First look at London Design Festival 2026: this year’s line-up is searching for answers about today’s culture
Art lovers are in for a treat as the UK’s biggest city will transform into a living museum for the London Design Festival (LDF) 2026. The major annual event has announced its 24th edition, taking place on Saturday 12th September until Sunday 20th September. This year focuses on dialogue between past and future, human and non-human, East and West, as well as physical and digital.
Shining a spotlight on questions that are shaping culture, its impressive installations and interactive museum commissions encourage visitors to demand answers.
Across the capital, artists from every corner of the world will be celebrated including both emerging and established talent.
“London Design Festival 2026 is proving to be an exceptional year,” says Ben Evans CBE, London Design Festival director and co-founder. “London retains its allure as a global design capital engaging with expanding audiences and partners across the economy.”
Homes & Interiors Scotland has shortlisted five must-see exhibitions that prove the festival is worthy of its reputation as a cornerstone of the global cultural calendar.
The Pangolin Shield
‘The Pangolin Shield’ by Studio Saar and Atelier One, is the first Landmark Project to be announced by LDF.
The installation is inspired by the pangolin, the world’s most trafficked mammal and whose scales cover their bodies from head to tail.
The exhibition will create a bamboo grid-shell pavilion layered with traditional Indian police riot shields to resemble overlapping scales. Placed on the Strand, the structure reframes tools of confrontation into a communal canopy that plays with light, shade and shelter. It demands reflection on colonial history, migration, power and ecological exploitation.
Craft x Tech Tokai Project
This project fuses centuries-old Tokai craftsmanship with contemporary design, pairing Japanese artisans in lacquer, ceramics, metalwork, woodworking, washi and textiles with international designers.
Bringing together creatives from six regions, artists explore new creative possibilities, resulting in innovative art pieces that aim to redefine the future of traditional crafts.
The results include console-lighting hybrids and braided-cord sculptures, which reframe classic techniques as forward-looking experiments in material, form, and function.
Each collaboration translates local knowledge into modern contexts, preserving skill while pushing boundaries of scale, texture and utility.
MADE x Barbican
One of Britain’s most iconic architectural estates is being brought into the heart of the modern home.
Rooted in design history, yet focused on modern living, the ‘MADE x Barbican’ collection reinterprets the interiors and features of the Barbican Estate for today’s lifestyles.
Drawing on archival research, original layouts and the pioneering work of designer Miriam Howitt, the 23-piece collection transforms these architectural references into a range of furniture, lighting, textiles and accessories.
L-Acoustics at the Wapping Hydraulic Power Station
A historic space will open to the public for the first time in 13 years as part of this exciting installation.
The festival will collaborate with the pioneering professional audio brand L-Acoustics to present an immersive sound experience at the Wapping Hydraulic Power Station.
Originally built in 1890, Wapping Power Station once powered much of Victorian London. Now it is offering a rare opportunity to explore one of the city’s most remarkable industrial spaces. We can’t wait until more details are announced soon.
V&A x LDF26: AWAKENINGS
The V&A, a long‑standing LDF partner, will present’ Awakenings’. This is a vibrant exploration of how design, craft and technology can inspire new perspectives.
It will be a journey across the museum’s iconic galleries, sparking questions around the creative and destructive potential of AI, tapping into the energy of sound and exploring the embodiment of identity through sculptural furniture.
The programme features work from Henry Svendsen, Sam Ghantous, Andre Williams, Nina Davies and Albert Yonathan Setyawan, alongside major new commissions from Aziza Kadyri, Eunjo Lee and V&A Emerging Designer 2026, Playfool.
Together, these installations and interventions aim to awaken us from the everyday world and confront the forces shaping our collective future.
