Leading international design festival Clerkenwell Design Week, which ended today, included over 300 UK and international design companies and over 80 local showrooms taking part, the event – sponsored by Renault - attracted over 8,000 registered visitors on its first day.

Above: ‘Glaze’ by Cousins & Cousins in collaboration with Gx Glass

Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, comments, ‘From religion and radical politics to printing and beermaking, Clerkenwell has long been associated with ideas and production.

‘Now it is firmly back on the map thanks to the dynamic cluster of high-quality creative and commercial businesses working there. This has been celebrated in grand style by Clerkenwell Design Week over the last six years, which brings together world-class design talent, original installations and memorable moments of inspiration in a myriad of unique spaces.’

This year’s festival celebrated the transformation of London’s public spaces in a city that is rapidly densifying. As part of CDW Presents, a series of street installations were situated across Clerkenwell to explore this theme; from GRUPPE’s temporary structures inspired by an ancient Roman city and children’s building blocks (in partnership with EQUITONE), to a jewel-like, multi-coloured glass pavilion by London-based architects Cousins & Cousins (with Gx Glass) and Monotype’s vinyl graffiti depicting a panoramic 19th Century view of London on an old prison’s wall.

Clerkenwell Design Week also celebrated design and creativity by showcasing the latest innovations by designers and manufacturers from the UK and around the world. These were centred upon leading showroom partners in the neighbourhood, as well as four focused exhibitions including Design Factory, Platform, Detail and Additions. The ever-popular talks series, Conversations at Clerkenwell, was held on the top floor of Design Factory boasting a star-studded line-up of speakers from the architecture and design world.

Clerkenwell Design Week
clerkenwelldesignweek.com