ddp design fair

As the DDP Design Fair’s Lifestyle and Living Curator, I have been on the journey with makers and designers to create stories.

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people started to talk about the importance of virtual world platforms and online content. Of course, it is true that such media experiences have become important but I can feel that people still value the sense of touching or feeling something in person by seeing the crowds at in-person exhibitions that offer great content. People are being more cautious when they are making purchases for lifestyle products, which are relatively more accessible and affordable, and try to make responsible consumption. Therefore, this is a perfect opportunity for designers and makers to launch lifestyle products — products we casually use every day — based on new interpretations. It is true that we had some difficulties along the journey because the Lifestyle and Living category has a broad and diverse range of products compared to other fields, however, we also had a meaningful time to discover the hidden stories of designers and makers.

At this year’s DDP Design Fair, we are preparing to showcase lifestyle products with various stories just as we did last year but also trying to unveil more various content by encouraging collaboration between various designers and makers representing each material and color to make lifestyle products, furniture and lighting together based on a different approach. This was possible due to interdisciplinary communication between designers, makers and curators based on their expertise in each field.

While acting as a bridge between designers and makers for this fair, I was grateful see their passionate efforts for collaboration, especially at a time when face-to-face meetings were mostly unavailable due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a designer myself, I really envied the designers who were successfully paired with makers since they could collaborate with companies I’ve always wanted to work with. Especially, the makers and designers who have been participating almost every year felt like my close colleagues as we have been building the event together.

I believe more and more people will start to realize the true value of the DDP Design Fair, which serves as a venue for collaboration between designers and makers for the first time. We must not expect too much at our first attempt. However, the value of each and every story we build together will shine through over time. The DDP Design Fair is not a fair that only lasts for a year. It is paving the way for the next 5 years and 10 years.