designjunction (22 – 25 September) is set to transform its new home in King’s Cross into one destination full of immersive design concepts and stimulating experiences. As part of the annual London Design Festival, designjunction2016 offers visitors an exciting programme of thought-provoking features, engaging events and interactive workshops across the site, in line with its central theme #immersedindesign.

To mark the opening of the show, designjunction will host its first open-air party on Granary Square on Wednesday 21 September (8–10.30pm, free to attend). This will be the biggest outdoor design party during the festival, hosted alongside headline partner Dezeen, and sponsored by EIZO. Other partners include BORN, Place and Spiritland. Expect street food from Real Food Festival, pop-up bars and live DJ sets from Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip and Adventures in Paradise, all in celebration of the show’s new home and the redesign of Dezeen.

Granary Square

At designjunction, the centrally located Granary Square will be home to eight giant Monopoly-style houses, filled with conceptual installations, creative projects and live activities. These bespoke houses, designed by creative director Michael Sodeau, will be taken over by leading brands from across different design disciplines.

Houzz

Leading online platform for home design and renovation, Houzz, is the headline partner for this area occupying two of the houses on Granary Square. Presenting its SmartHouzz concept, Houzz will demonstrate how to maximise urban living space through smart design, smart use of space and smart technology.

The company will offer homeowners free drop-in design clinics with Houzz professionals – including architects and interior designers – in its special green SmartHouzz (Thursday 22 to Saturday 24, 4-6pm; Sunday 2-4pm). What’s more, Houzz will run free drop-in profile consultations with industry professionals at the show, sharing tips and advice on how to maximise business exposure on its platform. Live demos, workshops and free coffee are available to visitors over the four days.

Dornbracht

Leading high-end kitchen and bathroom manufacturer, Dornbracht, will create an immersive installation – the Dornbracht Water Experience – at designjunction. This will be a dramatic representation of the impact that water has on our health, whilst highlighting the company’s unparalleled ability in controlling and orchestrating the performance of water.

The Dornbracht Water Experience will be constructed from the company’s latest products and is designed to transport the feeling of standing by the sea to the heart of urban London. This ambitious waterfall installation will trigger two of the permanent fountains on Granary Square to produce a wave effect that appears to radiate from the house out into its surroundings.

The waterfall and fountain movement will also be connected to sound, with visitors hearing a soothing soundtrack devised by Wave Studios. In addition, a live string quartet will perform daily at the show.   

EIZO

Specialising in visually accurate, colour correct monitors and display systems, EIZO will invite visitors to step into its EIZO ColourLab. The laboratory-style setting is designed to show the intricacies of colour critical industries, whilst demonstrating how EIZO’s latest technology maintains the accuracy and vibrancy of the world’s leading brands.

To mark the UK launch of EIZO’s ColorEdge range (CS and CG) which targets creative and design professionals, the EIZO ColourLab will also showcase two specially commissioned short films, featuring fashion and fine art photographer Elizaveta Porodina, and London-based architectural visualisation studio, Forbes Massie.

Dyslexic Design

Curated by British designer Jim Rokos, the inaugural Dyslexic Design exhibition at designjunction explores the connection between dyslexia and the creative industries, in support of the British Dyslexia Association. The exhibition is to celebrate dyslexia by accentuating the positive effects of living with dyslexia and its close association with design.

Housed in a spectacular exhibition space designed by leading architect Ab Rogers, Dyslexic Design will feature a range of new and existing work from leading designers including Sebastian Bergne, Terence Woodgate, Kristjana S Williams, Tom Raffield, Tina Crawford, Rohan Chhabra, Tiphaine Dugast and Bethan Laura Wood – all of whom are dyslexic. A special panel discussion will also take place at 5pm on Saturday 24 September.

Not Another Bill

Gift subscription service company, Not Another Bill – which delivers a carefully curated surprise present in the post every month – will offer visitors to Granary Square the opportunity to send a surprise (and free) postcard daily at the show. Bringing back the nostalgia of receiving post, a trike-riding postman will encourage visitors to write, address and post their cards in his very own postbox, all of which will be stamped and sent onwards so that the recipients receive a sweet surprise on their doorstep.

