Valencia has been shortlisted to become World Design Capital 2022

Valencia has been shortlisted as a finalist in its bid to be appointed World Design Capital 2022. The World Design Organization (WDO), based in Quebec (Canada), has announced that Valencia and Bengaluru (India) will be the finalists competing to be chosen as World Design Capital 2022.

Luisa Bocchietto, WDO President and member of the WDC Selection Committee has explained “As shared in their respective bids, Bengaluru is an emerging city that is driven by urgent needs to address a variety of local challenges through design, whilst Valencia is poised to demonstrate a rich and vibrant history of design effective initiatives”.

Valencia (Spain) and Bengaluru (India) are the two Finalist cities to be the WORLD DESIGN CAPITAL 2022

In July, the WDO, a non-governmental organisation that selects the World Design Capital every two years, will organise an official visit to Valencia to collect details on the city and on the project, which will be taken into account in the final assessment by the Selection Committee, whose decision on the winning city will be announced in October.

Valencia’s bid, which is articulated around the slogan “The Mediterranean design of Valencia. Design for change, design for the senses”, appeals to a way of looking with geographical, but also aesthetic, ethical, philosophical and political implications.

City of Arts and Sciences, Valencia

The transversal programme of the Valencia World Design Capital bid includes a full schedule of events that will cover all the design disciplines, from industrial design to the design of spaces, through architecture and the design of services and interfaces. The aim is to coordinate the schedule with the cultural agenda of the city to fill it with design and to bring design as close as possible to the residents.

Thus, from January to December, every month will be defined by an overall topic based on four types of events: exhibitions, congresses, workshops and talks. The focus will be centred on contents such as design in the face of climate change, Mediterranean design, the commitment of design to gender equality, the history of design, discourse based on design, industrial development and design and nature, among others.

Cathedral and Plaza de la Virgen, historical city centre Valencia

One of the main supports in this amazing project is the Valencian furniture industry, that is innovation and design oriented and that counts with leading companies promoting Valencia as WORLD DESIGN CAPITAL 2022: ACTIU, ANDREU WORLD, CAPDELL, GANDIABLASCO, POINT, TREBOL and VONDOM.

Promoting companies and institutions. Announcement of Valencia as Finalist city WDC 2022

The cities chosen as World Design Capital in previous years are Turin (Italy) in 2008, Seoul (South Korea) in 2010, Helsinki (Finland) in 2012, Cape Town (South Africa) in 2014, Taipei (Taiwan) in 2016, Mexico City in 2018 and Lille (France) which is preparing its celebration for 2020.

Graphic Design of VALENCIA, WORLD DESIGN CAPITAL 2022, by Valencian designer Ibán Ramón

More information:

The Valencia World Design Capital 2022 bid is a project of the Associació València Capital Mundial del Disseny and it is supported by the Local Authority of Valencia, the Presidency of the Generalitat Valenciana, Feria Valencia and La Marina de Valencia. The bid is promoted by the Association of Designers of the Valencian Community (ADCV), the Professional Association of Interior Designers of the Valencian Community and the Regional Association of Architects of Valencia, and is supported by the Ministry of Culture and Sport; the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism; and the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities and counts with the support of the Spanish Royal Family, among many other institutions.

Source: Associació València Capital Mundial del Disseny