Madrid Design Festival 2026: creativity to redesign the world
The ninth edition of Madrid Design Festival consolidates the Spanish capital as an international epicentre of design, with over 300 venues, 162 activities, 59 institutions, and a groundbreaking new fair dedicated to collectible design. From 5 February to mid-March 2026, Madrid will once again breathe design.
Under the theme “Redesigning the World”, MDF26 unfolds a multidimensional programme that addresses contemporary challenges through creativity, sustainability, innovation, and cross-disciplinary collaboration — stronger than ever before, and reaffirming the transformative power of design in our lives.
A festival pulsing through the entire city
With over 300 venues involved and 162 scheduled activities, Madrid becomes a vast ideas laboratory. Exhibitions, installations, fairs, talks, tours, open studios, and workshops take over neighbourhoods, museums, galleries, schools, and public spaces — creating a dynamic ecosystem of design, culture, economy, and education. This year, the Chamberí district joins as a new creative hub.
“Design is more than just an identity of Madrid. It’s part of its very nature.” Álvaro Matías
FORMA: a turning point for spanish design
The major milestone of this edition is the launch of FORMA Design Fair, Spain’s first national fair dedicated to collectible design. Taking place from 4–8 March at Matadero Madrid, the event will bring together studios, galleries, publishers, brands, and craftspeople redefining the boundaries of contemporary design.
Curated by Antonio Luna and Emerio Arena, FORMA offers a journey through unique pieces and limited editions blending artistic expression and functionality. Its professional programme, PER-FORMA, will host meetings, training sessions, and live demos aimed at strengthening collaboration across the design sector.
Three landmark exhibitions
The festival’s exhibition core will be hosted at Teatro Fernán Gómez — Centro Cultural de la Villa, with three major shows:
André Ricard. Design in Use: a retrospective dedicated to the master of Spanish industrial design, winner of the 2025 MDF Award. Curated by Marina Povedano and Arnau Pascual, the show spans six decades of work with iconic pieces like the Tatu lamp and the Barcelona ’92 Olympic torch.
Mediterranean Manifesto: a collective reflection on artisanal design, cultural memory and Mediterranean sustainability. Over 30 creators — including Canoa Lab, Lucas Muñoz, Francesca Piñol, Worn Studio, and Xavier Mañosa — contribute to an immersive experience combining sand, translucent curtains, and natural materials.
Guatemala, Guest Country: Textile Art and Guatemala: Design and Identity, conceived by Idonika and curated by Emiliano Valdés, turns the exhibition space into a sensory landscape of suspended fabrics, voices, and images honouring Mayan heritage and Guatemalan weaving traditions.
Madrid Design PRO: Facing 21st-century challenges
Patricia Urquiola, Studio Dumbar, Manuel Maqueda, Luca Nichetto, Emma van der Leest, Christien Meindertsma, Studio Mesura, and Petra Janssen are just a few of the names featured in Madrid Design PRO, the festival’s professional and thought-leadership platform. Topics will include AI, traceability, biodesign, mobility, and the social impact of design.
Fiesta Design: a festival within the festival
From 12 to 22 February, Fiesta Design will take over the Institución Libre de Enseñanza with installations, workshops, and participatory events.
Key highlights include:
“Generational Change”, by Amazon and Kavita Parmar. A sound installation by Signus and Gianluca Pugliese.
“Forest Baths”, a sensory pop-up garden by Finsa, Enorme Studio and Alex Fenollar.
“We Need to Talk” by Clinica Studio — a kinetic panel-based interactive experience exploring new modes of visual communication.
Backboardless reinterpretation by Víctor García (Playincolors), blending sculpture, sport, and materiality.
Guatemala returns with a new installation celebrating craft as a symbol of identity and future, while Castilla–La Mancha honours tin craftsmanship through the Materia Expandida project, curated by Tomás Alía.
Diseñoesfera: design as economic Engine
The strategic and economic dimensions of design are addressed through Diseñoesfera, driven by the Community of Madrid. Key initiatives include:
Design à Trois: connecting companies and designers.
Viveros: a training programme for youth at risk of exclusion.
Redesigning Madrid Industrial: promoting a renewed vision of industrial estates as accessible, sustainable, and creative spaces.
Wool Alliance: craft, territory and sustainability
For the second consecutive year, Madrid Design Festival places wool at the heart of its programme — recognising it as a key material for rethinking the link between design, sustainability, and territory.
Through the Wool Alliance initiative, the festival features installations, talks, research projects, and exhibits that highlight wool as a living symbol of heritage, circular economy, and material innovation. This edition explores how wool shapes contemporary narratives about memory, landscape, education, and the future.
Nike. Design in Motion
La Fábrica presents “Nike. Design in Motion” at TeamLabs (Plaza de San Martín, 1) — the most ambitious exhibition ever dedicated to the brand. Featuring 363 iconic pieces, the show traces decades of design, innovation, and cultural impact — including original Air Jordan prototypes, data devices, and personal items from athletes like Rafa Nadal and Pau Gasol.
Madrid Diseña: the city as creative lab
Madrid Diseña is the festival’s living map — connecting nearly 300 venues across the city through exhibitions, workshops, open studios, routes, and talks, transforming the capital into a platform for creation and cultural economy.
This year, Chamberí joins as the new design district, after the success of Carabanchel, Tetuán and Prosperidad in previous editions.
Innovative additions include:
The opening of Infinito Delicias, a new civic art and sustainable food centre.
The enLANA2 exhibition at Kutrix Gallery, featuring works by Patricia Urquiola, Miguel Leiro, and Regina de Jiménez.
Projects like Peso y Presencia at 2B Space To Be, installations by Gancedo and Marazzi, Life Trends 2026 by Elisava and Accenture Song, and talks at Cupra City Garage with artists like Johanna Jaskowska.
Design brands like Actiu, Hoff, Muuto, Neolith, Huakal and Sub-Zero & Wolf will also host new exhibitions or inaugurate dedicated spaces, reaffirming Madrid as a multidisciplinary design hub.
Awards that inspire
The Madrid Design Awards 2026 will honour industry legends such as Rosanna Orlandi, Konstantin Grcic, and Juli Capella. Meanwhile, MINI will present the 6th MINI Design Prize, and La Fábrica will launch the “Nike. Design in Motion” show as part of the awards programme.
A transformative edition
With 59 institutions, 55 exhibitions, over 800 professionals involved and a programme spanning local and global perspectives, Madrid Design Festival 2026 proves itself as a key international event.
Because redesigning the world is no longer a utopia — it’s a shared urgency.
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