Free Event 10th Anniversary
Meet the Museum
As part of our 10th Anniversary Weekender celebrations, meet designers, artists, curators, researchers and creative voices who have worked with the Design Museum for insightful conversations exploring what happens behind the scenes and how ideas become part of a museum’s story.
This is a free event, and pre-booking is not required.
Inspired by the idea of a living library, visitors will have the opportunity to speak with our guests who have previously worked at the museum or helped build its stories and exhibitions.
Each guest – or 'book' – will be available at a table for short, informal chats, sharing stories, experiences, and ideas on topics related to their lived experiences, from their work with and interest in the museum to their broader interests in the design world.
You can choose who you’d like to meet, join their conversation group, and ask questions to find out more about the past, present, and future of the Design Museum, and learn from the perspectives of the people, ideas, and possibilities shaping design today.
Contributors include Ameena M. McConnell, Anais Aguerre (Culture Connect), Aric Chen (Zaha Hadid Foundation), Delfina Fantini van Ditmar, Eliza Collin, Francesca Anfossi, Helen Charman, Laura Casali, Lisa Alberti, Mark Eaves, Mich Dulce, Rioco Green and Suzanne Zhang.
No specialist knowledge needed – just bring your curiosity.
Speakers
Aric is a curator, writer and Director of the Zaha Hadid Foundation. American-born, Chen previously served as General and Artistic Director of the Nieuwe Instituut; Professor and founding Director of the Curatorial Lab at the College of Design & Innovation at Tongji University in Shanghai; Curatorial Director of the Design Miami fairs in Miami Beach and Basel; Creative Director of Beijing Design Week; and Lead Curator for Design and Architecture at M+ Hong Kong.
Francesca is an Italian artist based in London. Working across ceramics, furniture, sculpture and participatory projects, her practice explores the social rituals of cooking, playing, gathering and sharing. Through functional objects and communal experiences, she brings craftsmanship into everyday life, fostering collective learning and connection. Anfossi is co-founder and director of Rochester Square, a Camden-based pottery studio dedicated to socially engaged projects.
Laura is Head of Communications at the Design Council, where she leads communications, policy, research and marketing, championing the role of design in shaping a better future. Her work includes leading the Design for Planet mission, overseeing Design Economy research into the value and impact of the UK design sector, and hosting the World Design Congress in London in 2025. Previously, she was Senior Marketing Manager at the Design Museum (2018–2021).
Mark is one of the founders of Gravity Road, an advertising creative company that makes things people want to spend time with. He led the award-winning launch campaign for The Design Museum’s move in 2016. He recently launched Ode, a groundbreaking AI poetry companion to support mental wellbeing, described by Stephen Fry as a 'A beautiful idea. Medicine for the soul. This is AI at its best.'
Delfina is a Senior Researcher at the Royal College of Art, where she co-directs the UKRI-funded Becoming Regenerative Lab. She is also a Research Professor and Chair of the Regenerative Art and Design research group at the Centre of Applied Research for Art, Design and Technology. Driven by her interest in ecological thinking, reflective creative practices, and whole-systems approaches in response to environmental collapse, her practice examines material ethics of care and the necessary paradigm shift in design.
Visit information
This is a drop-in event. There is no need to book.
Location: the museum's atrium.
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Background image: © 2024 Rob Harris for the Design Museum