Clerkenwell Design Week 2025 – let there be lights and

CDW – what's not to like?!  I keep telling people that this design festival is not just for people in the industry as there is so much to learn about innovations in flooring, upholstery, lighting, soundproofing, sanitary ware and more. If you are ever thinking of doing some home improvements this 3-day event is pack full of ideas.

Last Wednesday 21st I reached Clerkenwell shortly after midday and, after collecting my badge and lanyard from the booth outside Farringdon stsion, I headed at first to The Charterhouse, keen to see how this collection of historic buildings was being used.

The inner quadrangle contains some lovely ventilation made with layered roof tiles. 

Most of the exhibitors here were offering sanitaryware and other bathroom fittings and I was amused at the juxtaposition between that and the centures-old painting that looked down on them, including Sir Richard Sutton and his dog:

I went out into the gardens outside to admire Alex Chinnecks' A Week At The Knees – undulating brick facade, possibly the most recognisable and most photographed artwork here this year. Incidentally, Charterhouse is an English corruption/mis-pronunciation of Chartreuse which is where the Carthusian monks came from

At the junction of Goswell Road I noticed that The Hat & Feathers pub has been renovated. It has since reopened for business. This reminds me that approx two years ago the gilded signage around the building had bee removed revealing the name of a completely different type of business – I will endeavour to dig out the many pics I took of that. At Solus in Clerkenwell Rd there is a marvellous scale model of a town that reminds me bery much of Jool's Holland's creation as used at the beginning of Later on BBCTV. I thought I'd written about scale models ay Kx Model Railway club on here but it appears that's something else that's slipped through the net – when I find a parallel universe I will attend to all the To Do folder! 

Lunchtime – to the showroom of Actiu International in Seward Street to see my friend Thomas who works there. I took the opportunity to partake of the food and drink on offer whilst I read their literature, and discovered that Actiu was one of the first companies to design specific office furniture. People were clearly enjoying their outdoors-inside pod clad in eco plants.

Heres's a bit of compare and contrast – 1950's architecture on Old Street and Cesar Ceramics on Gt Sutton Street...

... where branded bright pink tables lined the Street:

The elegant exterior is on St John Street and was the showroom of Pollards shopfitters. Bottom left is within Wagstaff where I learned about sustainable fabrics, recycled plastics, natural textiles, Italian design and more. Bottom right is one of many light fittings within the old prison cells. Some interactive pieces courtesy of PixelArtworks were really interesting – this is me, you can make out my eyes and then see my arms. Great fun!:

It was here I got talking to another attendee and we then visited a few other places together, including views from the roof of The Sessions House and church crypts, where the range of products was almost too much to absorb.

We weren't the only people to find this pale pink vase rather, er, distracting. For visual effect, I have added a paint splattered wall that I saw in St John Street. Keeping to the phallic theme, near Cowcross Street there are what I think are repurposed cannon bollard. Three of them are marked 'St Sepulchre Midd'  which is the church on Holborn Viaduct which used to be in what was then Middlesex. 

I ended my day at EHSmith where I went to collect a brick that I will decorate and return by the end of June. You can do this too – just pop in ad pick up a brick yourself. The bricks come supplied in a neat fitted cardboard carrier. Here's my effort from 2023 which got through to the final five but I didn't win the big prize to Venice – again, I really thought I'd written about this on here, but nope: 

I stayed there until almost 10pm quaffing wine and chatting. Whoops. Thanks EH Smith!

The next day I hadn't planned to be there but with a few free hours it seemed daft not to see more... 

Mostof my time was spent around the junction of St John Street and Clerkenwell Rd. I popped into Ascot to learn about way marking and signage and then, as I was walking along Albermarle Way, I spotted a huge multi-tiled dome inside Jung's window so I popped in to investigate:

 

The dome is made up from 100s of light and control switches - there was a competition to guess how many tiles, but I didn't bother. A wonderful surprise is walking round to the other side of the sphere to see its fabulous concave mirrored interior. I also liked all the coloured switches (see below) and the pun-tastic stickers. Oh, and the music playing was all based on the the phrases and slogans on those stickers. An absolute delight and possibly my favourite showroom at the CDW2025. Lots of good chats.

Sophie suggested I visit Toto round the corner where she'd said a product was a bit over the top. Ah yes - the famous OTT Japanese automated toilets. I watched incredulously as they demonstrated the nozzle jets, lights and flushing system activated by a hand-held remote control. Weird! Give me a dock leaf any day!  

I returned to Sophie for a debrief and more chats and a beer and a bit of bad singing and then continued along the street. But I didn't get far because nest door a man offered me a pulled pork bun outside Magscapes and this in turn led to a conversation with the owner/inventor Jerry and the next thing I knew he was leading me up to the flat roof at the rear to give me close up view of the three Ancient Lights signs which are only publicly visible from the church gardens below. I'll be staying in touch with Jerry – he's given me a few ideas – watch this space.

I'll stop now – it was, as per the last two posts, another good day!

Here's my experience of CDW2023 – I didn't write it up last year – good grief, I am sounding like a cracked record!