DMY International Design Festival Berlin 2008

The DMY International Design Festival Berlin 2008 is over, and the organiser looks back - not without pride - on a successful and dazzling Festival, during which set expectations were widely overshot. On the main exhibition area of the Arena Berlin grounds alone a total of 13.800 visitors filed by on the main weekend of May 21-25, 2008. 11.860 visitors attended the DMY Youngsters - the heart of the Festival - featuring 97 presentations by more than 150 participating young designers from 10 nations. On Wednesday, May 21, 2008, the opening attracted well over 2.000 guests. At the DMY Opening Night! at the Glashaus, presented by Bombay Sapphire, 1.200 guests showed up. As for the Pecha Kucha Night, the first-time DMY special programme feature drew some 400 guests, thus breaking a new attendance record.

For the first time in its history, the DMY expanded to a city-encompassing festival with the DMY Allstars. According to the organisers, 36 external special exhibitions, group shows and open studios featuring more than 180 designers from 14 nations welcomed a total of 4.600 visitors, generating wide public interest and a large turnout. Since design lovers mostly visited several DMY Allstars exhibitions as well as the DMY Youngsters, the figures quoted here result from a rough approximation.

Presented by SelectNY.Berlin, the brand new DMY Design Symposium module (completed by an individual workshop) welcomed 18 speakers from 11 countries, enabling them to introduce themselves to a public of 120 keen professionals and audience members. While participants from 5 nations exchanged views during two riveting Panel Talks, designers from 6 nations attended the Brandbuilding Workshop.

The DMY Specials also gathered widespread attention - for instance, the newly introduced DMY Design Shuttle was surprisingly well received despite initial motor mishaps and the occasional traffic jam. Two vintage double-decker busses with a 80 passenger capacity hit two different roads lined with a selection of DMY Allstars satellite exhibitions. To top it off, a modern coach seating 50 chauffeured reporters and VIP guests to the major external exhibitions.

Equally a premiere a the DMY, the µ:AVIT VJ conference presented by Motorola was visited by some 30 participating international VJs and visual artists, sparking off a world-wide interest via forums and news blogs. Together with the organisers VisualBerlin, DMY Berlin plans to further expand the conference and introduce it as an independent programme module next year.

At the Designer Dinner, which was developed into a networking platform in cooperation with Berlin Partner, the design theme was laid out on the tables by the Foodists on the breathtaking outdoor terrace of the Radialystem V, while the guest list featured more than 200 renowned representatives of the media, economy, politics and culture - and, last but not least, a myriad of young designers and design protagonists. For the first time, 10 Favourite DMY Youngsters selected by an international jury were introduced to the diners.

Finally, a few words have to be said about the legendary DMY Klublabor. From day one, DMY has not only ruled the days, but also the nights. For indeed, what environment could be better suited to deepen freshly acquired contacts than a night out with cold drinks and sizzling music? Previously located at the central exhibition venue in the Arena Berlin, this year’s Klublabor embarked on a tour of the city. Over a period of ten days, the design theme dominated nightly bouts of stylish ecstasy in a fine selection of seven internationally acclaimed clubs and typically Berlin-esque underground venues, from the legendary Cookies to the 103 Club, via the Badeschiff, the famed Bar 25 and the 15th floor of the Weekend.

Media response has been overwhelming. In 2008, DMY cooperated for the first time with seven carefully selected media partners, largely from the field of design and lifestyle. Furthermore, the Festival accredited a grand total of 340 national and international media representatives. With two press conferences preceding the Festival at the Berlin Roter Rathaus (”Red Townhall”) and at the DMY Youngsters main exhibition on the day of the opening, a special press & VIP preview, a private press shuttle to the DMY Allstars, the presence of prestigious media representatives at the Designer Dinner, as well as a large number of special events, the Festival succeeded in generating widespread attention in print, TV, radio and online media on both a national and international level.

DMY Berlin’s aspirations - as well as the expectations placed upon the organisers to establish a city-spanning, brand new international festival for design in Berlin during the month of May, have been fully met. The aimed-at attendance of 15.000 national and international visitors has been reached. As a result, 2008 stands out as a pinnacle in DMY Berlin’s six-year history, which has seen it evolve from the framework programme of its predecessor in 2003 to the Designmai Youngsters collective made up of visionaries and young designers, to the DMY International Design Festival of today.

Regarding ‘The Sky is Not the Limit’, the motto selected for the DMY International Design Festival not only stands as a synonym for the Berlin festival in 2008, but also simultaneously hints at DMY Berlin’s road into the future as an internationally recognized platform for design. Daily, Monthly, Yearly… DMY!

Thanks to you all.