From London to New York and beyond, our global edit spotlights the unmissable design events setting the agenda for 2026
Photography courtesy of Japan House London featuring the house’s Atelier Muji Art for Life exhibition
Across museums, galleries and cultural institutions worldwide, design exhibitions inspire debate and reflection, putting the spotlight on new designers, materials, technologies and collaborative design approaches.
From established design capitals to emerging creative centres, this year’s exhibitions consider everything from the new ways of thinking about care to how design has shaped the way we experience music. Together, these ten shows offer a global snapshot of design now, highlighting the ideas and voices at the forefront of the industry.
Not forgetting that the UK’s leading design festival, Clerkenwell Design Week, returns 19-21 May to London’s EC1 postcode. Promising new venues alongside firm favourites, leading names and engaging installations dotted along the festival route – be sure to mark your calendars. Details for this year’s London Design Festival are still under wraps, but something exciting is set to be announced for Shoreditch in the coming months. Certainly something to keep an eye on.
Photography courtesy of Designmuseum Danmark
1. Belongings: Affection as a Design Strategy at Designmuseum Danmark, Copenhagen, Denmark
A new exhibition will open soon at Designmuseum Danmark, which looks at how emotional attachment to objects can encourage more sustainable forms of consumption. Presented as an immersive, sensory installation, the exhibition invites visitors to bring a personal object and engage with it through AI-driven interaction.
Created in collaboration with the Danish Design Center and award-winning artist Cecilie Waagner Falkenstrøm, the project opens up new ways of thinking about care, attachment and longevity in design. In doing so, it offers a look at how emerging technologies might change our relationships with the things we keep.
Belongings: Affection as a Design Strategy runs from January 22 – May 31 2026 at Designmuseum Danmark
Photography by Jonas Westling, courtesy of ArkDes, featuring the Young Swedish Design 2025 edition
2. Young Swedish Design 2026 at ArkDes, Stockholm, Sweden
Showcasing the freshest talents in contemporary Swedish design, Young Swedish Design 2026 features 22 emerging designers across product, furniture, graphic and digital disciplines. The display explores how the next generation of designers address topics such as society, climate, identity and production.
Presented by ArkDes as part of the Ung Svensk Form award, Sweden’s premier annual recognition for emerging designers, it offers a fascinating insight into the Nordic country’s design scene and the innovative ideas defining the industry today and tomorrow.
Young Swedish Design 2026 runs from 3 February 2026 – 8 March 2026 at ArkDes
Photography featuring Isamu Noguchi with his sculpture Unmei (1970) in the garden at 32-37 Vernon Boulevard, Long Island City, NY (site that would eventually become The Isamu Noguchi Garden Museum), in the 1980s. The Noguchi Museum Archives, 04161. © The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum, NY / Artists Rights Society (ARS)
3. Noguchi’s New York at Noguchi Museum, New York, USA
At the heart of this exhibit is Isamu Noguchi’s close relationship with New York City, a place he called home and where many of his most iconic works were conceived. Examining how the city’s architecture, culture and politics helped inform his work – and how he, in turn, transformed public space – the installation reflects Noguchi’s legacy of communal design.
Marking the 40th anniversary of The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum, among his most significant contributions to New York City, the exhibition honours one of the most respected artists and designers of our time.
Noguchi’s New York runs from 4 February 2026 – 13 September 2026 at the Noguchi Museum
Photography by Matt Flynn featuring Special Model M Phonograph, ca. 1935; Housing designed by John Vassos; Mechanism designed by Alfred Weiland, Selden T. Williams; Manufactured by RCA Victor; Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; Gift of George R. Kravis II, 2016-5-11
4. Art of Noise at Cooper Hewitt, New York, USA
Art of Noise at Cooper Hewitt considers how design has shaped the way we experience music over the past century. From concert posters and album covers to hi-fi systems, portable devices and experimental sound sculptures, the exhibition spans over 300 works that explore the connection between aesthetics, technology and culture.
Highlights include teenage engineering’s interactive sonic installations and Devon Turnbull’s handcrafted HiFi Pursuit Listening Room Dream No. 3, which invites visitors to discover sound in interactive ways. Covering New York’s vibrant music scenes alongside global milestones, the show celebrates design as a visual and auditory experience that continues to inform how we listen, feel and remember music.
Art of Noise runs from 13 February 2026 – 16 August 16 2026 at Cooper Hewitt
Photography by Roel van Tour, courtesy of Vitra Design Museum, featuring Hella Jongerius in her studio, 2023
5. Hella Jongerius: Whispering Things at Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany
This major retrospective at the Vitra Design Museum presents the full scope of Hella Jongerius’ practice, covering textiles, ceramics, furniture, lighting and sculptural work. Drawing on the newly housed JongeriusLab at the Vitra Design Museum, this showcase offers a rare insight into the Dutch designer’s work.
