You may not know it, but Paris isn't the only City of Light. Eindhoven, the Netherlands' fifth-largest city, also shares the nickname, thanks to its history manufacturing Philips lightbulbs. Even though the bulbs are no longer mass-produced in Eindhoven, the City of Light monicker feels apt during Dutch Design Week, now on view through 25 October, where ideas illuminate every corner of the Dutch metropolis.
For its 26th edition, the festival has chosen the theme Rebel Authentic Worth – or RAW – to celebrate experimental, unpolished and in-progress work. ‘Every year, our theme is not something we invent, it is something we notice,’ says Dutch Design Week director Willem van Zeeland. We recently popped by the celebration to see precisely what van Zeeland is talking about. Here are five things that caught our attention at Dutch Design Week 2026.
Highlights from Dutch Design Week 2026
'Everything Moist Seems Alive' by Maison the Faux and Boris Acket
One particularly shining example of the RAW theme is 'Everything Moist Seems Alive', a collaboration between creative studio Maison the Faux and artist Boris Acket. The installation explores 'hydrofeminism,' a concept that connects all humans through the fact that our bodies are made of about 60 per cent water. As such, 'Everything Moist' is filled with tubes, pipes and pools with water coursing through them. The drips and gurgles of water form a backdrop for both visitors and live performances. Dive in while you're there.
Design Academy Eindhoven's graduate show
If you're looking for next-gen designers and unconventional thinking, Design Academy Eindhoven's graduation show is another highlight. Here, BA and MA student showcase their senior projects, ranging from furniture to material experimentation. The calibre of work is outstanding, with projects addressing contemporary social and environmental challenges. (While you're there, be sure to also check out the related book shop and café)
Piet Hein Eek's pervasive presence
Piet Hein Eek's presence is felt throughout Dutch Design Week, from a shopfront dedicated to his history with Dutch Design Week, to his own complex which hosted the Dutch Design Awards.
As part of an ingenious retail activation titled 'The Archive', in which various storefronts celebrated the designers – including Eek – who have helped shape the festival’s history. ‘Eindhoven isn’t a backdrop; it’s a co-curator, and shop windows are the most democratic display cases a city has,’ explains Miriam van der Lubbe, creative head of Dutch Design Week.
Eek’s own complex, which took 16 years to develop, brings together two restaurants, a shop, showroom and hotel, operating almost as a miniature city. Its architecture incorporates salvaged elements from older industrial buildings from the immediate area, giving materials that might otherwise have been discarded a second life. As former industrial sites increasingly give way to residential development, the project offers a compelling alternative: not preservation for preservation’s sake, but reinvention through reuse.
The Dutch Design Awards
A highlight of the week is Dutch Design Awards, which celebrate emerging talent. Three students from a shortlist of 15 were recognised, with prizes and opportunities to further their careers, including awards worth €10,000. The ceremony felt like a passing of the torch or, given Eindhoven’s identity, the lightbulb. An unusually long table served as both dining surface and stage, with hosts and award recipients standing on it. The gesture was more than a playful piece of staging; boundaries between audience and performer, object and architecture, were called into question. The awards also celebrated the next generation of designers while placing them within a longer tradition, one sustained by the likes of Eek.
'Table of Power' by Show Not Show
The festival’s appetite for rethinking how we occupy space was equally apparent at the 'Table of Power', conceived by Dutch collective Show Not Show for a press dinner. The team not only designed the table but the surrounding environment, creating an immersive setting that questioned the social dynamics of a familiar ritual.
'Parallel Mirror', designed by Aleksandra Adamchyk, was one example of the complementary furniture surrounding said table. Positioned at its far end, the mirror played with light and perspective, appearing to extend the room while drawing attention to the relationships between those congregating around it. What began as a backdrop for a press dinner became part of the wider festival programme, opening the installation up to a broader audience.