range of art publishers, artists, and designers to the online sphere. A two-day regional book fair at Castlemaine Art Museum closes out Melbourne Art Book Fair next weekend, with stalls and panel discussions taking place in their stunning 1931 art deco building.

Melbourne Art Book Fair 2022 at NGV International

Kew’s Villa Alba Museum is also playing host to a number of interesting events. Running throughout Melbourne Design Week is a specially curated collection of local and global sustainably designed pieces collated by renowned designer furniture and lighting store, Spence and Lyda. The space, Futures Collective, weaves designs together through an immersive narrative that is nestled within the Museum’s heritage interiors and grounds. A standout design is Alvaro Catalán de Ocón and rising talent Lucy Kurrein’s Plastic Rivers rugs series which uses salvaged PET bottles from the world’s most polluted rivers to create exquisite, tufted weaves. Alvaro Catalán de Ocón will present the work’s story in a special event on 22 March, Futures Collective: After Hours, where visitors will also be able to meet the other Futures Collective co-participants, Jon Goulder, Broached Commissions, Fiona Lynch Office and the Authentic Design Alliance.

Image courtesy of Spence & Lyda

Kew’s Villa Alba Museum is also playing host to a number of interesting events. Running throughout Melbourne Design Week is a specially curated collection of local and global sustainably designed pieces collated by renowned designer furniture and lighting store, Spence and Lyda. The space, Futures Collective, weaves designs together through an immersive narrative that is nestled within the Museum’s heritage interiors and grounds. A standout design is Alvaro Catalán de Ocón and rising talent Lucy Kurrein’s Plastic Rivers rugs series which uses salvaged PET bottles from the world’s most polluted rivers to create exquisite, tufted weaves. Alvaro Catalán de Ocón will present the work’s story in a special event on 22 March, Futures Collective: After Hours, where visitors will also be able to meet the other Futures Collective co-participants, Jon Goulder, Broached Commissions, Fiona Lynch Office and the Authentic Design Alliance.

Image courtesy of Spence & Lyda

Visitors to Villa Alba Museum can also see the first capsule collection by interior design practice Fiona Lynch Office. With sustainable materials in mind, the studio has developed a collection of low-set tables and stools that can be pieced together, in preparation for Sydney’s new Ace Hotel. The furniture is made from reclaimed timber, hand-worked aluminium and glass offcuts. The decorative pattern used across the pieces is reminiscent of paint splatters on an artist’s drop sheet. Fascinatingly, the pigments were custom made for these designs using waste metals and bricks from the hotel’s construction site. Each piece has cleverly been designed so that it can be mixed and matched, allowing for flexibility in arrangement and use.

WORK SHOP X FUTURE ARCHIVE. Image courtesy of Fiona Lynch Office

Visitors to Villa Alba Museum can also see the first capsule collection by interior design practice Fiona Lynch Office. With sustainable materials in mind, the studio has developed a collection of low-set tables and stools that can be pieced together, in preparation for Sydney’s new Ace Hotel. The furniture is made from reclaimed timber, hand-worked aluminium and glass offcuts. The decorative pattern used across the pieces is reminiscent of paint splatters on an artist’s drop sheet. Fascinatingly, the pigments were custom made for these designs using waste metals and bricks from the hotel’s construction site. Each piece has cleverly been designed so that it can be mixed and matched, allowing for flexibility in arrangement and use.

WORK SHOP X FUTURE ARCHIVE. Image courtesy of Fiona Lynch Office

RMIT Design Hub and Archives is a hub that is not to be missed with another year of cutting-edge exhibitions. Visit the work of Adelaide contemporary craft and design studio JamFactory, as well as new projects they have been working on with First Nations artists. The outcomes of these collaborations see new ways of engaging with First Nations material, culture and storytelling and speak to the rich possibilities of deeper, ongoing exchange. Other exhibitions include Post Digital Objects which explores the future of digital data, memory and healthfulness, Design for Work Beyond 2021 which considers how design might cater to the future of work, and the Victorian Premiers Design Awards which are celebrating their 25th year of awarding outstanding design in Victoria.

