Dubai Design Week 2025, running from November 4–9, cements the city’s dynamic role as a global design capital. Now in its eleventh edition, the festival transforms Dubai Design District (d3) into a vibrant nexus for creativity, bringing together over 1,000 designers and brands from across the Middle East and around the world. Themed “Community” in line with the UAE’s Year of Community initiative, this year’s program puts special emphasis on design as a force for social connection, cultural storytelling, and environmental innovation.
The festival’s centerpiece, Downtown Design, serves as the Middle East’s leading fair for contemporary design, presenting the latest collections from established names like Kartell and Poltrona Frau alongside trailblazers such as Roche Bobois and Desalto. The fair also hosts “Editions,” a showcase of limited-edition art, design prints, and works on paper by global and regional creators, spotlighting both heritage and cutting-edge innovation.
A signature draw this year is the expanded outdoor installation program, with over 30 large-scale works dotting d3’s urban landscape. Highlights include ARDH Collective’s “The Space Within,” a sustainable pavilion constructed using low-carbon materials, and experimental 3D-printed structures by EDGE Architects. These installations not only reinterpret public spaces but also underscore Dubai’s commitment to sustainable, materials-forward design.
Workshops and talks remain a festival cornerstone, offering more than 100 sessions led by industry titans and rising stars alike. Masterclasses range from portfolio development to hands-on explorations of digital fabrication and sustainable materials, catering to all age groups and levels of creative experience. Notably, internationally renowned designers, such as Tom Dixon and Lee Broom, share their expertise on future design trends and social impact.
Celebrating regional talent is core to the festival’s mission. The annual Urban Commissions competition this year invited designers to reinterpret the courtyard, a staple of Middle Eastern architecture, as a site of communal gathering and innovation. The winning entry by UAE-based studio Some Kind of Practice, “When Does a Threshold Become a Courtyard?”, offers a climate-responsive space inspired by Emirati vernacular traditions.
Abwab, the annual pavilion program, spotlights designers from West, South, and East Asia, as well as Africa, challenging participants to reimagine ornamentalism as a vessel for memory and cultural intelligence. Meanwhile, the Marketplace returns with an exhilarating bazaar atmosphere, showcasing homegrown brands, limited-run products, and culinary pop-ups.
The event’s internationalism is further underlined by Isola Design Group’s unveiling of “Icons of Tomorrow,” featuring works by designers from Mexico to South Korea, and collaborative exhibitions that bridge the Middle Eastern, South Asian, and global scenes. Institutional partners, including the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), the American University of Sharjah, and L’ÉCOLE School of Jewelry Arts, offer curated content that spans architecture, digital design, heritage crafts, and the intersection of AI and material practice.
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