Showroom Highlights at Clerkenwell Design Week 2022

April 2022, London: Clerkenwell Design Week returns to London across 24^th – 26^th May, celebrating its eleventh edition and hotly anticipated return to EC1. The festival will take over London’s most creative district with more exhibitors, showrooms and venues than ever before. This year, over 140+ world-class design showrooms will partner with CDW, providing an array of stimulating events, talks and workshops.

Set across three days, CDW is the UK’s leading independent design festival, providing a welcome platform for brands to showcase their products and for the showrooms to open their doors to new audiences. Visitors can expect to see the latest designs, innovations and creative ideas,as well as experiencing hundreds of design-led fringe events, pop-ups, workshops, talks and showroom presentations. This year’s edition will feature ten exhibition venues, with three new for 2022, as well as a series of talks in Spa Fields by leading designers and architects tackling topical and newsworthy issues.

Integral to the festival are the local resident design showrooms. ​ With more participating than ever before, Clerkenwell Design Week promises to provide an array of stimulating events from talks and workshops to major installations. From CDW’s humble beginnings with less than 40 participating showrooms back in 2010 to over 140+ confirmed for 2022, this year’s show is truly bigger than ever before.

NEW SHOWROOMS

Designs by Fritz Fryer Lighting presenting at CDW 2022Designs by Fritz Fryer Lighting presenting at CDW 2022

New to Clerkenwell, Fritz Fryer Lighting will be participating for the first time at CDW 2022 in its brand-new showroom. Originally opened in 1982, Fritz Fryer gained a favourable reputation in antique light restoration, in the quaint Herefordshire market town of Ross-on-Wye. ​ Now the company is known for its unique, high quality contemporary lighting, which it designs, makes and sells with components sourced almost exclusively in the UK. The company will give visitors a first look at brand new products for CDW as well as offering events in the design hub within the new space. ​

Another new showroom at CDW 2022 is British brand, William Hands. Known for its high-quality craftsmanship, the company will present its new Fairmont Seating series by Tom Rawlings. The company will also sit next to Abraham Moon & Sons as part of British Collection, working together on a collaborative stand design.

Liquid series by VitrA presenting at CDW 2022Liquid series by VitrA presenting at CDW 2022

Global bathroom brand, VitrA will be presenting at its brand-new space, VitrA London – the 5600 sqft flagship in Clerkenwell designed by TP Bennett. VitrA London will showcase the company’s latest collections, including a new launch by Tom Dixon.

Other new showrooms include natural stone specialists, SolidNature and RAK Ceramics, who will both be opening new spaces in Clerkenwell in time for CDW 2022. RAK Ceramics are opening an 8000sq ft showroom called the RAK Ceramics Design Hub at 100 St John’s Street, hosting a number of events over the three days. SolidNature are celebrating the opening with an installation by Squire & Partners.

SHOWROOMS

With summer just around the corner, outdoor furniture is a theme emerging from the exhibitors at CDW 2022. Italian design brand, Ethimo, which specialises in high-quality outdoor furnishings will be presenting new outdoor lighting including Lucerna and Pharos by Luca Nichetto, and the Gaia collection by Marc Sadler. The brand is also presenting lounge sets by Studiopepe, Luca Nichetto, Patrick Nourguet and Ilaria Marelli. Another Italian brand, Luxy, is also presenting a brand-new range of outdoor furniture – the EPOCA and LIGHT series by Stefano Getzel.

Outdoor Furniture by Ethimo presenting at CDW 2022Outdoor Furniture by Ethimo presenting at CDW 2022

Leading Spanish company, Kettal is another new brand participating as part of CDW 2022, presenting its latest outdoor furniture and workspace products in its new showroom space, including the new Ringer collection by Michael Anastassiades and Giro collection by Vincent Van Duysen.

Fritz Hansen will be returning to CDW 2022, celebrating its 150^th anniversary. The Danish brand will present a special installation to mark the event as well as previewing new products. Swedish flooring brand, Bolon, is celebrating the launch of its new collection of rugs: Truly. This bold collection features enlarged patterns, colour effects and hyper texture and is shaped around the creative vision of Bolon’s design team. On Tuesday 24th, CDW visitors can meet two of the designers behind the collection, the pioneering Bolon sisters, Annica and Marie, for a celebratory glass of champagne from 5pm. 

Ringer collection by Michael Anastassiades for Kettal, presenting at CDW 2022Giro collection by Vincent Van Duysen for Kettal, presenting at CDW 2022

Design and manufacturing powerhouse, Bisley, will be hosting a number of new launches during CDW 2022, including Quarters, a collaboration with Anglepoise to create a family of sheltered working spaces.

