CITY OF DESIGN
About the festival
15 years of creativity, culture, and collaboration
From September 1-30, 2025, the city will transform into a showcase of cutting-edge design, bringing together creatives, innovators, and visionaries from around the world.
Events span every corner of Detroit, offering immersive exhibitions, hands-on workshops, installations, and more—all highlighting the creative energy that makes Detroit a UNESCO City of Design.
The open call to participate runs from March 3rd to April 20th, 2025, inviting designers, artists, and makers to submit event ideas that engage both local and global audiences. Whether you're launching a product, hosting a panel, or curating an immersive experience, this is your chance to shine!
CURATORIAL COMMITTEE
2025 Curatorial Committee
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Brittanie Dabney, Ecosphere Organics
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Dorota Coy, Art Clvb
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Josh Smith, Who’s Dat
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Keith Butler, Detroit Boys Club
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Kirsten Jordan, Ford Design
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Laura Gibson, Eastern Market Corp
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Lauren Hood, AfroUrbanist
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Michael Scamardella, Lino Realty
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Rachel Nelson, Concetti
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Sara Fallahi, Stellantis
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Tanya Saldivar-Ali, AGI Construction
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Patrick Ethen, Lighting Designer
Detroit City of Design
As the first and only UNESCO City of Design in the United States, the festival serves as a platform for creative collaboration, celebrating Detroit’s role as a national and global design capital.
This year’s theme, "City of Design," celebrates the 10th anniversary of Detroit’s designation as a UNESCO City of Design. It highlights how cities in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network use design to tackle one or more of the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We encourage submissions that showcase how Detroit designers are addressing these global challenges locally.
As the stewards of Detroit’s UNESCO City of Design designation, Design Core uses the festival as an opportunity to amplify the work of Detroit designers with our UNESCO Partners, increasing the global visibility and value of Detroit’s creative output.
UNESCO Creative Cities
The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) was created in 2004 to promote international cooperation between cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development.
The 350 cities around the world that make up this network all place creativity and cultural industries at the heart of their urban development plans and share a commitment to collaborating internationally in support of the a more sustainable future for all.
About Design Core Detroit
Creating opportunties for creative businesses of all sizes
Located in Detroit's historic New Center neighborhood, Design Core is an economic development organization dedicated to building our regional economy.
As the steward of Detroit’s UNESCO City of Design designation, Design Core tells Detroit’s design story locally and globally. Design Core champions the transformative power of design in Detroit by supporting the creative problem-solvers using design solutions to improve our city’s economy.
Design Core creates and provides opportunities for individuals to grow their creative businesses through business development programs, visibility opportunities, connectivity initiatives and inclusive coalition building.
Through these platforms, Design Core provides established firms with opportunties to increase their reach and visibility, recruit emerging talent, contribute to our region's creative ecosystem and position their firms as thought leaders in their field.
The Process
As one of the only design festivals that is co-curated with community, The Detroit Month of Design is unique in its commitment to providing inclusive and accessible avenues for participation.
Each year, events on the festival calendar are selected by an intersectional curatorial committee, ensuring that a diverse cross-section of voices weighs in on the festival calendar each year.
Our 2025 committee will review applications to curate the festival calendar based on factors like authenticity to Detroit, compelling storytelling, collaboration, feasibility, alignment with one or more of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and social impact.
17 Goals to transform our world
The United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals are a call for action by all countries – to promote prosperity while protecting the planet.
They recognize that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand with strategies that build economic growth and address a range of social needs including education, health, social protection, and job opportunities, while tackling climate change and environmental protection.
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2025 Curatorial Committee
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Brittanie Dabney, Ecosphere Organics
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Dorota Coy, Art Clvb
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Joshua A. Smith, Who's That?
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Keith Butler, Detroit Boys Club
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Kirsten Jordan, Ford Design
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Laura Gibson, Eastern Market
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Lauren Hood, Institute for AfroUrbanism
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Michael Scamardella, Lino Realty
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Rachel Nelson, Concetti
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Sara Fallahi, Stellantis
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Tanya Saldivar-Ali, AGI Construction
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Patrick Ethen, Lighting Designer
2025: A Milestone Year
Celebrating the past, shaping the future.
Produced by Design Core Detroit, the festival celebrates why Detroit is the first and only UNESCO City of Design in the U.S. Since 2011, it's been a powerhouse for connecting creatives, amplifying their work globally, and proving that Detroit is a hub of design excellence.
With interactive in-person, outdoor, and virtual experiences, the festival features exhibitions, installations, product launches, tours, hands-on workshops, and thought-provoking discussions. Last year, 250+ creatives, 95 events, and 60,000 attendees made it an unforgettable experience.