This spring, Clerkenwell Design Week will return for its eleventh edition, taking over London’s most creative district from 24th – 26th May.

Since it made its debut in 2009, CDW has become one of the UK’s leading independent design festivals, providing a welcome platform for brands to showcase their products and for the 100+ resident showrooms to open their doors to new audiences.

Clerkenwell boasts a deep layer of historical heritage, from clock making to gin distilling, along with a vibrant network of architects, designers and creatives that add a rich dimension to CDW. For 2022, the new identity for CDW has been inspired by the printing and craft industries that have traditionally been part of Clerkenwell’s creative history.

This year CDW’s festival route has been extended to include Charterhouse Square which will see Orticolario’s Delenimentum installation taking centre stage. The gigantic version of the legendary Adirondack Chair created in 1903 by the designer Thomas Lee is a playful and photo-worthy addition to this year’s show.  

Visitors can expect a show full of the latest designs, innovations and creative ideas, plus installations celebrating the fascinating history of Clerkenwell, as well as hundreds of design-led fringe events, pop-ups, workshops, talks and showroom presentations. Once again, CDW will host a series of talks in Spa Fields by leading designers and architects tackling topical and newsworthy issues.  

Across EC1, there will be nine exhibitions, in both purpose built and historical venues. New for 2022 is Covered Sponsored by RAK Ceramics, an exhibition dedicated to interior surfaces.

Also new for 2022 is Contract where visitors can view the latest products for commercial interiors. Clerkenwell’s subterranean House of Detention, which was previously a prison in the mid-19^th century will showcase Light + Rising Stars where a host of new and upcoming designers will exhibit alongside leading lighting brands.

Pop, the former cold store turned nightclub will be essential to visit hosting brand activations and immersive experiences throughout the 3 days of CDW. 

Each year CDW Presents showcases specially commissioned, site-specific street spectacles across Clerkenwell.  

In a partnership that has spanned five years, CDW will once again collaborate with Scale Rule to present the NextGen Design Pavilion. This year’s design concept for the NextGen pavilion exemplifies human impact upon the earth and in turn mankind’s responsibility to protect and shape it for better, a highly topical issue following COP26 in 2021. 

Conversations at Clerkenwell has always been a highlight of the show, with a specially designed venue in Spa Fields. Designed by Fieldwork Architects, the concept for the CDW 2022 talks space reimagines the traditional Victorian bandstand as a focal point within the park, a place for gathering, discussion, entertainment and shelter. Rather than a traditional forward facing seating arrangement, the nature of the bandstand form allows the focus point to be partially in the round and engage the audience as a discussion, rather than a presentation.

Showrooms

Growing in synergy over the eleven editions of the festival, Clerkenwell has flourished as one of London’s creative hotspots. From CDW’s humble beginnings with less than 40 participating showrooms back in 2010 to over 115 confirmed for 2022, this year’s show is truly bigger than ever before. 

Exhibitions

CDW’s exhibitions are hosted in distinctive spaces around the area linked by a route running through the centre of EC1. There are nine exhibitions, each with a different curatorial focus, ranging from cutting edge international design, to emerging talent, lighting, luxury interiors and the best of British design. 

Leading wall panelling brand Showerwall has invested in a new state-of-the-art digital printer that will increase manufacturing capacity for its popular range of high-end acrylic panels by 400%.

The new technology will speed up the printing process, which means faster turnarounds for customers. The printer also has two expansion tables allowing printing on larger panels up to 3.0m. The already impressive durability of the panels will be enhanced, thanks to the use of new water-based inks with high adhesion and scratch resistance.

The investment forms part of Showerwall’s sustainability commitments. The removal of UV inks, which required additional ventilation and safety equipment, means odour and airborne chemicals are no longer released into the atmosphere, benefiting the environment and staff.  Employees are also no longer required to wear gloves during the printing process.

Showerwall’s Acrylic collection features some of its top-selling designs, which have soared in popularity in recent years, as homeowners seek a high-end finish and become bolder, braver and more design-oriented in their bathroom choices.

