Design Canberra Festival The Week Ahead: 6 - 12 November – Design Canberra Festival

A Little Bird Told Me by Kate Nixon. Photo by Fernanda Pardo. Place your bid at SELL OUT: Design Party Auction.
A Little Bird Told Me by Kate Nixon. Photo by Fernanda Pardo. Place your bid at SELL OUT: Design Party Auction.

The Week Ahead: 6 – 12 November

Tuesday 7

Come along to level 2 of the newly opened lifestyle precinct of Canberra Centre’s Monaro Mall for a curated collection of contemporary Australian design. Featuring HOME:MADE, Six Degrees of Separation, Everyday Beautiful and Local Milan – this showcase will leave you feeling proud and inspired.

Wednesday 8

Attend the first of a three-part evening series hosted by the Australian Institute of Architects on designing, planning and delivering affordable housing. $25 per seminar or $60 for the series.

Collaborative Projects at Anvil Design Studio, 6pm. Collaborative Projects brings together the five residents of ‘Six Wiluna’ and five ceramicists, pairing skills in furniture making and ceramics to create new work. Artists include Edeni Reni, Sam Ryrie, Richilde Flavell, Rolf Barfoed, Katrina Leske, Pete Bollington, Mahala Hill, Nick Harper, Andres Caycedo and Elliot Bastianon.

Thursday 9

At midday, The Australian Institute of Architecture will host their annual Griffin Lecture, in honour of Walter Burley Griffin, the designer of Canberra. The 52nd Griffin Lecture is to be delivered by journalist, political commentator and author, George Megalogenis. Tickets are $70 – $85 and can be purchased here.

Exhibition openings include:

Transit by Jeremy Lepisto at Vibe Hotel Canberra Airport, 6pm.
Located in the foyer of the beautiful Vibe Hotel Canberra (winner of the 2016 national Emil Sodersten Award for Interior Architecture), Transit presents a collection of glass and metal works by glass artist Jeremy Lepisto inspired by the silhouettes and lines of urban architecture, which address the transfer of items and the destinations found between endpoints.

Alt-Route at PROMPT Gallery, ANU Pop-Up Reunion Village.
Alt-Route is an exhibition of custom maps and guide books documenting unrecognised, unusual or under-represented geographies of Canberra. Think along the lines of: best dumpster-diving sites; McMansions of O’Malley; rehabilitated wetlands and reserves; forgotten public artworks; inspired letterbox architecture; open wifi hotspots; sublime hedges.

There and back again by Jemima Parker at Canberra Contemporary Art Space
Jemima Parker re-imagines images as screen prints – cutting down paper, mixing inks and hand printing, bringing the works slowly to life – a direct contrast to today’s instantly posted image. Soft, faded backgrounds, and warm, brown black for the images themselves, suggest these contemporary scenes are in fact of a bygone time, evoking nostalgia.

Friday 10

Today is all about Object Subject, the inaugural design writing conference. Hear from leading design writers, designers and curators at the iconic Shine Dome, designed by Roy Grounds and opened in 1959. See Alice Rawsthorn (NY Times), Dana Tomic Hughes (Yellowtrace), Ewan McEoin (senior curator NGV and long-standing editor of (inside) Australian Design Review), Penny Craswell (The Design Writer), editor David Clark, Lisa Green (Australian House & Garden), Stephen Todd (Habitus), Anne-Maree Sargeant (Authentic Design Alliance), Lou Weis (Broached Commissions), Emily McCulloch Childs (Indigenous Jewellery Project), designers Nicole Monks, Tom Skeehan and Niklavs Rubenis, social designer Tasman Monroe, and many more.

At 4:30pm, celebrate the end of the conference (or working week) with a glass of wine and some local music at our weekly City Sessions. This session will take place outside the Shine Dome from 4:30pm – 6pm.

At 5:15pm, you can experience a short acoustic performance by one of Canberra’s leading community choirs in the foyer of the iconic Nishi Building in New Acton.

At 6pm, Dr Jenny Gall will be speaking about the first home movie entertainment – the magical Kinora camera. Sparked by a recent acquisition by the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, this lecture will provide an overview of the impact that photographic technology had on domestic life in the early 20th century.

From 6pm, make you way over to Kingston for an evening of design, music, food and drink. From 6pm, gallery hop through the leafy inner south for a packed night of exhibitions, open studios, art making workshops.

At 8pm, the Fitters Workshop will play host to one of DESIGN Canberra 2017’s most exciting events. The SELL OUT festival opening party blends design, music, food and drink into an event worthy of launching the annual festival. Enjoy a new installation by a lighting designer straight from the lauded Dark Mofo Festival in Tasmania, a gorgeous heritage building, a DJ and some of Canberra’s finest local brews and spirits. Tickets are now available – $10 online and $15 at the door (Includes first wine, beer or soft drink free).

