A strong contender for understatement of the year comes from DESIGNxRI co-founder and executive director Lisa Carnevale: "It's such a different year," she told Rhode Island Inno over the phone last week.
Carnevale is specifically referring to DESIGN WEEK RI, which this year is operating on a hybrid model. Most of the events will be held virtually, but a couple will be held in person. Some events will themselves be a combination, with panelists meeting in person but audience members tuning in remotely.
DESIGN WEEK RI 2020 will kick off on Friday with an evening Zoom party, featuring an overview of the events to come and this year's design challenge, which participants can compete in all week long. Over the week, a $29 ticket (or $19 if you're a DESIGNxRI member) will get you access to "tiny tours" of the Newport Art Museum, panel discussions, plus workshops on building everything from flexible design studios to paper boxes. DownCity Design will lead a socially distant bike tour of its past public projects. The beloved Clambake meetup will be held virtually. (For a full calendar of events, check out DESIGNxRI's website.)
One signature event that will not be taking place this fall: DESIGNxRI's Hall of Fame party.
"That was a pretty early decision of saying, 'It doesn’t feel right if we can’t do that in person. It’s too risky,'" Carnevale said. "We made the decision to push that off until spring."
Carnevale and her team have worked to be conscientious in this year's programming. DESIGNxRI has responded quickly to the challenges of this year: the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the renewed spotlight on racial justice and, now, reimagining what the future could look like. It already took its PVD Design Catalyst program virtual and even replaced its graduation event with an online series rolled out over the summer, co-presented by Rhode Island Inno.
To that end, DESIGN WEEK events are especially catered to this moment. On Monday, a panel moderated by Rhode Island School of Design associate professor Charlie Cannon will talk about social impact design, discussing how designers can step up to moments of crisis. And next Friday, designer and activist Leslie Mac will lead a session called "Unpacking White Supremacy Culture," which will aim to help participants understand the role power plays in our culture and institutions.
The keynote speech will actually be a keynote panel, featuring speakers from years past reflecting on how the design community can respond effectively to this moment.
"What do we do after all this change?" Carnevale said. "Where does design lead, and maybe even where do we fall back and follow and help, and respond where we can? I'm really excited about that conversation."
