Designers in the Classroom

Dates: January 7 - March 2, 2008

Launched in Fall 2003, this program brings professional designers into primary and secondary school classrooms to develop design projects that enrich the current curriculum and broaden the roles of designers in their communities.

For more information please click here.

Chinese Design. Everyday.

Dates: February 8 - April 13, 2008

The Chinese New Year will ring in with the opening of a new exhibit at the Design Exchange. Contemporary Chinese culture is a fascinating mix of diverse influences, combining the millennia-old Chinese cultural heritage with the most current Western and international trends. This show defines “Chinese Design” in terms of Style, Locale and Ethnicity. It provides a foundation for understanding contemporary Chinese culture and everyday life through design artifacts with a focus on graphic design. On display are a selection of design work from the Chinese-speaking region: China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, and from designers of Chinese ancestry residing in North America.

The contents of Chinese Design. Everyday. will be organized into 10 categories to facilitate visitors’ understanding of modern Chinese design and culture in the context of everyday life. For balance, this show includes both award-winning design work from professional designers and ordinary products from Chinese-speaking societies, and from designers of Chinese ancestry residing in North America.

For more information about this exhibit please click here.

H20: New Scenarios for Survival

Dates: March 7 - April 27, 2008

Posters by Italian graphic designers tackle the political, social, and environmental aspects of water. This thought provoking project will be exhibited at the Design Exchange and the Istituto Italiano di Cultura.

Curated by Arch. Roberto Marcatti, the exhibit also features a selection of bottled water from across the globe. Posters represent feasible and realizable proposals and projects, for the collection of water, its purification, transportation, distribution, recycling process and climate change. The exhibit explores issue of fairness regarding the distribution of water and a democratic approach to water resources. Also explored are those who have interpreted the lack and relative waste as an opportunity to market bottled water as a product.

This highly regarded work will subsequently travel to Spain and be featured in the 2008 World’s Fair. It will be on display at the Design Exchange and the Istituto Italiano di Cultura from March 7-April 27th 2008

March 7th 1-2pm
Lunchtime Exhibit Opening & Lecture
Wine and Cheese – Free Admission

Click here for bio of curator Roberto Marcatti

DIGIFEST 2008 WEBSITE

Connect - National Student Design Competition

Dates: May 2 - May 28, 2008

CONNECT is a program targeted to Canadian post-secondary students enrolled in design, the visual arts and/or engineering. The aim is to bridge the gap between students and future users of their services, helping them jump-start future careers in their respective fields.

CONNECT est un programme conçu pour les étudiants canadiens de niveau postsecondaire en design, en arts visuels ou en génie. Il vise à rapprocher les étudiants des futurs utilisateurs de leurs services et à favoriser des démarrages de carrière rapides dans les champs de compétence ciblés.

For more information please click here.

Share valuable insight and tools that will help manufacturers, designers, and business managers work together to boost innovation (and therefore profitability) in Canadian enterprises. Learn from influential policy makers, accountants, researchers and lawyers in an interactive daylong program.

For more information please click here.

digifest is a three-day biennial International Festival of Design and Media Culture presented by Design Exchange in partnership with Harbourfront Centre and Ontario Science Centre.

digifest 2008: WATER'S EDGE will examine themes of catastrophe, trauma and possibility through a series of presentations, exhibits, performances and workshops, dedicated to unraveling a better understanding of how catastrophe may touch our lives – as cause, effect, renewal and relief.

For more information please click here.