Saturday 11

From 8:30am – 12:30pm, Light House Architecture and Science, Queensland architects and engagement specialists POD (People Oriented Design) will present POD’s trademarked innovative and educational workshop about sustainable housing design – The Least House Necessary. The workshop has been tailored to suit conditions and precedents in the ACT and cool temperature climates and tickets cost $100.

At 10:15am, meet at Craft ACT to join local glass artists, Emilie Patteson and Rose-Mary Faulkner on a guided tour to discover the studios of leading Canberra glass artists. Morning tea will be provided and you will have the opportunity to purchase work directly from the artists in this behind the scenes glimpse into how artists transform this fascinating material. Tickets: $36

From 10am – 3pm at Civic Library, you can view a display of some of the 2017 award winning ACT architecture – and to speak to an architect.

From 10am – 4pm, Rolfe Classic BMW will launch the new BMWX3 and invite Canberra to the dealership for an Open Day. The all new BMW X3 will be on display along with a showcase of their exciting new collaboration with University of Canberra.

From 11am – 4pm, step inside the studios of Canberra’s best designers and makers to purchase contemporary handmade ceramics, furniture, textiles, glass and more, directly from the artists. Open studios include:

Kirstie Rea, Lisa Cahill, Julie Ryder The Hayshed, 7 Beltana Rd, Pialligo ACT 2609
Dunstone Design 3/5 Aurora Pl Queanbeyan NSW 2620
Hiroshi Yamaguchi 1/7 William Street Oaks Estate ACT 2620
Matthew Curtis & Harriet Schwarzrock 114 Uriarra Rd, Crestwood NSW 2620
Nullarbor Nights Knitwear Unit 2/ 156 Gilmore Rd Queanbeyan 2620
Jeremy Lepisto 3/134 Gilmore Road, Queanbeyan NSW, 2620
Alison Jackson ANCA Mitchell, 96 Hoskins Street Mitchell ACT
Dan Lorrimer ANCA Mitchell, 96 Hoskins Street Mitchell ACT
Tom Skeehan ANCA Mitchell, 96 Hoskins Street Mitchell ACT
ANCA Mitchell ANCA Mitchell, 96 Hoskins Street Mitchell ACT

Australian Parliament House is running three design tours at 10am, 12pm and 3pm. Find out why Australian Parliament House has won so many architectural awards. This tour will have you discover the fascinating symbolism and bespoke furniture collections of Parliament House.

At 2pm, listen to Alice Rawsthorn speak at the National Gallery of Australia. In this public talk Alice Rawsthorn explores the role of experimentation in design, arguing that it is now more important than ever, as a new generation of independent, politically engaged designers fulfil László Moholy-Nagy’s belief that “design is an attitude, not a profession.”

Also at 2pm, join comedian, self confessed design nerd and presenter of the acclaimed ABC TV series, Streets Of Your Town, Tim Ross for an afternoon of assorted stories about his obsession with collecting furniture, Australian architecture and beyond. Join Tim at University House, ANU for a casual chat about modernism, Canberra and anything else he feels like!

From 6pm at New Dairy Road Studios in Fyshwick, learn about the wasteful and unsafe nature of the fashion industry in Pure Pod’s Fashionably Numb: An ethical industry panel. Discover the connections between ethical and unethical production practices and forced habits of consumption.

Sunday 12

Start your morning off visiting the most beautiful living rooms Canberra has to offer. Explore the architecture of acclaimed Canberra houses in the inner south, and discover pop-up exhibitions with works on sale by local artists, makers and craft practitioners.

Pop over to the Canberra Centre at midday to join self-confessed flatlay addict Lee Rachel as she shares her go-to tips and tricks to creating an insta-worthy flatlay using local artists. Tickets are $20 and all attendees will receive a redeemable Canberra Centre Gift Card on the day.

At 1:30pm, join renowned architecture enthusiast, Martin Miles on a bus tour around Canberra’s best architecture including mid-century modernist icons by Grounds and other architects. The tour will leave from the corner of Parkes Place West and Queen Elizabeth Terrace.

After the tour, sit back, relax and soak up the atmosphere of Canberra’s lakeside views while listening to our local talent at our weekly Sunday Sessions. Nearby, hear from self-proclaimed “urban archaeologist”, photographer Darren Bradley as he opens a suite of exhibitions at EastSpace Gallery. Darren spends his free time seeking out the vestiges of the visionary designs that are the heart and soul of Canberra.