The Architectural Review

Leading publication The Architectural Review will be campaigning against the phenomenon known as Notopia, the global pandemic of generic buildings infecting our cities and resulting in a loss of identity and cultural vibrancy. Visitors to designjunction can join the debate by visiting the magazine’s dedicated house on Granary Square where they can sketch, draw or scribble their suggestions for change that will make a great city.

four23

Innovative design studio, four23, will create a playful, interactive installation in its red house on Granary Square. Using the words of Eliel Saarinen as a foundation – later adopted by Charles and Ray Eames –“A chair in a room, a room in a house, a house in an environment, an environment in a city plan”, the immersive experience will feature a 360 film which explores the relationship between our physical surroundings and our ability to think, daydream and create. The installation accompanies four23’s annual exhibition in its Clerkenwell Studio as part of the festival.

VITA Copenhagen

In addition to the eight houses, Granary Square will see the presence of Danish lighting brand VITA Copenhagen with its specially-designed VITA Van. This mobile lighting showroom enables visitors to immerse themselves in the world of Danish design, amongst some of the brand’s iconic styles such as the EO.

Other Highlights

Over the years designjunction has built a reputation for its high-quality and eclectic range of food and drink offers. For 2016 the show will be working with Real Food Festival bringing in street food trucks for visitors to enjoy and connect with those who produce it.

At Cubitt House, there will be a secret garden featuring a pop-up café furnished with Deadgood’s new Naked collection by Magnus Long and Gala Wright. Delicious ice cream, provided by Ruby Violet, will also be available to the visitors. The outdoor space is completed with Artemide’s Tolomeo lighting and a floral feature from Bloomon designed by Stuart Fenwick.

Moving onto the top of Cubitt House, visitors can experience the Isokon café operated by La Marzocco, as well as a stylish bar operated by the East London Liquor Company and furnished by Arper.

This year the designjunction VIP and media lounge is designed in collaboration with German designer Verena Hennig. Visitors to this exclusive area can experience a playful installation – made from memory foam – for rest and recharge, as well as private areas for interviews and meetings. Hennig’s latest Roll seating collection will be complemented by various lighting to highlight different zones whilst creating a relaxing environment, including a striking pendant feature from Czech lighting company Preciosa.

For more information about designjunction please visit http://www.thedesignjunction.co.uk.

designjunction London 2016

Thursday 22 September – Sunday 25 September 2016

1 Granary Square | King’s Cross | London | N1C 4AA

Public ticket prices:

£12 – Standard advance

£15 – On the door

www.thedesignjunction.co.uk/tickets

Press registration (free) – www.thedesignjunction.co.uk/pressreg

Trade registration (free) – www.thedesignjunction.co.uk/tradereg, or £15 on the door

Contacts

All media enquiries should be directed to the designjunction team at Caro Communications:

– Lucy Price, Account Manager

– Jeffrey Cheung, Account Director

E: [email protected]

T: +44 (0)20 7713 9388

W: www.carocommunications.com @carocomms

For enquiries concerning King’s Cross development, contact Rosie Cade at Argent:

E: [email protected]

Notes to Editor

About designjunction:

designjunction is a leading exhibition for contemporary interior design and culture, held annually in London and New York. The flagship show takes place in London as part of the London Design Festival each September – where more than 200 contemporary brands present their new collections to an international audience of architects, interior designers, retailers and media. In 2015, the five day exhibition attracted more than 26,000 visitors through its doors.

thedesignjunction.co.uk

@_designjunction #djKX #ImmersedinDesign #KXCQ

About King’s Cross:

King’s Cross is a critically acclaimed 67 acre, 8 million sq ft development in Central London. The developer, the King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership, is creating a piece of the city, which includes 20 new and refurbished office buildings, nearly 2,000 new homes, as well as new shops and restaurants. Aside from the sheer scale, what makes King’s Cross different is the determination to create an interesting place with a varied mix of uses. The area benefits from a lively and diverse arts and events programme that makes use of the world-class public spaces that are being delivered.

kingscross.co.uk

@kingscrossN1C