The annual celebration of all things design returns to Clerkenwell at the end of May, with the by now familiar mix of industry soirées, product showcases and oddball events to drag in the punters.
This year the event has spread into ever more of the crannies and nooks that dot the area. The Farmiloe building and the House of Detention will both open their doors once again to the public, while a newcomer this time round is the Museum of the Order of St John.
Full details will be available on the official website about who's going to be exhibiting where, but there are a few things of interest to whet the appetite. A 6m tall 'solar tree' (pictured above) will be erected in St John Square, its ten "branches' topped with an LED light; it will remain in place until September. Alongside other attractions, a pop-up bar, inspired by the William Hogarth print Gin Lane, will serve Sipsmiths gin in the House of Detention. In St John's Passage, Italian architect Francesco Draisci will build Spring Forest, a pavilion made out of umbrellas (a sensible move as the weather shows no sign of slipping into more summery climes). And in a nod to the area's past, the Small-Coal-Man's Tiny Travelling Theatre will re-animate the centuries-old tradition of staging plays and wrestling matches at the site of the historic well that lends Clerkenwell its name.
Despite its name, the event runs from Tuesday May 22 to Thursday May 24. Visit the website for more. Entry is free but you'll need to register.
