Unique and unexpected spaces at Lisbon Design Week 2026
Lisbon Design Week returned with new exhibitions, talks, and workshops on architecture, design, and visual arts, with a particular focus on artisanal projects from across the country, giving visibility to Portuguese artists.
The event brought together local and international designers, artisans, studios, galleries, and brands at various locations throughout the city, transforming the Portuguese capital into a space for exhibition and creative dialogue.
The main program was structured around exhibitions, installations, workshops, and conferences held in different Lisbon neighborhoods. These activities allowed attendees to experience firsthand current production processes, manufacturing techniques, and contemporary approaches in disciplines such as furniture design, ceramics, interior design, and lighting.
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Photo by Lisbon Design Week
One of the central themes of the event was the interaction between traditional regional crafts and contemporary design methods. Participants showcased projects using local materials such as cork, stone, and ceramics, applying criteria focused on sustainability and the optimization of material resources.
In addition to individual and group exhibitions, Lisbon Design Week facilitated meetings between industry professionals, students, and the general public. These meetings served as platforms for the exchange of technical knowledge and for the development of joint projects and initiatives within the European design circuit.
Highlights
The Spec_Room
The inaugural exhibition featured several design pieces by SPECTROOM, showcasing innovative design and manufacturing technologies that integrate sustainable materials, computational regenerative design, artificial intelligence, and digital manufacturing methods like 3D printing, CNC machining, laser cutting, and robotic arms.
The exhibition showcases the potential of digital tools as creative protocols that can transform pixels into atoms and virtual processes into tangible objects and physical environments, aiming to humanize technology, promote the principles of the circular economy, and explore the interconnection between Materialware, Software, Hardware, and Humanware.
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Image courtesy of Pedro Machado
Coletivo 284 by Ramón Esteves
Vondom's latest collection, designed by Ramón Esteves, was presented for the first time in Lisbon. It explores the combination of architectural precision and organic forms to create pieces that convey both boldness and serenity.
The exhibition features a continuous installation in which light, texture and material are designed to stimulate the senses and open up new possibilities for interpretation.
Images courtesy of Colectivo 284 and Ramon Esteves
Branca
The exhibition by the furniture company Branca, from Marco Sousa Santos, explores the combination of traditional Portuguese craftsmanship with contemporary aesthetics in the design of high-quality furniture.
Made in northern Portugal, each piece is created by a select group of local woodworking experts with the most advanced digital production tools.
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Photo by Branca Lisboa - Marco Sousa Santos
The ALLAY collection by MOR Design
The installation showcases the ALLAY collection, designed by Daniel Schofield, which explores the comfort, precision, understated elegance, and expressive qualities of solid wood.
The showroom displays the entire creative process behind the ALLAY lounge chair and the MIGO side table, from the initial sketches to the final product, demonstrating a cohesive exploration of form, scale, and material that reflects Schofield’s goal of creating objects that are familiar, functional, and enduring.
The collection, produced entirely in Portugal, demonstrates how solid wood, treated with care and restraint, can provide comfort through its ergonomics and the atmosphere it creates, while reinforcing MOR's commitment to craftsmanship, durability, and thoughtful design.
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Photo by MOR Design
The Lisbonaire spotlight Vasco Fragoso Mendes
The exhibition traces the career of the artist, designer, and creator as a chronological and material narrative. It not only focuses on the collection but also brings together drawings, sketches, prototypes, and finished pieces that reveal the creative process.
The sketches and conceptual studies show the foundations of his visual vocabulary, while the prototypes reveal the trial-and-error process that shapes each piece. Alongside these works in progress, a selection of finished objects demonstrates the refinement of form, sensitivity to materials, and craftsmanship that define his current practice.
Photo by Vasco Fragoso Mendes
Source: Lisbon Design Week
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