Sustainability is also running through designs presented in the showrooms at CDW 2022. Arper will be presenting its new collections Mixu, Kata and Kinesit Met as well as a new edition of its Aston series. Mixu is a sustainable and versatile collection of chairs and stools designed in collaboration with international architectural and design practice Gensler. Kata by Altherr Désile Park is Arper’s first solid wood lounge chair designed with circular sustainability at its core.

Frovi will be showing its Bamboo Modular Shelving, which uses connectors made from recycled ocean plastic, felt made from recycled plastic bottles (PET) and shelving and cupboards made from carbon negative and naturally anti-bacterial pressed bamboo. Frovi will also be presenting a number of new furniture pieces including the Trost, Wish and Blume collections. ​

Deadgood will be presenting new launches at CDW 2022, including Flare, Sprung and Re-Work. ​ Flare is their new modular sofa range that explores circular design principles. Flare is a plug-in seating system that can be expanded and reconfigured as required, with materials and components designed to be easily separated for recycling. The product has an honest aesthetic with all functional fixings and fittings on show. Featuring recyclable twill panels, recycled steel poles, zips and loose cushions.

Award-winning sustainable acoustic designers BAUX, will host the global launch of its first ever ceiling product within ‘BAUX Acoustic Lounge’ during Clerkenwell Design Week 2022 at Old Sessions House. The ‘Acoustic Lounge’ is a low climate-impacted installation, designed by BAUX CO-Founders, Form Us With Love, together with BAUX Creative Director Johan Ronnestam. BAUX will invite visitors to experience the benefits of sound absorption in the curated space which will host music and content across the three days. Visitors are encouraged to relax, work, listen to music and explore the products - within a stunning, acoustic-led environment.

Designs by Frovi presenting at CDW 2022Designs by Frovi presenting at CDW 2022

Andreu World, are presenting new circular designs at CDW 2022 by Alfredo Haberli, Patricia Urquiola, Benjamin Hubert and Philippe Starck. The showroom has been completely renovated to accommodate the new collections as well as exploring with new typologies of furniture with the collaboration of Gensler Design Consulting, among others. Andreu World, are also hosting talks with Alfredo Haberli and Benjamin Hubert overseen by Jessica-Christin Hametner, Editor-in-Chief of OnOffice. Both designers will be available for interview during CDW 2022.

Basque Living will be bringing leading brands from the Basque region of Spain to present in their showroom. Including Ondaretta, Treku, Sellux, Daisalux, Enea and Ojmar.

Viaduct is presenting the Perry Table by Dutch-based US designer Max Lipsey for Montis at Viaduct for CDW 2022, which will be seen for the first time in the UK. The Perry Table is a new ribbed glass collection that has a light and colourful aesthetic. Viaduct is also launching the new modular Aztec sofa system at CDW 2022. Aztec, with its rounded, robust and yet soft appearance, is a sofa offering snug security. With its generous scale, the Aztec meets all possible modular demands. Designed by Gerard Van Den Berg for Montis. 

Smart working company, Orangebox celebrates twenty years at CDW 2022. Across the three days in May, Orangebox will also welcome two award-winning design studios Perkins & Wills and NoChintz studios into Smartworking® London to create a unique narrative focused on inspiring tomorrow’s workplace - a vision for next generation sustainable and cooperative work environments. Orangebox will also be showcasing new products supporting this project at CDW.

Kitchen and bathroom brands also feature as part of the CDW showroom content. Kitchen highlights include Devol Kitchens, Duravit and Karndean presenting their latest designs. A number of bathroom brands will be participating in CDW 2022 presenting their latest products, including TOTO and Ideal Standard, Gessi Spa as well as VitrA. Design-led bathroom brand, Coalbrook, will open the doors to its showroom, The Market Building, throughout CDW. The Market Building is an experience-led space, designed by interior architects, Holloway Li, and celebrates Coalbrook’s industrial heritage. TMB provides an outstanding showcase of manufacturers and designers, each demonstrating how they are pushing the boundaries of their professions through a range of materials. On Tuesday 26th May, Coalbrook will host a panel discussion in partnership with Materials Matters, which will explore sourcing, collaboration, the role of materials used in the showroom and the question of how materials will shape our future. Speakers include Grant Gibson, Amin Taha, Na Li and Annabelle Cox.

Other showrooms participating include: Abstracta, Allermuir, Cappellini, Camira, Fredericia Furniture, Flokk, Icons of Denmark, Menu, Moroso, Plant Designs, Royal Mosa, Solus, Treku, Vescom and Ultrafabrics among others.

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