Steph Harris, Product Manager for Showerwall comments: “The contemporary glass-like finish of our Acrylic panels creates a stunning backdrop for showers, baths and vanity units, whether it’s bold brights, soft pastels or our collection of tile and wallpaper-inspired designs.

“By increasing our printing capacity, we can meet the rising demand for Acrylic. It was the right time to invest in this new technology, as we have seen significant double-digit year-on-year growth since the product launched in 2018. Reducing lead times will enable further growth, enhance customer service and help retailers and installers deliver dream bathrooms for their customers.”

Showerwall’s stunning Acrylic collection offer a library of stylish and bespoke designs, manufactured using a 4mm acrylic sheet that is rear printed to create a polished, glass-like finish. The panels don’t require the use of trims and can simply be joined with Showerwall’s acrylic panel sealant, which is available in 14 colours providing exact matches to a collection of its Acrylic wall panels.

The full Showerwall collection offers over 100 decors to suit all tastes, with panels available in sizes 600mm, 900mm and 1200 x 2440mm, backed by a guarantee of 30 years. For further information visit: https://www.showerwall.co.uk/

The new 554-page brochure and complementary price list is now available via an easy-to-navigate browsable PDF and each range is clearly categorised.

Highlights include new Frame accessories, the latest colours for Novosolid, the Divina W bath, the new Style bath, and new profile colours for shower enclosure to include INOX brushed steel. Glax 2.0 is also available in a new size and Novellini is introducing two new models to the range: 2P and 2F.

UK sales director Stuart West comments “Featuring our latest ranges we want our brochure to inspire and delight our customers. Novellini prides itself on delivering beautifully crafted products which, coupled with a comprehensive price guide, ensures the latest bathroom designs are simple to construct.”

Novellini’s new brochure will be distributed direct to stockists and can be accessed here.

Bathroom and kitchen brand GROHE has collaborated with Regalmain Ltd and Steven Johnson from the Bartlett School of Architecture at University College London on a multi-use project; Flimwell Park.

Based in East Sussex, Flimwell has been created to help rural communities create a positive economic, social, environmental and ecological impact through a closer relationship with the surrounding water and woodland.

Steven Johnson, architect and teacher at the UCL-based school, said: “We were keen to create a place to give people hope. The Flimwell Park team’s mission was to try and develop a story – a picture – and what better way to do that, than for us to build something. When you build something as an example of what can be done, people start to listen.”

Developed to complement its surroundings, the buildings in Flimwell are constructed of timber, feature solar panels and large, panelled windows to maximise use of light while allowing residents and workers to enjoy the woodland views.

On GROHE’s products which have been utilised across the village, Steven said: “It’s very rare for a company to understand that what they’re making goes beyond those products. On a site like this, we have toilets, wash basins, sinks and showers – everything you’d expect in an office or house. Those are components, but those components then link into a system which is efficient and ecologically sound and that’s when it starts to become extremely exciting.”

“There are so many ideas going on in this project, but it’s just the start. We have students coming out here who are driving this. They’re looking at this as something that is new and really spectacular and there’s a shift in attitude – they’re questioning the next step. The next step is getting them out into the woods and working with local people to create new things, by taking what we’ve produced here and move it on in a serious way.”

The surrounding woodland can be cycled and every 30 years, timber can be taken to create new buildings; the buildings can regenerate in the future as the trees have been preserved within that time.

Ebru Bircan, Leader Marketing Activation UK, LIXIL EMENA, added: “At GROHE we hold sustainability – and our overall impact on our resources – in extremely high regard. Working with Regalmain Ltd and Steven Johnson at the Bartlett School of Architecture on Flimwell made complete sense for us as the aim to protect and learn from nature. What’s been created is an impressive development where people can monitor the woodland while they work, learn and live sustainability. We’re proud to have GROHE products installed throughout the buildings, contributing to the overall environmental credentials; it’s a fascinating step forward in creating more ecological spaces.”