Image courtesy of Dean Toepfer

RMIT Design Hub and Archives is a hub that is not to be missed with another year of cutting-edge exhibitions. Visit the work of Adelaide contemporary craft and design studio JamFactory, as well as new projects they have been working on with First Nations artists. The outcomes of these collaborations see new ways of engaging with First Nations material, culture and storytelling and speak to the rich possibilities of deeper, ongoing exchange. Other exhibitions include Post Digital Objects which explores the future of digital data, memory and healthfulness, Design for Work Beyond 2021 which considers how design might cater to the future of work, and the Victorian Premiers Design Awards which are celebrating their 25th year of awarding outstanding design in Victoria.

Image courtesy of Dean Toepfer

The Australian Furniture Design Award (AFDA) is a biennial award that fosters Australian designers and makers. The award offers a $20,000 prize, an invitation from Stylecraft to develop a design through to commercial production for distribution and a two-week residency program at JamFactory in Adelaide to experiment with new ideas and materials, prototype new work or explore new making processes. This year, the NGV alongside Stylecraft were pleased to announce Ashley Eriksmoen as the 2022 winner. Her innovative and thought-provoking work upcycles domestic timber furniture, demonstrating the potential of post-consumer waste.

The Dream, or: the view from here is both bleak and resplendent by Ashley Eriksmoen for AFDA 2022. Image courtesy of Ashley Eriksmoen

The Australian Furniture Design Award (AFDA) is a biennial award that fosters Australian designers and makers. The award offers a $20,000 prize, an invitation from Stylecraft to develop a design through to commercial production for distribution and a two-week residency program at JamFactory in Adelaide to experiment with new ideas and materials, prototype new work or explore new making processes. This year, the NGV alongside Stylecraft were pleased to announce Ashley Eriksmoen as the 2022 winner. Her innovative and thought-provoking work upcycles domestic timber furniture, demonstrating the potential of post-consumer waste.

The Dream, or: the view from here is both bleak and resplendent by Ashley Eriksmoen for AFDA 2022. Image courtesy of Ashley Eriksmoen

In 2022, Melbourne Design Week has again ventured into regional Victoria. Open Nature is a program of walks, talks, tours and events with a focus on learning how nurturing our natural ecosystem is vital to our future. The program explores a growing movement towards ecologically responsive, ‘more than human’ design practice through kayak tours, oyster shucking, lake visits, bat and birdwatching and more. On the final weekend, a day of future-focused talks will take place at the new Gippsland Performing Arts Centre (GPAC) in Traralgon. Industry experts discuss topics including the potential of solar engineering and agriculture, the Latrobe Valley as a clean, green and trusted food producer and the power of creative entrepreneurship in driving innovation.

Jawbone Marine Sanctuary. Photo: Mark Skiba

In 2022, Melbourne Design Week has again ventured into regional Victoria. Open Nature is a program of walks, talks, tours and events with a focus on learning how nurturing our natural ecosystem is vital to our future. The program explores a growing movement towards ecologically responsive, ‘more than human’ design practice through kayak tours, oyster shucking, lake visits, bat and birdwatching and more. On the final weekend, a day of future-focused talks will take place at the new Gippsland Performing Arts Centre (GPAC) in Traralgon. Industry experts discuss topics including the potential of solar engineering and agriculture, the Latrobe Valley as a clean, green and trusted food producer and the power of creative entrepreneurship in driving innovation.

Jawbone Marine Sanctuary. Photo: Mark Skiba

Melbourne Design Week asks us each to consider the ways in which design impacts our daily lives. I hope you can visit some of the many fascinating programs across Melbourne and Victoria that are exploring and creating the future in this space,

Tony Ellwood AM
Director, National Gallery of Victoria

Melbourne Design Week asks us each to consider the ways in which design impacts our daily lives. I hope you can visit some of the many fascinating programs across Melbourne and Victoria that are exploring and creating the future in this space,

Tony Ellwood AM
Director, National Gallery of Victoria

Caption: Installation view of design works on display at Melbourne Design Fair from 16 – 20 March, presented by NGV in collaboration with Melbourne Art Foundation during Melbourne Design Week 2022. Photo: Sean Fennessy