Isola Design Group returns to Dubai Design Week from 3–8 November 2026 with its most ambitious programme in the city to date
Photography courtesy of Isola Design Group
Spanning Marasi Bay, Dubai Design District and Downtown Design, the fifth edition brings together contemporary design exhibitions, site-specific installations and immersive experiences that challenge how design is encountered and experienced.
Central to this year’s programme is the launch of Designwhere, a new platform connecting visitors with the designers, galleries, studios and independent creative spaces shaping a city’s cultural landscape.
Launching in Dubai before expanding internationally, the initiative seeks to extend design discovery beyond traditional exhibition spaces and into the wider urban environment.
At Marasi Bay, Isola expands its collaboration with OMNIYAT and The Lana, Dorchester Collection, transforming the waterfront promenade into a hub for creative exchange.
Photography courtesy of Isola Design Group
Among the highlights is Worlds Unseen, an immersive exhibition by Oliwia Maria Studio and Curator Bureau that brings together raw natural materials, brutalist architecture and collectible design.
Photography courtesy of Isola Design Group
Suspended stone-like forms and locally sourced boulders create an otherworldly landscape, exploring the relationship between nature, materiality and human intervention.
Photography courtesy of Isola Design Group
Running from 3 November to 4 December, the exhibition joins No Ordinary Things at Isola Space, which celebrates contemporary craftsmanship through furniture, collectible objects and functional design.
Photography courtesy of ©Creative Frame Story
Elsewhere, Do Not Disturb (3-8 November) sees three international studios – Sara Ricciardi Studio, Tellurico Studio and WKND Lab – reinterpret private suites at The Lana Hotel as intimate spaces for creative experimentation, inviting visitors to explore their materials, processes and design philosophies.
Photography courtesy of ©Fabrizio Vatieri Studio
The programme extends into the public realm through five installations along The Lana Promenade, addressing themes of sustainability, collective experience and the relationship between people and place.
In Dubai Design District, Landscape of Objects – Design for Better Living, presented in partnership with SVD, examines the increasingly fluid boundaries between architecture, nature and technology.
Photography courtesy of Joseph ©Farzan Nissarudeen
Running from 3-8 November, the exhibition brings together furniture, lighting, vegetation and sensory elements to consider how thoughtfully designed environments can support healthier, more responsive ways of living.
Photography courtesy of ©Taralynn Disher
At Downtown Design, the debut of Designwhere takes place at Booth 13B, d3 Waterfront, from 4-8 November.
Through a curated selection of furniture, lighting and objects connected to creative spaces across Dubai, the platform encourages visitors to explore the city’s design culture beyond the confines of the fair.
Beyond the exhibitions, Isola will host a programme of talks, workshops and evening gatherings at Riviera at The Lana, creating opportunities for exchange across the international design community.
The programme officially opens on 3 November, from 6–9pm, with an evening event across Marasi Bay, culminating in an aperitivo at Riviera featuring a live performance by Can Touch This and a vinyl set from Italian DJ and producer Classic Mode, in collaboration with Isola Radio.
Together, the programme reflects Isola’s growing interest in design as more than a collection of objects, positioning it instead as a means of shaping environments, fostering connections and rethinking how people engage with the cities around them.
DATE 3 – 8 November 2026
WHERE The Lana Promenade, Business Bay, Dubai | Dubai Design District, Dubai
EVENT PARTNERS Dubai Audio; Isola Radio; Isola Space; Oliwia Maria Studio, Marasi Bay; SVD; The Lana, Dorchester Collection, Dubai
MEDIA PARTNERS Abitare, Archiproducts, Collater.al, Design Pianeta, Dezeen, ICON, Living, Love That Design, Marie Claire Maison Arabia, Pianeta Design, STIR
Find out more about Isola Design at Dubai Design Week here: https://isola.design/dubai-design-week-2026
