Did you know that earlier this year an acclaimed international interior design and culture show announced its relocation to King’s Cross? And as part of this week’s London Design Festival, the epicentre of what’s called designjunction (yes lower case, all one word) is now Granary Square.
What can you expect if you’ve not been before? Well, eight giant Monopoly-style houses, for a start, filled with conceptual installations, creative projects and live activities: filling the square – sans fountains, we imagine – they’ve all been co-opted by big name brands from across different design disciplines.
For example, online retail behemoth Houzz will occupy two, demonstrating how to maximise urban living space through smart design, use of space and smart technology (of course). There’ll be demos, workshops and free drop-in consultations for visitors.
Meanwhile Cubitt House, a two-floor pavilion in adjoining Lewis Cubitt Square, will have a trade focus, with 70 lighting and furniture stalls, while the Canopy near Waitrose becomes a pop-up retail space for 70 brands, from fashion accessories to technology, textiles and stationery.
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And there’s top quality scran, too (obvs): this year the show is hosting the Real Food Festival, with a load of the best street food trucks for peckish visitors to chow down at.
Over at Cubitt House there’ll also be a secret garden featuring a pop-up café furnished with Deadgood’s new Naked collection. And ice cream, provided by Gasholder faves Ruby Violet, will also be available for what may be the last blast of the September heatwave.
And don’t forget to climb up to the top of Cubitt House, where you can lounge about in the Isokon café (from La Marzocco), as well as another stylish pop-up bar operated by the East London Liquor Company (and furnished by Arper, design fans).
Best of all? To mark the opening of the show, there’s a big open-air bash on Granary Square on the 21st September (8–10.30pm, free). Lap up street food, sip from transient bars and kick back to live DJ sets from Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip and Adventures in Paradise, all in a stylish (natch) celebration of the show’s new home.
