10th edition of Zlin Design Week

Birds Aren't Real by Peter McIndoe

The 10th edition of Zlin Design Week took place from May 8 – 14 in the town of Zlin in Czech Republic. This was not only the 10th anniversary of this design festival but also the 15th edition of Best in Design competition that is part of the program.

Composed around the theme FUTURE IS!, with this edition the organization behind the festival aims to look forward and reflect on what kind of future is created by design. Questioning the potential of current innovations and trends in design for a better future. The program, spread all over Zlin, contains exhibitions, lectures, workshops, fashion shows, talks, award ceremony, pop-up shop, networking events and parties.

Exhibition program consisted of the main exhibition Future is! at the Zlín Castle. Curated by, Michala Lipková, Future is! explores current challenges and trends in design and presents projects that can shape our near and distant future. The selection of projects has focused on meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), resilient design, use of new technologies, and inclusive approaches.

One project featured in this exhibition that stayed with me is by Crafted Liberation. From headscarves to stadium seats, Crafted Liberation celebrates Iranian Women's resilience in the pursuit of gender equality. Crafted Liberation is an exhibition showing unity and empowerment among women of Iran. With headscarves donated by Iranian women globally, they transform them into stadium seats, telling stories of their struggle against political and societal constraints. This project calls for awareness and solidarity for women in Iran and beyond.

Best in Design exhibtion

The second exhibition in the G18 gallery was centered around the finalists of the international competition Best in Design 2024, a showcase for new talents in the fields of Product & Industrial Design, Fashion Design, Communication Design, and Service Design for fifteen years.

The finalists of the 15th year of the competition were selected by a jury panel and their work was on show in the exhibition program. On Saturday evening, May 11th, the awards were given out at the impressive Tomas Bata Memorial (Památník Tomáše Bati), a functionalist building built in 1933.

Best in Design is an international contest for young designers. There are not only financial rewards from 200 € up to 1 500 € at stake, but it’s also a great opportunity to get a feedback and network. Jury is mix of various professionals and previous winners.

In the fashion category the first prize went to Rafał Zakrzewski’s project ‘Reconnect with cloth’, second to Aidan- Jayson Peters ‘Danusa life of a garment’ and third to ‘Embracing Female Healing’ by Ziyao Xiao.
Barbora Kramná was awarded first prize in the communication category and Dorothea Wagnerberger in Service Design. Marek Kuźmiński, finalist of the Product & Industrial Design category, took home most awards, including the media award and the overall Best in Design Award.

OUR SHIFT x Škoda

Furthermore in the program platform was given to aspiring fashion designers. On Friday evening the festival’s main Fashion Show, under the title Future is spectrum! took place outdoor on Platform 14/15 of the Bata Institute.The concept of the Jubilee Fashion Show revolved around the idea that the future is not a linear path but a dynamic spectrum of possibilities. The fashion show featured ten designers from Czech Republic and abroad: Tereza Helánová, Pavel Mikliš, Terezie Kožíková, Karin Elízová, Kateřina Klozová, Jakub Mikulášek, Zuzana Vrábeľová, Valerie Vrbová, Marija Petraityte and Ema Domanická.

One of the highlights happened on Sunday evening, when OUR SHIFT presented a performance in collaboration with Škoda in an emptied parking space. OUR SHIFT is an activist textile and fashion startup launched in 2022 in Copenhagen. The founder duo Milan and Barbora aim to empower individuals and companies to make a shift enabling a more responsible world through activism and textile upcycling. They combine design and upcycling techniques to create unique upcycled styles. With their activist slogans and responsibly-made products, they aim to contribute to the inevitable shift in the fashion and textile industry. In addition, they use their knowledge and experience in the textile upcycling processes to help other companies reuse their left-over textiles and shift their business models into more sustainable ones.

And there was more. Check out https://zlindesignweek.com @zlindesignweek

Take a look at the picture report