Budapest, 8 October 2025 – Hungary’s largest creative industry event series opened at the central venue of Budapest Design Week, the 360 Design Budapest exhibition, which displays nearly 400 contemporary objects. Organisers in the capital and in the countryside jointly launched Budapest Design Week at a press conference, which is presenting the diversity of Hungarian design and visual culture for the 22nd time. Coordinated by the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency (HFDA), the national programme series awaits visitors in ten cities with nearly 200 events between 8 and 19 October. The design week reflects on the traditions of the Hungarian creative industry, its power, and continuous renewal since the programmes, which speak to every generation, include new initiatives besides events with a decades-long history.
Budapest Design Week has become the most important forum of the Hungarian creative sector, attracting industry players as well as a broad audience. The goal of the event series, realised by more than 100 contributing organisations, including galleries, design workshops, educational institutions, chambers, and cultural centres, is to provide inspiring design content for everyone regardless of age and background.
The programmes cover the whole spectrum of fine and applied arts and the design industry: more than 40 exhibitions present the latest trends in contemporary object culture, industrial product design, and visual arts; almost 40 workshops help participants to gain practical experience of design thinking; nearly 60 performances, installations, and hybrid events explore the intersections of art and design; and over 20 professional roundtable discussions and thematic guided tours examine the social and economic role of design. In addition, the event is enriched by several pop-up events offering shopping opportunities, open studios, award ceremonies, film screenings, and in-person meetings with designers.
At the opening, Zsófia Jakab, CEO of the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency and Ministerial Commissioner for Creative Industry Development and Sectoral Coordination, highlighted: “Budapest Design Week has been celebrating Hungarian creativity for more than two decades, and has become one of the most important shared platforms of the Hungarian creative industries. We are especially proud that the festival offers programmes that stand their ground not only domestically but internationally as well. One of the greatest values of Budapest Design Week is building bridges between tradition and innovation: several events have been part of cultural life for fifteen or twenty years, while Budapest Design Week always looks to the future, too. This year, several higher education institutions and vocational schools are represented, including diploma exhibitions by final-year students from Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design, Budapest Metropolitan University, the University of Sopron, the Budapest Complex Centre of Vocational Training, and KREA. This provides an opportunity for the youngest talents to showcase their vision of the future of design. These events demonstrate the professional strength and continuity of the domestic sector. The festival is an annual celebration of creativity, where the profession, young creators, and the public can discover that design is not merely a form but a way of thinking, an experience, and a community, while also contributing to the performance of the national economy.”
This year, the event series is realised through nationwide collaboration. In addition to Budapest, nine other cities – Debrecen, Pécs, Sopron, Győr, Kecskemét, Veszprém, Szentendre, Tata and Balatonfüred – join the event series, presenting their cultural values and design programmes under the Local+ selection. The events strengthen the presence of local creative communities and regional collaboration.
Sopron Design Week announced eleven programmes. “This year, Sopron Design Week is celebrating its 10th anniversary. It was therefore particularly important for us that this year’s programme series would give designers and creators living and creating in, or otherwise connected to Sopron, the opportunity to showcase their works to the public. We have organised exhibitions, workshops, open studios, as well as inspiring discussions and podcasts featuring architects, designers, and economic professionals who can guide future generations,” said Judit Käesz, co-founder of Sopron Design Week.
Organised by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Pécs-Baranya, DesignPécs offers over 40 events for visitors. “The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Pécs-Baranya is organising the DesignPécs event series for the 11th time. The initiative offers local creators, designers, creative industry professionals, and all individuals and businesses involved in the arts an opportunity to showcase their work. DesignPécs plays a particularly important role in Pécs for three reasons: it builds on the city’s and the region’s unique assets and opportunities, while also fostering collaboration among the city’s key institutions based on their competencies. Thirdly, hidden champions and values come to the surface, professional achievements become part of the public domain,” emphasised Szabolcs Rabb, Secretary General of the Chamber.
Debrecen Design Week programmes showcase the strength of the city’s cultural collaborations through 6 events. “We are delighted that Debrecen joins the vibrant Budapest Design Week programme series again. The collaboration between the DE BTK Arts Centre, the Kós Károly Arts Secondary School, Technical School and College, the Malter Film Festival, and MODEM injects new momentum into the city’s creative life. The shared goal of the participating partners is to bring the values of design thinking, innovation, and creative collaboration closer to the people of Debrecen, while highlighting the city’s dynamic cultural scene. I hope that next year, even more institutions and creators will join Debrecen Design Week, further strengthening the city’s role in the domestic design and art landscape,” highlighted Katalin Vizi, Managing Director of MODEM and main organiser of Design Debrecen.
This year, a printed BDW Guide, façade flags and stickers, and detailed descriptions and interactive maps available on the official website help visitors effortlessly plan their own schedule.
The opening took place at the central exhibition of Design Week, within the 360 Design Budapest space, which is opening its doors for the sixth time this year in the Buda Castle District.
Speaking about the exhibition, Zsófia Jakab said: “Over the past five years, more than 14,000 visitors have attended the exhibition, which has received numerous international awards. This year, the showcase features nearly 400 creations by almost 100 Hungarian and regional designers and creative industry manufacturers, presenting the latest directions in domestic and Central European design. Besides, the exhibition evokes the oeuvre of Sándor Borz Kováts, an outstanding figure in 20th-century Hungarian product design, in a separate section, while musical and dance performances, interactive workshops, subjective guided tours, and professional discussions enrich the programme.”
However, the extraordinary objects can be admired not only on-site. On the online page of 360DBP, anyone can explore Hungarian and regional object culture through a virtual tour. On the 3D platform, visitors can freely navigate the exhibition space of over 1,000 square metres, and by clicking on the information panels of individual works, they can access the exhibitors’ pages, where additional content, details, and behind-the-scenes insights await.
Further information:
Budapest Design Week official website: https://360dbp.com/
360 Design Budapest official website: https://budapestdesignweek.hu/
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Budapest Design Week
Budapest Design Week is the largest experience-based domestic event series, targeting a broad audience. Organised annually by the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency, the series aims to highlight the direct impact of design across all aspects of life while raising awareness and recognition of design as both a cultural and economic resource. The event features a diverse programme of accompanying events, featured highlights, and partner-organised side events, offering activities in the capital and major cities across the country through associated programmes. HFDA’s long-term goal is to transform BDW into a leading regional, experience-based design event series.
360 Design Budapest
The 360 Design Budapest event series, organised yearly by the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency, draws attention to the everyday role of design surrounding us in 360 degrees. The event aims to make Hungarian and regional product designers more widely known using modern tools, help domestic design brands enter the international market, and present new, innovative, sustainable directions for the target audience interested in design. By realising the event, the Agency wants to help Hungary become a regional centre in the design industry and create a programme which is attractive to tourists from all around Europe.
About the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency
The Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency was founded in 2018 to support every actor in the fashion and design industries in an efficient and structured way, following predetermined strategic pillars: professional coordination, enhancing Hungarian brands’ availability and trade opportunities, educational development and manufacturing development. To realise these goals, HFDA organises domestic events each year, such as the region’s major fashion event, the Budapest Central European Fashion Week, or the 360 Design Budapest exhibition, which has received international awards. Besides, they provide Hungarian creators opportunities for participation and debuting at international professional events such as the Milano Fashion Week and the Maison & Objet design fair. Their primary tasks include strategic cooperation with professional organisations, increasing exports, and supporting Hungarian brands’ professional development with mentorship programmes.
