10 must-see architecture and design events to check out this December

As the year draws to a close, the architecture and design community shows no signs of slowing down — offering exciting gatherings and thoughtful exhibits to be explored throughout December and well into 2024.

From the long roster of current and upcoming events listed on Bustler, here are a few curated recommendations for December, including festivals, fairs, and exhibitions throughout the U.S. and abroad.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Design Miami/ and Art Basel Miami Beach | December 6 (and 8, respectively) – 10, Miami Beach

An important fixture in the international design fair calendar is returning to the Miami Beach Convention Center on December 6h for its 19th edition. Catch up on design talks, explore new and exciting work by designers worldwide, participate in workshops, and — while you're in the neighborhood — take a stroll over to the accompanying Art Basel Miami Beach event starting on December 8th. 

Seoul Design Festival | December 20-23, Seoul

If you're in South Korea around the holidays, be sure to check out the Seoul Design Festival at Gangnam's COEX for a chance to discover emerging designers and new trends from domestic and foreign talent. 

ONGOING EVENTS

An Atlas of Es Devlin | Until August 11, 2024, New York

New York's Cooper Hewitt Design Museum recently opened a new monographic exhibition about the work of uber-talented artist and stage designer Es Devlin. The show focuses on her installation process, drawings and artwork, wall projections, and many of her studio's performance works.

Generation Proxima: Emerging Environmental Practices in Portuguese Architecture | Until March 23, 2024, New York

Also currently on display in NYC is Generation Proxima, an exhibition at the Center for Architecture showcasing seven Portuguese firms "whose work responds to environmental challenges while engaging with ideas of community, social engagement, and scarcity."

Marshall Brown Projects: Dequindre Civic Academy | Until May 27, 2024, San Francisco

In San Francisco, an exhibition at SFMOMA attempts to reimagine the future of a Detroit city block through various media, including architectural drawings, models, and collages. Originally commissioned for an exhibition of speculative architectural projects at the U.S. Pavilion in the 2016 Venice Architecture Biennale, the show investigates the "possibilities of architecture to revitalize areas that have had historically limited access to resources, due to systemic inequality, depopulation, and infrastructural decline."

Ma Yansong: Landscapes in Motion | Until December 17, Shenzhen

A retrospective exhibition about the work of internationally active MAD Architects is currently inviting visitors to the Shenzhen Museum of Contemporary Art and Urban Planning until mid-December. With the help of 52 projects created over the studio's nearly twenty-year history, the event seeks to explore the relationship "cities have with time, history, and nature."

How to Build a Low-Carbon Home | Until March 10, 2024, London

London's Design Museum is currently stoking renewed interest in low-carbon approaches to housing construction by rediscovering three ancient materials: wood, stone, and straw. Through dedicated sections for each of these three, the exhibition traces the journey from the raw materials' sources of origin to their implementation in contemporary buildings. 

Small Spaces in the City: Rethinking Inside the Box | Until January 27, 2024, London

Can't get enough London events? Check out Roca London Gallery's current exhibition, which showcases the potential of small space concepts across housing typologies. Curated by Clare Farrow Studio, Small Spaces in the City features the results of research in the field through text, film, furniture design, and installation.

Building to Heal: New Architecture for Hospitals | Until January 21, Munich

The topic of hospital design is front and center at the current Architekturmuseum der TUM exhibition in Munich, running until mid-January. The work examines the scientific foundations of so-called "healing architecture," healthy environments, and novel design approaches to "stimulate a broader public debate about the future of the building type and its social relevance."

Brutal DC | Until March 2, 2024, Cedar City

To take a deep dive into the Brutalist architectural movement of Washington, D.C., head to the Southern Utah Museum of Art in Cedar City. The exhibition tells the story — and examines the future — of seven key Brutalist buildings and the Metro system in D.C., including the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and the J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building.

Do you have an architecture or design event you want to promote? Submit it to our event calendar via Bustler for review and a potential feature.