The Best Things We Saw at Lisbon Design Week

In its third edition, Lisbon Design Week cemented its place as one of Europe’s promising new design destinations. From May 28 to June 1, the city transformed into an open-air showcase of contemporary creativity, spread across 11 neighborhoods and featuring over 250 makers. The week saw established designers, emerging talent, and international studios converge in venues ranging from hotel lobbies to convents and the city’s top galleries. The architecture and interiors offered more than just backdrops, they shaped how each installation was felt, seen, and remembered.

This year’s theme, though unofficial, felt grounded in a collective return to nature. Organic materials, raw finishes, and handcrafted techniques permeated the programming, with many of the standouts celebrating locality not just in form and method, but in mood. As founder Michèle Fajtmann noted, the week aimed to be more than a “festival where shops and ateliers are open to the public,” instead inviting “dialogue, discovery, collaborations, and experimentation” across the city.

Some standouts from the week:

Sobre Mesa 

Set inside the architectural archive of Manuel Aires Mateus, this flagship exhibition, co-curated by MUT Design and João Xará, explored the Iberian tradition of lingering at the table. “Sobre mesa” became both subject and setting, interpreted through works by over 20 designers and large-scale photography works of a gathering around a meal at a dining table by , together posing the question, “How is design part of today’s table culture and how can it transform rituals around it?”Favorites included cutlery by Los Objetos Decorativos and sculptural candles and candle holders by VALE Objects.

AB+AC Architects 

In a 17th-century convent newly transformed into a design-led hotel, Locke de Santa Joana acted as LDW’s official cultural hub.On show, “Locke Rising,” spotlighting Lisbon-based studios including Mariana Ralo, Terrakota, and AB+AC Architects, who debuted Alma Mater, the first pieces in their collectible series for mindfulness, featuring raw iron and beeswax candles designed as tools for ritual and reflection.

The Chairman by Marco Sousa Santos 

A retrospective by one of Portugal’s most prolific industrial designers, this exhibition brought together 15 years of chairs made by Marco Sousa Santos, tracing the technical and emotional range of a single object. The presentation was set on elevated, bleacher-like platforms, offering a clean, structured view of his evolving approach to form and function.

Made in Situ: Xisto

At his Lisbon gallery, Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance debuted “Xisto,” his seventh collection under the Made in Situ banner. The series explores the relationship between schist stone and its surrounding ecosystems, building on the French designer’s ongoing material research with Portugeuse artisans. The space balanced industrial textures with warm, well-considered lighting and a calm, reflective mood, making the installation feel both grounded and quietly striking.

Maison Intègre

The Ouagadougou-founded gallery opened its Lisbon space just in time for LDW, bringing its cast bronze objects to a refined and architectural setting. Tucked into a small but meticulously considered gallery, the space featured warm wood-paneled walls, dramatic curtains cascading in front of the entryway, and richly textured flooring that grounded the work with elegance. Maison Intègre’s presence signaled Lisbon’s rising role as a bridge between global craft cultures.

Oficina Marques: Arcádia at Rua Luz Soriano

At their vibrant gallery–studio in Bairro Alto, Gezo Marques and José Aparício unveiled Arcádia, a collaboration with Viúva Lamego and Spacegram. From the front, the installation looked like a plain white shell, quietly placed in the space. But walking around back revealed an unexpected entryway into a tiled interior lined in varying shades of green. Inspired by natural forms, the structure used Viúva Lamego’s traditional relief tiles to create an architectural space. It was one of the most spatially inventive presentations of the week, minimal from a distance, immersive up close.

Luso Collective in Marvila

Held in a dimly lit basement, in the industrial east of the city, with soaring wooden ceilings and a concrete floor, the space set the scene for something raw, quiet, and hauntingly beautiful. The group show, curated by Studio THER and Zuzanna Gąsior of Thisispaper, brought together standout works from Studio Gameiro, MACHEIA, Garce & Dimofski, and THER. Sculptural furniture and material-driven installations explored the shifting tension between perception and physicality. It was one of the week’s most transportive exhibitions.