Date announcement and new theme for Malmö's international design festival

Swedish Ninja, one of the exhibitors of the 2022 festival on Main Location, Lokstallarna in Kirseberg.

25–28 May 2023, the third edition of Southern Sweden Design Days takes place – Malmö's new international design festival organised by Form/Design Center. During four days, the city is filled with exhibitions, seminars, workshops and festivities with a focus on sustainability, collaboration, development and innovation. This year's theme is dissonance, with the aim to spark creativity and the desire to drive change in an existence that is abrasive.

– Malmö is a city bubbling with energy with pioneering designers, studios, collectives, schools and producers. With Southern Sweden Design Days, we want to create a platform to communicate to the world what the southern Swedish scene has to offer through its open approach. With that, also put the southern Swedish region on the map, says Dorte Bo Bojesen, CEO at Form/Design Center.

Southern Sweden Design Days is open to visitors of all ages and is aimed at a broad public as well as professional visitors. Both national and international participants are welcome to take part.

New theme 2023 ­– DISSONANCE

Each year a new theme is presented with the aim of inspiring, spark creativity and new ideas for an exciting program. The theme for Southern Sweden Design Days 2023 is dissonance. Dissonance is a state of imbalance – a feeling that something is not right. Dissonance can be unsettling, but often gives rise to innovative development in its constant pursuit of harmony. In music, dissonance is a combination of tones that create uneven pitches that do not follow a musical pattern. Intervals that strive to be resolved into a consonance, a tension-free harmony.

– Dissonance is abrasive and creates mixed emotions. At the same time, dissonance can spark creativity and the desire to drive change. Today’s turbulent times require adjustments and adaptations. Overwhelming and uncomfortable facts and events are triggering disagreement and polarization. Nevertheless, dissonance is fundamental for a democratic society and a driving force for discussion, debate, and development, says Terese Alstin responsible for industry development Form/Design Center.

Main Location – Lokstallarna in Kirseberg

The old railway workshop Lokstallarna in Kirseberg will also this year be a gathering place for Southern Sweden Design Days in 2023 with over 6,000 m² of exhibition space, food court, pop-up shop and a live studio with seminars and panel discussions in front of an audience. During last year's design festival, Lokstallarna had over 10,000 visits.

– This year, we have an ambition to make a special effort in pedagogy and intermediation with initiatives towards children and youth with the aim of strengthening the event's focus on spreading knowledge, says Ann Isler, project manager for Southern Sweden Design Days.

Southern Sweden Design Days 2022

In total, around 160 program activities took place during Southern Sweden Design Days 2022 and over 390 content-creating participants. A total of 124 physical activities were organised, at over 60 different locations in the city, and in total Southern Sweden Design Day's physical program activities had approx. 21,250 visits during all event days.

About Southern Sweden Design Days

Southern Sweden Design Days is a new international design festival in Malmö. The festival invites visitors from all over the world to experience the creative and dynamic southern Swedish design region has to offer. Southern Sweden Design Days is an annual event that highlights and builds knowledge about design – focusing on sustainability, collaboration, development and innovation.

Southern Sweden Design Days is organised by Form/Design Center – the main venue for architecture, design and crafts in southern Sweden.