Collaborating with brands such as Maharam, KLM, Camper and Vitra, her sustained engagement with craft, colour and materiality has made her the winner of a Lifetime Achievement Award last year. Bound to be an unmissable exhibit, head to Hella Jongerius: Whispering Things to discover a world of colour and the designer’s research-driven approach.
Hella Jongerius: Whispering Things from 14 March 2026 – 6 September 2026 at Vitra Design Museum
Photography courtesy of Triennale Milano featuring Roberto de Pinto
6. Milano Cortina at Triennale Milano, Milan, Italy
Commemorating the spirit of the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, Art Posters of Milano Cortina 2026 is told through the eyes of ten young Italian artists. On view at Triennale Milano, the posters merge sport, contemporary culture and creative expression to reflect Italy’s vibrant art scene.
What’s more, Milano Cortina also presents the Olympic and Paralympic torches and is part of a broader programme shining a light on art, sport and society, continuing the long tradition of the Games’ poster as a cultural and artistic legacy.
Milano Cortina runs until 15 March 2026 at Triennale Milano
Photography by Guido Stazzoni featuring Maria Porro who is now heading up Salone del Mobile
7. Salone Raritas at Salone del Mobile, Milan, Italy
Salone del Mobile is introducing a new exhibition platform for its 2026 edition, dedicated to limited-edition design, unique objects and high-end craftsmanship. Curated by Milanese creative Annalisa Rosso and designed by Italian duo Formafantasma, the space brings together galleries, architects, developers and hospitality professionals.
Debuting at the 64th edition of the fair, Salone Raritas spotlights rare and collectible pieces within a contemporary setting, positioning research-driven designs as both cultural artefacts and commercial objects. A first for the trade show, it promises to be a significant development and one to watch closely.
Salone Raritas runs from 21-26 April 2026 at Fiera Milano, Rho, Salone del Mobile
Photography courtesy of Japan House London featuring the house’s Atelier Muji Art for Life exhibition
8. Hyakkō at Japan House London, London UK
A new exhibition at Japan House London champions contemporary Japanese craft. Hyakkō: 100+ Makers from Japan showcases over 120 makers and nearly 2,000 works across clay, glass, wood, leather, metal and more.
Reimagining tradition for everyday life, the show highlights how individual makers bring personality and cultural heritage to functional objects, from ceramics and glassware to woven baskets and bamboo cutlery.
Organised by Ryohin Keikaku of Muji and curated by Nagata Takahiro, the exhibit invites visitors to discover the creativity, skill and stories behind each piece on display. In addition to showcasing select works for purchase, Hyakkō features a programme of workshops, talks and demonstrations for visitors to engage with.
Hyakkō runs until 10 May 2026 at Japan House London
Photography courtesy of admuseo featuring Ateljeekoti remontin jälkeen 1960-luku Simo Rista c: Arkkitehtuuri
9. Escape to Moominvalley at admuseo, Helsinki, Finland
Inviting visitors into the real and imagined worlds of Tove Jansson, Escape to Moominvalley at Helsinki’s Architecture & Design Museum looks at how Jannson’s beloved Moomins shaped ideas of home, refuge and creative living.
From her Klovharun summer cottage to the landscapes of Moominvalley, the installation traces how Jansson’s environments inspired her stories, while also showing innovative approaches to space and community.
What’s more, the show features contemporary designers and architects responding to these themes, presenting imaginative solutions for living in times of change and uncertainty. Interactive pathways invite playful exploration, all while capturing the spirit of one of Finland’s greatest authors.
Escape to Moominvalley runs until 27 September 2026 at admuseo
Photography courtesy of the Design Museum and Giles Tettey Nartey featuring Strange Notes by Giles Tettey Nartey, Nue Black Aesthetic, Design Museum
10. Nue Black Aesthetic at the Design Museum, London, UK
Bookmark calendars for the Design Museum’s landmark exhibition Nue Black Aesthetic, celebrating contemporary Black designers whose work is shaping the design industry today. Spanning furniture, architecture fashion and installation, Nue Black Aesthetic examines practices rooted in identity, culture and community.
Featuring work by leading figures such as Ini Archibong, Samuel Ross, Bianca Saunders and Giles Tettey Nartey, Nue Black Aesthetic is guest-curated by Charlene Prempeh in collaboration with the Design Museum. The exhibition invites visitors to reconsider what Black design looks like and who gets to influence design culture.
Nue Black Aesthetic runs from 6 November 2026 – 8 August 2027 at Design Museum London
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