Picture This: DDW23, the best of all weeks

Picture This

'Picture This' is more than an innocent call to envision what kind of world we can build together. When we imagine the kind of world we will witness if we continue to live as we do now for another 20, 50, or 100 years, we experience the theme as an urgent call to face that image and turn the tides instead. 

With Picture This, Dutch Design Week presents a theme that appeals to everyone's imagination and celebrates the imaginative power of designers. We can all imagine where our society and the planet are heading. But how can or should that be different? For this turn, the involvement of designers is essential: harbouring alternative perspectives and harnessing the exceptional power of visualisation will help navigate and change the future more meaningfully.

Designers in the picture

The theme also appeals to the design in itself. Designers are experts in formulating and visualising alternative perspectives, enabling them to take people on a process for change. Innovation, aesthetics and beauty are compelling ways to open the door to meaning, mobilise people, and break through paralysis. 

Picture This urges us to form coalitions and collaborate to confront the challenges ahead. We owe it to ourselves and future generations to focus on what is needed and to take action. With this year's theme, Dutch Design Week will harbour the potential of design concepts, recognising the power of aesthetics and visualisations in driving positive change. With Picture This, it is as much about genuinely understanding the era we live in as it is about urgently confronting the world we're collectively shaping.

The best of all weeks

What does Dutch Design Week want to achieve this 2023? The best possible presentation of design power and thereby initiate movement. During DDW23, designers will present the latest developments from the full spectrum of the design field. Picture This allows ample room for wonder and shows what change can look like.

The theme surfaced after a series of conversations and engagements with designers and other community members after last year's theme, "Get Set," which emphasised the need to prepare for the future. Yet, "Picture This" goes beyond preparation. It requires a profound realisation of our circumstances aligning with the event's aim to deliver an exceptional showcase of the transformative power of design in 2023. 

Dutch Design Week will take place from 21-29 October 2023 in Eindhoven, featuring a diverse range of design disciplines and presenting the latest advancements and innovations.