NYCxDesign 2026: A Week of Innovation and Collaboration Across New York City
New York City’s vibrant design landscape was once again on full display during NYCxDesign 2026, also known as New York Design Week. From May 14-20, the festival activated all five boroughs with over 250 distinct events, including product launches, exhibitions, talks, and installations, solidifying its role in connecting design disciplines, industries, and audiences.
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Several commercial highlights marked the week, with new spaces and collections making their debut. Untold Editions opened a new gallery in the Flatiron district, featuring works from Art+Loom, Avram Rusu Studio, Franck Genser, Manifeste Edition, and Casey Johnson. Designer Sarah Sherman Samuel launched her ‘Weight & Wonder’ collection at Colony, introducing new furniture pieces, including the Stone Pop Pop table and Skimming Stone desk. Studio Athena Calderone unveiled ‘Assembler I,’ a collection of 14 French art deco-inspired furniture pieces, at The Future Perfect. Makrosha introduced a new fabric collection with nearly 40 artisan-woven styles in its new Union Square showroom.
Notable product releases continued throughout the festival. Lawson-Fenning celebrated its 25th anniversary by releasing the ‘Bosque’ collection, drawing inspiration from the 1960s Japanese Metabolist movement. Christopher Merchant and Kawabi collaborated on the ‘Amica’ collection, a series of 12 sculptural light fixtures. Portugal-based furniture brand Frato premiered a 35-piece collection, which included the Niseko dresser and Angra bed. Sabai released a collection designed in partnership with actor and comedian Julio Torres, while Calico and Suchi Reddy of Reddymade unveiled the ‘Luminous’ wallcovering collection, exploring neuroaesthetic research.
French furniture brand Tikamoon made its debut at ICFF with a selection of hardwood furniture. Maiden Home launched its second collectible series, the ‘Eva Collection,’ incorporating ceramics with white oak and walnut case pieces. Astraeus Clarke and Devin Wilde collaborated on ‘The Staccato Collection,’ a modular lighting series, and Sam Klemick, in conjunction with RAD Furniture, introduced the ‘Post Collection’ of chairs, benches, and ottomans. Other product launches included Stickbulb’s ‘Pleat Collection,’ Manos x Strang’s ‘Double Tee Table Collection,’ Mary Wallis’s ‘Snow Mobile’ lighting series, Pinch for Tina Frey’s ‘Soft Serve,’ and Christian Borger for Rarify’s ‘MLS-01’ modular lamps.
The festival also hosted two primary trade and consumer design fairs. The Afternoon Light Design Fair functioned as a ‘shoppable showcase,’ presenting furniture, home decor, lighting, and art from more than 75 brands. ICFF, North America’s leading contemporary furniture trade fair, attracted over 400 vendors and 13,000 design professionals.
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The 11th annual NYCxDESIGN Awards recognized excellence across product, project, and student categories, serving as a platform to boost commercial profiles. Award winners included Eittem for the Lumen Alchema Collection (Emerging Product), BằNG Europe for Dreamy Lớp (People’s Choice), Wolf-Gordon for Linework (Iconic Product), Living Divani for outdoor seating, and Impact Acoustic for acoustic material made from fungal root systems. KPF was awarded for Environmental Graphics for 1411 Broadway, and the Whitney Museum of American Art Graphic Design Team for Branding Collateral for the Amy Sherald Campaign. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill received an award for ‘The New York Climate Exchange’ in the ‘On The Boards’ project category, and HBF Textiles for ‘Paint By Numbers’ in Contract Fabric.
The festival continues to demonstrate significant economic impact, with the 2025 event welcoming over 163,000 unique attendees. Approximately one-third of these visitors traveled from outside New York City, highlighting the festival’s broad commercial appeal and its role in driving business for local companies. NYCxDesign 2026 successfully facilitated collaborations and provided a platform for launching new products and ideas, underscoring its importance to the design industry.
