Designblok 2025 Unveils Visual, Exhibitions, and Guests — A Tribute to Courage and Women in Design and Architecture
10. 6. 2025
The courage to push your work further – to explore uncharted territory, to combine traditional crafts with cutting-edge technologies. The determination to seek new solutions and not shy away from originality in artistic expression. The 27th edition of the largest design and fashion festival in Central Europe will showcase over 250 carefully selected designers, studios, and brands from the Czech Republic and abroad. Installations and special exhibitions will be on view at the Křižík Pavilions at Výstaviště Praha, the Queen Anne’s Summer Palace in the Royal Garden of Prague Castle, the Museum of Decorative Arts, and Galerie Rudolfinum. The multidisciplinary cultural venue Nová Spirála will host the conference on design and architecture, fashion shows, and the award ceremony presented by an international panel of experts. This year, the festival will welcome stars of global design and architecture – including Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola, French designer Erwan Bouroullec, Norwegian architecture studio Snøhetta, British photographer Mary McCartney, and other prominent figures of today’s creative scene. Experimental projects, environmentally and socially conscious installations, thematic exhibitions, lectures and discussions, professional networking, and family-friendly programming will also be featured. Designblok 2025 will kick off on Tuesday, October 7 with the Designblok Talks conference for architects, interior designers, developers, and other professionals. The festival will be open to the public from October 8 to 12, 2025.
The central theme connecting the 27th edition of the festival is Courage. “Courage is one of the most essential ingredients of quality design. At Designblok, it lies in the efforts of exhibitors to push their work further, to explore unknown ground, to utilize not only traditional crafts but also embrace new technologies. The willingness to pursue original solutions and artistic expression is a key to success. For me, Designblok 2025 will also be about the courage to connect disciplines, to place design in a broader social context, to seek the best solutions, and, not least, to highlight women designers and all women who are shaping the global creative scene today,” said the festival’s director Jana Zielinski, adding: “The influential British architect, design theorist, and creative director of Design Academy Eindhoven, Alcova Milano, and Alcova Miami, Joseph Grima, described Designblok as a nurturing platform helping to transform the Central European heritage into a modern, thriving society. One that does so without exhausting resources, while relying on creativity, responsible production, and public education. So let us wish for plenty of courage as we continue fulfilling this mission.”
The main exhibition at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague will follow the theme, titled Courage and subtitled Between Unity and Diversity: Women in Architecture, Design, and Applied Arts, curated by Designblok Program Board member and Moravian Gallery curator Michaela Kádnerová. “The exhibition reflects courage as an energy that manifests in many forms through the will and desire to create meaningfully and satisfyingly – not to prove it is a strength unique to women, but in their case, it is one of the ingredients needed to become part of and succeed in fields that are still predominantly male. The exhibition draws attention not only to the works but also to the stories of their authors. Courage will spotlight twenty creators across three generations – women as makers, companions, inspirations, mentors, students, and friends,” the curator explained. Exhibiting designers will include Eva Eisler, Kateřina Handlová, Lucie Koldová, graphic designer Zuzana Lednická, fashion designer Liběna Rochová, glass artist Lada Semecká, illustrator Nikola Logosová, ceramicist Šárka Radová, architects Lenka Míková and Bára Škorpilová, among others. Photographer Barbora Prášilová, who created this year’s festival visual, will also exhibit her work.
The neo-Renaissance halls of the Museum of Decorative Arts will also once again showcase product designers, fashion designers, jewelry artists, and illustrators. The finals of the Designblok Diploma Selection will present diploma projects from graduates of prestigious European universities in product design. The venue will also host an exhibition by renowned Czech jeweler and artist Zdeněk Vacek, curated by Jan Dotřel in cooperation with gallery Kvalitář. Vacek’s first solo show, marking 25 years of his creative career, will explore the transformation of his work from jewelry into sculptural objects. Another exhibition, Design is My Religion, curated in collaboration with Vogue CS editor-in-chief Danica Kovářová, will celebrate the 75th birthday of leading Czech designer, architect, theorist, and former rector of UMPRUM Jiří Pelcl.
