Throughout the course of the World Design Capital® year, the designated city identifies and develops unique events to achieve local objectives and to reach local, national, and international audiences.
On 28 March 2014, the signing of the Host City Agreement with Icsid took place at the Taipei Guest House. The event was most notably attended by His Excellency President Ma Ying-jeou, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin and Icsid President Dr. Brandon Gien, as well as several other local and international dignitaries, members of the media and representatives of prominent design and community organisations, who participated in support of Taipei’s announcement. Representatives from previous World Design Capital cities including Ms. Paola Zini (WDC Torino 2008), Prof. Soon-in Lee (WDC Seoul 2010), Mr. Pekka Timonen (WDC Helsinki 2012) and Mr. Richard Perez (WDC Cape Town 2014) were also in attendance.
Approximately 65 000 people attended the first signature event of the WDC year, the New Year’s Eve of Design. At the stroke of midnight, the city lit up its iconic tower, Taipei 101, with a fantastical display of fireworks. Mayor Ko Wen-je was joined on stage by Icsid President Dr. Mugendi M’Rithaa as they both helped to place miniatures of five iconic buildings on a map of Taipei, signifying the start of the year’s design-related events and activities.
The WDC International Design Gala, held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel on 18 March 2016, provided an opportunity to celebrate the local and international design community, particularly design-led innovation to improve quality of life. Over 500 guests attended, including the Mayor of Taipei, Mr. Wen-je Ko, and Commissioner of Cultural Affairs for the Taipei City Government Beatrice Hsieh. The Mayor of Eindhoven, Rob van Gijzel, was also present. The winner of the 2015-2016 World Design Impact Prize was awarded to Arturo Vittori, who lead the Warka Water project. Icsid President, Dr. Mugendi M’Rithaa, unveiled the launch of the first edition of the Rado Star Prize Taiwan, in which Rado has a long standing tradition of encouraging innovation and young talent.
13-30 October 2016.
The International Design House Exhibition will be on display at the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park, in Warehouses 1-5 and the North Tobacco Factory from 13-30 October. The exhibition centers around the main WDC Taipei 2016 theme of “Adaptive City: Design in Motion,” and will explore the impact of WDC Taipei 2016 initiatives on the city, such as the International Open Call and the Designers in Residence programs and other public policies. The exhibition will also demonstrate the impact that design has on urban living, illustrating the point with concrete case studies where design has been used to solve social issues. The story of Taipei’s development will be told, unveiling the multifaceted nature of the city and its citizens.
12-13 October 2016.
Mayors and their representatives from cities worldwide will be invited to explore the issues they face in urban development, discuss how they use design-based methods to resolve such issues, and explain their visions for the future development of their cities. The meeting will provide a platform for urban development policymakers to exchange views, and will connect cities together in an urban development design network.
15-16 October 2016.
Experts in policy making, industry and academia from design driven cities around the world will participate in this international conference and discuss cases and examples where design policies have changed their city.
17-18 October 2016.
WDC Taipei has invited representatives from design weeks worldwide to share experiences and insights on current trends in design, igniting a city’s creative economy, and creating urban brands.
21 December 2016.
In this ceremony, the city presented the achievements of WDC Taipei 2016, and officially handed over the honour of hosting next WDC in 2018 to Mexico City.
A total of eight designers have been selected to participate in the 2016 Designer in Residence Taipei program: six from abroad and two from Taiwan. The international designers—from the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Germany—are doing their residencies in Taiwan from June to August, while the two Taiwanese designers will be in Eindhoven in the Netherlands from August to October.
In celebration of WIDD, WDC Taipei 2016 organized a series of seminars and workshops, including “The Square” created by emerging designers, and “Design-aholic” that invited Taiwanese designers from across disciplines; Japanese design giant GK Graphics was also invited to come to Taiwan and shared on experience in Japan, while Dutch and British design teams hosted workshops. The activities attracted participation by enthusiastic citizens.
From ocean sustainability to medical innovations, cutting edge Taiwan graduation projects demonstrate social and environmental awareness of young designers at world’s largest student design exhibition.
More than 9 000 design students from Taiwan and abroad presented nearly 4 000 projects during this four-day event, demonstrating the younger generation’s innovation in identifying solutions to everyday problems and challenges as posed by co-organizer Taiwan Design Center.
Held the morning of the International Design Gala on 18 March 2016, this seminar provided a platform for the Prize finalists to present their work to over 200 people, including local and international media as well as local design students and the general public. The seminar also included a roundtable discussion featuring the Prize finalists, Taipei-based designers, and Taipei’s Commissioner of Cultural Affairs.
Organized by the Ministry of Culture, Taiwan and run by the Taiwan Design Center since 2010, the 2016 edition of Creative Expo Taiwan opened in April and focused on the theme “The City is the Exhibition; the Exhibition Displays Life”, which reflects World Design Capital Taipei 2016’s theme “Adaptive City–Design in Motion”. A city travel app was produced to highlight exceptional design and innovation around the city. For more information visit the Creative Expo website.
Through cooperation with 15 designers, WDC Taipei and Taipei MRT joined forces and turned Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall Station and a car into design demonstrations. Also, by redesigning bulletin boards and signage, WDC Taipei shows the citizens how design can change the look of life in Taipei.
