Romanian Design Week, the most important multidisciplinary 10-day festival in Romania, will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a special edition this year and will explore how the festival changed the way the local creative industries look.

Themed as #FORWARD, this year's Romanian Design Week, organized by The Institute and presented by UniCredit Bank, will take place in May between 13 and 22 in its main venue in Combinatul Fondului Plastic as well as outdoor activities in 29 Baiculești Street. 

As the organizers emphasized, this year's theme is born from "the desire to investigate, test and design scenarios for a future of creative communities, innovation, inclusion, sustainability through collaboration, to have more harmonious cities and communities."

After presenting hybrid programs in 2021, this edition will be RDW's first physical festival after the pandemic this year.

Image courtesy of RDW

RDW exhibited over 1,400 design projects in 15,000 square meters area and­ received 150,000 visitors 

World Architecture Community is official media partner of Romanian Design Week 2022 and will be bringing you the latest news from the festival. 

RDW explained its statistics so far and continued that The Institute has produced exhibitions totalling an area of over 15,000 square meters, brought to the public over 1,400 design projects and an average of 150 designers and design or architecture studios per year. 

In 9 years of the festival, The Institute reopened 8 spaces of the capital-city for the public, which it restored to the urban circuit, giving them back to the city. 

Thus, Știrbei Palace, Bucharest Chamber of Commerce Palace, Gabroveni Inn, Amzei Square, Cobălcescu Garages, Telephones Palace, Oscar Maugsch Palace and Combinatul Fondului Plastic hosted large design and architecture exhibitions, which could be visited during Romanian Design Week.

RDW added that organizing over 400 design events around the city of Bucharest have also contributed to the transformation of the city of Bucharest year after year and guided the steps of over 150,000 RDW visitors on routes worthy of any European design festival. 

"Behind the largest Romanian Design festival is the work of a team of 15 people, as well as an average of 6 months of work, per year, for organizing each RDW edition," said the organizers of RDW.

"In total, the effort behind an initiative like the Romanian Design Week amounts to over 6.5 years of work, put in the service of promoting local design and Romanian creative industries." 

Exhibition view from 2021 RDW. Image © Roald Aron

"We continue to transform Bucharest into the capital-city of Romanian design" 

"When we looked back at what all these years of Romanian Design Week meant, we realized that behind the festival lay an impressive effort and mobilization. I am glad that we have achieved our mission from the beginning - to change the Romanian society for the better, contributing to the development and promotion of local creative industries," said Andrei Bortun, CEO of The Institute. 

"We continue to transform Bucharest into the capital-city of Romanian design this year when we want to encourage even more the consumption of products and services generated by creative disciplines."

"We are optimistic and continue to believe in the potential, development, and capacity of Romanian design to put on the table topics relevant to the current context, such as sustainability, inclusion, or cooperation. 

"We need a future marked by solidarity, and what we are preparing this year will also serve as a commentary on this essential aspect for the times we are living in," Bortun added.

Exhibition view from 2021 RDW. Image © Roald Aron

Romanian Design Week at the 10th edition: the largest Romanian design concept store in the country, outdoor activities, and numerous exhibitions in partnership with prestigious institutions across the country

The organizers highlighted that the RDW 2022 will bring some essential elements of this year's theme to the public through a series of exhibitions and events, while some of the events will be co-produced with some of the most relevant local creative-cultural organizations.

These collaborations will be laying the foundation for a new beginning, based on experiences, processes and collaborations, according to RDW.

Exhibition view from 2021 RDW. Image © Roald Aron

The largest Romanian design Concept Store opens in the country

For the first time this year, RDW will also open the largest Romanian design Concept Store in the country, which will spread over 500 square meters and will showcase design objects from all important categories from fashion, accessories to furniture or art. 

Besides its indoor exhibitions, RDW 2022 will also transform the outdoor space from Combinatul Fondului Plastic into a micro-city of arts and design, which will offer visitors a daily program of activities, interactive installations, music and events, as well as a dedicated area with food & drinks, at the address in 29 Baiculești Street. 

Exhibition view from 2021 RDW. Image © Roald Aron

As the main venue of RDW, Combinatul Fondului Plastic will also be part of the official Night of Museums circuit, so RDW 2022 will be open to the public and can be visited on May 14 in extended hours, until midnight. 

The program of the 10-year anniversary edition of RDW will reflect the results of the strategic partnerships that The Institute has established with the European Commission Representation in Romania, the Romanian Cultural Institute, the Order of Architects in Bucharest, the Union of Plastic Artists, Combinatul Fondului Plastic, the Association Baza. 

Exhibition view from 2021 RDW. Image © Roald Aron

RDW opens the city, NOD makerspace, Czech Center, Hungarian Cultural Institute, French Institute or ARCEN, as well as events and projects signed by over 50 other creative-cultural organizations in Romania.

For the full RDW 2022 schedule and updates to it, visit the event's Facebook page.

Tickets for access to the festival can be purchased online from Eventbook, or offline, from the Eventbook network.  

The Institute promotes the creative industries in Romania, aiming to contribute to the modernization of Romania. The Institute has been initiating and organizing events for over 20 years and has built a community that brings together entrepreneurs, professionals, and the public of creative industries in Romania. 

Event facts

A project: The Institute

Presented by: UniCredit Bank

Partners: IQOS, Absolut, ASAP, Urban Monkey, Art Property Development, Art Property City

Alternative transport partner: Lime

Supported by: Regina Maria, illy

Strategic media partners: Rock FM, Radio Romania Cultural, Euromedia, B365.ro, Yooh

Media partners: Arhitext, Designist, Feeder, Art Encounters, Fashion Premium Magazine, G4 Media, Glamour, Igloo, Modernism, Molecule-F, Munteanu, Atelierul Magazine, IQads, Zeppelin, Zile & Nopți, Arta Magazine, Propagarta, Spot Media, The Woman, Inspirationist, Contemporary Lynx, World Architecture Community.

Top image: Exhibition view from 2021 RDW. Image © Roald Aron.

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