A new exhibition venue this year is the Galerie Rudolfinum. The Lodžie exhibition space will host the exclusive premiere of the exhibition by festival honorary guest Mary McCartney. Mary McCartney by PLAYCE, curated by Martina Lowe, presents a new selection of portraits spanning the 30-year career of this English photographer, documentary maker, and activist focused on strong women and the female figure. During the festival, Galerie Rudolfinum will also present a solo show by Czech artist Kateřina Vincourová titled Skin Care. Both exhibitions will be accessible free of charge, no festival pass required.
In collaboration with the Prague Castle Administration, Designblok continues for a third year to open exceptional buildings and corners of one of the world’s largest castle complexes to the public. After more than two decades, the festival returns to the Queen Anne’s Summer Palace in the Royal Garden. This Renaissance jewel from the late 16th century will host a special curated exhibition titled High Craft, showcasing the work of leading Czech designers and manufacturers. Curated by festival director Jana Zielinski and Vogue CS editor-in-chief Danica Kovářová, the exhibition presents over twenty selected Czech creators and brands building on traditional Czech crafts while developing them with innovative technologies, sustainable practices, and top aesthetic standards – taking them from the present into the future.
Designblok is back at Výstaviště! The central festival venue will be the newly renovated Křižík Pavilions. With more than 5,500 square meters of exhibition space, the venue will host around 150 exhibitions by leading European designers and manufacturers. A new addition is the children’s pavilion Designblok for Kids, with playful elements, interactive installations, and brands appealing to the youngest design fans, their parents, and grandparents. Visitors can also look forward to unorthodox emerging creators and rising stars of European design – with the School Today showcase of top Central European universities, and the support program for young designers Designblok Talent Cards. There will also be educational lectures, discussions, workshops on the Designblok Stage, chill zones with refreshments, and outdoor exhibitions.
On Professionals’ Day, held Tuesday, October 7, 2025, the multidisciplinary cultural space Nová Spirála will host the largest networking and educational conference for professionals in design, architecture, and development: Designblok Talks. The series of inspiring expert lectures and discussions is organized in cooperation with the world’s most-read design portal Dezeen (a long-time media partner of the festival), the Center for Architecture and Metropolitan Planning (CAMP, part of the Prague Institute of Planning and Development), and companies Vitra and Konsepti. Headlining guests will include French designer Erwan Bouroullec, Norwegian studio Snøhetta, Dutch architect and urbanist Winy Maas, and other key figures from the global scene. The conference will focus on the future and the courage of design and urban development in Prague, offering space for professional growth and international networking.
On Thursday, October 9, 2025, an international jury chaired by journalist, consultant, and Wallpaper* China editor Yoko Choy will present the Designblok Awards 2025 – the festival’s most prestigious award for participating designers. The Designblok Lifetime Achievement Award will also be presented by festival director Jana Zielinski and personally received by global design icon Patricia Urquiola. The Spanish designer and architect, based in Milan, collaborates with leading brands such as Cassina, Moroso, B&B Italia, Kartell, Flos, and Louis Vuitton. Her work is known for playfulness, empathy, material mastery, and innovation. She comes to Prague at the invitation of Designblok and Konsepti. On Saturday, October 11, 2025, the rotating stage of Nová Spirála will host fashion shows by finalists of the European graduate competition Designblok Diploma Selection, in front of the international jury and fashion lovers.
Last year, the prestigious Wallpaper* magazine named Designblok the most playful design festival in the world. Supporting young designers, presenting current trends, curating exhibitions and co-productions with top institutions, educating, and offering a rich accompanying program of discussions, fashion shows, and talent competitions is made possible thanks to the support of our partners. The Designblok family proudly welcomes new major partners, including Česká spořitelna, Visa, KKCG Real Estate, T-Mobile, and ČEZ, and we look forward to continued collaboration with our long-time supporters Ploom, Škoda Auto, Almanac X Alcron Prague, Nespresso, and Sazka reLosy.
The 27th Designblok will be open to the public from October 8 to 12, 2025 at the Křižík Pavilions at Výstaviště Praha, the Queen Anne’s Summer Palace in the Royal Garden of Prague Castle, the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague, and Galerie Rudolfinum. On Tuesday, October 7, 2025, all exhibition venues will host the Professionals’ Day and the Designblok Talks conference at Nová Spirála. As in previous years, galleries, showrooms, design shops, and other venues across Prague will also take part. Discounted pre-sale tickets are available now at designblok.cz.
