Celebrate National Design Week in D.C., October 19-23
National Design Week starts on Monday, and while a lot of the major events are in New York, designers and design-lovers can get their fill of events right here in D.C.—online, at our area museums, and at a week of social events organized to bring together designers of all disciplines.
Events
Design Week DC and the D.C. chapter of the AIGA are hosting an event each night of the week, beginning with Monday night's screening of the documentary Milton Glaser: To Inform and Delight, which begins at 7 p.m. at the E Street Cinema. This event is unfortunately sold out, but you can meet up with attendees for a happy hour at Harry's Pub afterward, or try the theater to see if you can jump in at the end for the Q&A with director Wendy Keys.
If you haven't snagged movie tickets, don't worry, because Thursday night's event is going to be at least as fun. It's Capitol Pecha Kucha Night Volume 10, held in collaboration with the Pink Line Project, AIGA, Meat Market Gallery and others. The evening starts at 5:30 p.m. at Coverings House in Cady's Alley in Georgetown (at 1111 34th Street) with the unveiling of an interactive installation by artist Alberto Gaitan, which features everyday objects and lighting design. At 6:30 p.m., bring $10 and join everyone at nearby Boffi Studio, where creatives will be showing their work in twenty second intervals to the sounds of DJ Brien Watson. The night will be capped by an afterparty at L2 Lounge at 10 p.m.
If you're looking for something a bit more low key and small scale, consider joining the DC AIGA for happy hour on Tuesday, which begins at 6:30 p.m. at Urbana Wine Bar in Dupont Circle. Or, join other designers on Friday for a day full of studio tours throughout the region.
Head back to Cady's Alley on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. for a day full of lectures focused on interior and product design as well as architecture. Many of these lectures seem more focused on product than process, so check the schedule to be sure you show up for the talk with the most appeal.
Online
If you can't make it out, there are plenty of ways for you to take in the events—and some inspiration—just by pressing that play button.
Two of the week's events at the Smithsonian's Cooper Hewitt Design Museum in New York will also be webcast live on the museum's website. At 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, tune in for a panel discussion on The Business of Design with Bill Moggridge (2009 Lifetime Achievement National Design Award Winner), Sam Lucente (HP's Vice President of Design), and Jeanne Liedtka (U.Va. business professor), which will be moderated by Daniel H. Pink (author of A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future). They'll discuss how design impacts consumer goods, business strategy, and the bottom line. That evening, the National Design Awards Winners' Panel will also be broadcast live on the Cooper Hewitt website, and runs from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The award winners, who cross all design disciplines including architecture, interactive, landscape and interior design, will discuss their inspiration as well as their views on the current state of design in America.
D.C.'s official Smithsonian-sponsored events surrounding the National Design Awards occurred the morning of July 24, however you can watch webcasts of each lecture here, including the introduction by Michelle Obama and five lectures focusing on The Future of Technology and Sustainability, Interpreting the Present and the Past, The Future of Interaction Design, Materials and their Effects, and Transform your Neighborhood.
At the Museums
While there are no official Design Week exhibits at the Smithsonians around town, there are a few current shows that will give you a design fix regardless of the week.
>> The Postal Museum's Alphabetilately runs through next October, and presents twenty-six exhibit cases--one for each letter of the alphabet. Each case includes a design by a different San Francisco artist which portrays a different lettered topic, as well as rarities from the museum's permanent collection.
>> The Hirshhorn's new Anne Truitt exhibit will spark thoughts on color theory, shape and use of space.
>> The American Art Museum has a couple of inspiring exhibits running through January. Graphic Masters II features the paper work from the 1920s to 1960s by Stuart Davis, Edward Hopper, Willem de Kooning and the like. Also, the Wiliam T. Wiley retrospective exhibit is a must-see. Meet at the museum at 6 p.m. on Tuesday for a gallery tour with Joann Moser.
>> The National Gallery of Art recently opened Editions with Additions: Working Proofs by Jasper Johns, which showcases Johns' proofs for lithographs, etchings and screenprints.
Have any other tips for finding inspiration this design week, or have you seen any other exhibits that got your creative juices flowing? Leave them in the comments.