The First Franco-Chinese Design Weekend of Shanghai

The first French-Chinese Design Weekend of Shanghai, organized by the consulate general of France in Shanghai, was successfully held from December 4th to 6th, 2020 in different places in Shanghai: West Bund Museum, West Bund Art Center, Villa Basset, the residence of the consulate general of France in Shanghai, and showroom of Studio MVW and DDM. Through round tables, meetings, exhibitions, video installations, etc., this activity was an opportunity to discover the work of French and Chinese designers, to discuss with them and to reflect on the challenges of creation in the field of furniture and object design. Some events were reserved for professionals, others were open to the general public.

The kick-off soiree of the French-Chinese Design Weekend of Shanghai was held on December 4th at the residence of the consulate general of France in Shanghai. Many design professionals, medias, and KOLs of Shanghai attended the soiree. In the evening, the winners of the first Maison&Objet Design Award China and the partnership between the Saint-Etienne Higher School of Art and Design (ESADSE) and Tongji University (creation of a double Master in the field of design) were announced.

On December 5th, the “Making Nature: Design and the Wondrous” seminar was held at West Bund Art Museum. Combining the current exhibition “Design and the Wondrous: the Natural Origin of Decoration”, the seminar gathered together ten famous designers and curators from China, France and other countries whose works were shown on the exhibition to discuss the evolving relationship among design, craftsmanship, technology and nature through live and online broadcast.

Futurelab was held at West Bund Art Center from December 6th to 13th, gaining much attention and praise, and the number of visitors was 20,000 or so. The consulate general of France in Shanghai brought to the FutureLab the video installation "Why Design?' in which twelve representative French designers answered this question, inspiring practitioners in the art and design field.

Source: l' actualité culturelle