Oh how I love Copenhagen, it’s not hard to tempt me back to the city. So with no hesitation I flew over for the 3 days of design annual festival in May. Hosting design talks, exhibitions, product launches and various events all over Copenhagen, it was a design festival that I couldn’t miss. There was a little panic in finding somewhere to stay as I waited until last minute to book, if you’re planning on visiting the city, book accommodation well in advance! The hotel prices almost doubled as I was hunting! Thankfully I sorted out 2 nights at STAY Copenhagen  and the rest of the time in a sweet Air b&b.

This was my first time visiting 3 days of design and being spread over the city I needed to have a plan and try to keep to it…..that was easier said than done! With a map, a backpack and my trusty camera I was set. Here’s my edited run down of what I saw.

FREDERICIA

Celebrating the ‘Double F Hotel’ exhibition, Fredericia showcased a colourful collection of new designs from Jasper Morrison, Space Copenhagen and GamFratesi among the classics by Hans J.Wegner, Nanna Ditzel and Børge Mogensen. I really loved the colourful exhibition, though shock horror, I’m a sucker for a monochrome moment.

MUUTO

A long climb up to the Muuto store but it’s worth it, such stunning products and they have a pretty awesome view of Copenhagen too! Was great to see the new Varjo rugs and a collection of my dream products such as Around coffee table, Adaptable and Five pouf, oh the list is long….

FRAMA

The Frama studio store, set in an old apothecary, launched the new St Pauls Apothecary collection.  The studio exhibits their design portfolio of furniture, kitchens, lighting etc. A super cool and talented design brand.

BY LASSEN

I took part in this demonstration with by Lassen owner Søren Lassen, grandson of the original designer Mogens Lassen. Here Søren taught me how to weld a candle holder piece onto the classic Kubus Candleholder. What an honour!

GEORG JENSEN DAMASK + FRITZ HANSEN at DINESEN HOME

A jaw dropping exhibition by artist Pernille Egeskov set in the Dinesen home showroom and in collaboration with Georg Jensen Damask and Fritz Hansen. The installation also took a surreal turn having sunken figures in a bed and a creepy deconstructed Arne Jacobsen Ant chair with crazy legs and shedding sheets of ply. I went to see this twice as it was so good.

DINESEN 

The Dinesen showroom, famous for their extraordinary wide plank flooring. This exhibition showed the various stages of the wood’s life, through to flooring and furniture planks. Also exhibiting were Icelandic duo, Chris L.Halstrøm and Margrethe Odgaard, designing pieces of furniture with Dinesen planks and Kvadrat fabric.

&TRADITION

&Tradition exhibited the newly designed showroom by Norm Architects, named ‘The Village’. This small scale version of a monochrome, harmonious village is set within a huge warehouse on Papirøen. The idea behind the concept was to ‘make the structure balance between a coherent minimalist spatial art installation’.

Walking through this space and exploring each room, it emphasized the intelligence of design involved. Showcasing each product in an artistic and minimalist way, with framed views leading to another room. It was an experience that opened my eyes to the complex beauty of spatial minimalist design. Studiopepe also collaborated in the showroom with seriously cool decor.

FERM LIVING

The first company to use the Bremerholm power station as a location for a pop up shop. Ferm Living certainly chose this space well and was a great backdrop for the products. This was a treat to visit after previously writing a piece on this pop-up, perfectly inspiring.

SKAGERAK

On the last day I took a stroll to the Skagerak showroom where they opened their garden and invited us to relax in the Scandinavian sun. We were served food from Stedsans CleanSimpleLocal , fresh from their incredible allotment, look at this food!

Skagerak’s products have been a favourite of mine for a while with products such as the Nordic collection, Edge pots,  Georg furniture and super cool Hang chair. The showroom is a welcoming, relaxing and inspirational place which suits the products perfectly.

While exploring Copenhagen, jumping from showroom to showroom, I got to discover the most beautiful and tranquil spots. This is in the city! Can you believe it?! There’s so much more to talk about about, like the design talk at SIKA design, the cool showrooms at Pakhaus 48, events at the design centre, the food, the wine….. it was all so great.

3 days of design was well worth the visit, I’ll be back next year with the plan to see even more!

H x

All photography © Hannah Trickett 

More information on 3 days of design here