Edition 2023

Instead of just predicting the future, can we try to design it? And how can visions of the future change our present? – These are the questions that we will ask during this year’s edition of Łódź Design Festival, which will be held from May 18-28. The motto of the upcoming edition of ŁDF is “Future Perfect”!

Łódź Design Festival is a unique event that brings together designers and manufacturers associated with the creative industry, as well as all lovers of good design. Organized since 2007, it creates a forum for designers and companies to exchange experiences and aims to discover and promote young talents and present the directions of design development to a wide audience. It includes such competitions as must have, which recognizes the best Polish products, and make me!, which aims to promote young, talented designers from all around the world. A regular part of the festival is also Archiblok, during which architecture and urban planning experts present the most interesting aspects of their professional work, to be later joined in a captivating discussion. Lodz Design Festival is also an opportunity to submit your own proposals to the festival program. It is given by the open programme, thanks to which individual artists, but also institutions, associations, foundations, schools, galleries etc. can send their own ideas.

These regular program elements which already became a trademarks of ŁDF will also be a part of this year’s edition of the event. In addition to them, the idea behind each edition of Lodz Design Festival and the exhibitions presented during it is expressed by the motto announced each year. This year it is “Future Perfect”!

“Future Perfect” – the motto of this year’s ŁDF

There is probably no one who does not wonder what the future will look like. We live in a time full of uncertainty, yet at the same time with increasingly new possibilities and immeasurable opportunities. Thanks to technological and scientific advances, we have hope for a better tomorrow – we believe that in the near future we will find effective solutions to global problems, such as climate change or social conflicts – says Michal Piernikowski, director of the festival. UNESCO points out that “Future Literacy,” that is, competencies related to thinking about the future, are extremely important skills. The organization calls for using the future to fix the present. Discussions and ideas about such a possibility will be the main topic of exhibitions and conversations during Łódź Design Festival 2023. Together with invited artists and viewers, we will consider various scenarios for the fate of the world on a macro scale, but also on the level of designing our cities, our closest relations or creating a better reality for future generations. During the upcoming edition of the ŁDF, we will ask the question whether instead of predicting we can try to design our common future.

“Future Perfect” is a slogan referring to the vision of a world in which both individuals and whole societies take actions with the awareness of their consequences afterwards. This year’s festival will become a tool that will allow everyone to choose one (or maybe several?) of the visions presented, but also to build their own positive futures. The activities of ŁDF 2023 will be designed to present the real impact we have on life and the world in the future, taking into account potential changes and challenges that we can’t foresee now. However, thanks to the interdisciplinary cooperation of experts from different fields, such as science, art, technology, business, sociology and design, we have a chance to create a future that is sustainable in terms of caring for the environment and adapted to existing needs. And perhaps one that will live up to our dreams?

Is the future already here and is the ideal city possible? The themes of the festival’s main exhibitions

The main exhibitions will also revolve around the festival’s theme and will focus on our ideas about life in the future. “The Future is Here,” the first of the exhibitions, points out how our ideas about the future influence the design of the solutions we use today. How do we design our future of working, taking care of ourselves, traveling or spending leisure time? How do our visions of the future determine the present? The second project, on the other hand, is devoted to our ideas about creating the perfect city – a reflection on the changes taking place in modern metropolises. What will be the ideal cities – a garden city, a smartcity or perhaps a 15-minute city?

The author of this year’s visual identification is Katarzyna Ludwisiak.

The organization of the Łódź Design Festival 2023 is possible thanks to the support of the Łódzkie Centrum Wydarzeń and the City of Łódź. LDF was co-financed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund.