KDW has partnered with international industry bodies such as WDO, WDC, IxDA, and national bodies like IIA, IIID, and TiE
India’s largest Maker Fest, christened of Kochi Design Week (KDW), will get underway at the Bolgatty Island, in Kochi, Kerala on December 16. The two-day International Design Festival is to be organised in partnership with Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM), and it will provide a podium to creative minds for a robust and interactive exchange of ideas on the new facets in design, art and technology.
This will be the third edition of KDW and is expected to have the presence of 25,000 professionals, including design professionals, architects, interior designers, thought leaders, policymakers, government officials and general public.
KSUM, which is considered to be the largest providers of creative minds in the country, is looking to build an ecosystem to tap the potential of the emerging creators and content economy and position the state as a global design hub. KSUM is the nodal agency of the Kerala Government for entrepreneurship development and incubation activities in the state. The logo for this year’s KDW was unveiled by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
KDW to be curated by leading design experts
The Kochi Design Week has initiated this momentum by bringing together all the major sectors and stakeholders and kickstart a design thinking exercise along with addressing some major social impact design challenges, said Anoop Ambika, CEO of KSUM.
Curated by leading design experts, the highlights of the event include Design Summits which will be addressed by prominent international and national speakers; MovieCon, Electronics Maker Fest, Design Talks, and Design Challenges. There will also be workshops, exhibits, installations, and film festival.
KDW has partnered with national and international industry bodies like World Design Organisation (WDO), World Design Council (WDC), IxDA (Interaction Design Association) and national bodies like IIA (Indian Institute of Architects), IIID (Institute of Indian Interior Designers), and TiE (The Indus Entrepreneurs).
This year’s edition includes various social impact challenges, which require to be addressed at the earliest. These challenges are to be held in collaboration with Kochi Corporation. To promote the market for Handloom apparels, Handloom Design Challenge will be conducted in association with NIFT and IIHT. Unique craftsmanship representing each district will be given prominence with the artwork being on display during the Design Week.
Exclusive Design Island for KDW
A road show will be conducted by IEDC in four major cities of Kerala to attract student entrepreneurs to Design Week. Product Expo by startups from KSUM ecosystem along with KSUM Experience Centre and Design Installation will be conducted. Prototyping workshop for developing Kerala Souvenir with the help of Super Fab lab Kochi will also be held. The previous two editions of KDW were successfully organised in Kochi in 2018 and 2019.
This is the first event of its kind that brings together architects, interior designers, decision-makers and builders. An exclusive Design Island for KDW has been earmarked to make it a high-profile international event that ensures three-month-long pre-and post-campaigns and over 70 activations.
Further, 10 design and architecture installations are mounted at high visibility areas of the city, such as shopping malls and airport. There are a string of master classes and workshops by industrial experts. Another uniqueness of KDW, which has a campaign reach of over 20 million people, is Kochi’s largest music and food festival.
