The 2023 Nairobi Design Week festival themed ‘It’s What We Make It’.
There are many hours of activities, talks, workshops and experiences to go through, and you want to come on multiple days.
📅 9am-5pm on Saturday 11th - Sunday 19th March
📍 Opportunity Factory, Mbagathi Ridge, Karen.
🎟️ KSh100 Adults / KSh50 U-18 & Students for entire weekend, leather wristband from sandstorm included- Tickets on hustlesasa.
🚌 Electric buses from Karen Stage, by the City Clock opposite Crossroads Mall. (11th, 12th & 19th March only)
This year, Nairobi Design’s publicly available open calls curated 50+ physical, 50+ digital exhibitors, and 20+ programmes with partners.
We are proud to announce that we were selected and supported by the British Council to run #shiftingnarratives through our podcast Afrika Design.
Stories of African culture through design need to be shared more widely from our past, present & future to show how diverse, inclusive and dynamic African design is.
All day - Free Mind Sessions & Safia Abji
Baraza Stage
9am - 12pm - Art Law Kenya
12pm - Mwalimu Nyatiti (performance)
12:15pm - Opening Ceremony
1:00 pm - Lunch break
1:30pm - The Design and Art of Tracing the Wild
2:30pm - Music Interval
2:45pm - Afrika Design - Mugendi M'Rithaa & Adrian Jankowiak
3:15pm - Music Interval
3:30pm - Creative Identity Workshop with New Comma
4:15pm - Music Interval
4:30pm - Careers in Design panel with Thinkplace, New Comma and Hisi Studio.
5:30pm - Music Interval
5:45pm - Sustainable Fashion panel with Free Mind Sessions and David Avido
6:30pm - Close
All day - Free Mind Sessions & Safia Abji
12pm - Mwalimu Nyatiti (performance)
12:15pm - Opening Ceremony
1pm - Lunch break
1:30pm - Emerging Tech And Its Role In Supporting Human Coexistence With Wildlife (Tracing the Wild)
2:30pm - Music Interval
2:45pm - Afrika Design -Kenneth Kanaabi & Adrian Jankowiak
3:15pm - Music Interval
3:30pm - New Comma
4:15pm - Kuiyu (performance)
4:30pm - Goran Hielscher - Creative wellbeing workshop
5:30pm - Performance
5:45pm - Cosplay workshop with Jess Atieno
6:30pm - Close
Exhibition Open 10am - 4.30pm
Exhibition Open 10am - 4.30pm
Meet the Physical Exhibitors 2pm- 4.30pm
Exhibition Open 10am - 4.30pm
Opportunity Factory Makers meet-up 2pm-4.30pm
Exhibition Open 10am - 4.30pm
Digital Exhibitors Show & Tell 1.30-4.30pm
Exhibition Open 10am - 4.30pm
Design Students Association Exhibit at UoN Towers
Exhibition Open 10am - 4.30pm
10am-4.30pm : Closing Day - Your last chance to see all the exhibits in place, and the return of some of the vendors from the opening weekend.
3pm : Presenting the Design Intelligence Awards, including finalists from 2022.
Sunday, March 19, 2023
1:00 PM 5:00 PM
Join us at McMillan Memorial Library on March 19th at 1pm for the official launch date of the Nairobi Space Station: A Wild Future Initiative. This Is An Immersive Storytelling Event Set In the Year 2299 in a Rewilded Nairobi that has become its own wild future, city state.
Kairos Futura will be awarding a 10,000 KSH for the best wild future costume.
"Tracing the Wild" is a new data-story sculpture that visualizes lion and other predator data from Kenya Wildlife Trust as an interactive artwork created by Sovereign Nature Initiative in collaboration with artists, designers and story gatherers.
More information about the project here
Our open call invited designers to apply for a space provided by Nairobi Design and Opportunity Factory.
Digital exhibitors showcased in high resolution on TCL displays.
Two alleyways to explore and shop on 11th, 12th & 19th. Those invited to sell their mostly Kenyan made products, this year without a fee. Food and drinks also available.
We've partnered with New Comma, a platform with over 2000 young, African creatives with an open call that curated digital works from Kenya and beyond.
Co-create a rug with Africa Collect Textiles
Enn Ceramics pottery workshops
Dragonfly Screen printing masterclass
Making fashion and wellbeing - Free Mind Sessions & Safia Abji (All Day).
The Art Club
Meet by the City Clock opposite Crossroads Mall. Bus will loop and run every 30 mins. In partnership with BasiGo.
This year we'll be highlighting successful applicants from the 2022 edition of the Design Intelligence Awards. We also invite applications for the 2023 edition.
