Open Call — Halifax Design Festival 2027

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Halifax Design Festival celebrates the unique voices in our region, builds bridges across disciplines, and explores the role of design in our daily lives. We are looking for designers, architects, makers, curators, manufacturers and creative practitioners across Nova Scotia to bring it to life. The event will take place April 22–25, 2027.

This is an open call for events, exhibitions, talks, tours, workshops, and installations that will be presented as official festival programming under the Halifax Design Festival umbrella.
(You can take a look in the section below for some event ideas.)

Our theme this year is This Place— what does it mean to design here, for this community, and in this place? What does the design community offer this place?

We're interested in work that is curious about Halifax, about Nova Scotia, about the communities, landscapes and people that shape what we make and how we make it.

Explore the theme to its edges, we do not need a narrow interpretation. 

Submission Deadline: October 13, 2026, 11:59pm

  • If you are a designer, a studio, a shop, a gallery, a school, a non-profit, or any kind of organization with a design-centred project or event to share — this call is for you. We welcome solo practitioners, collectives, businesses, and institutions alike.

    Your event should be design-centred. We want people to leave having learned something, seen something, or thought about design differently. Beyond that, we're open.

  • Events: These are singular events running for one day at a set time and take place in person. 

    • Talk

    • Tour

    • Film Screening

    • Workshop

    • Social event

    Exhibitions: Runs for more than one day, and ideally for the duration of the festival. It can run longer than the festival dates. An exhibition may also include an opening or a talk.

  • Every accepted event is an official part of Halifax Design Festival and receives:

    • A listing in the printed festival guide

    • Your own event page on the HDF website

    • A dedicated social media share

    • Inclusion in our press kit

    • Inclusion in one HDF newsletter

    • Exclusive festival signage for your venue

    • Support from the Halifax Design Festival Team

  • You are responsible for securing your own venue within the Halifax Peninsula. The festival is designed to be walkable — we want people to move between events the way they move through the city every day, unhurried and on their own terms.

    If you're having trouble finding a space, reach out — we're building a list of venues on the peninsula that are open to hosting festival events and we'll do our best to connect you.

  • There is no submission fee. Participation fees are paid upon acceptance, not at the time of application. 

    • Independent practitioners and ad hoc collectives — $200

    • Small businesses and organizations (5–30 employees) — $375

    • Large businesses and institutions (30+ employees) — $500

    • Community Group / Non Profit - $75

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Project Ideas

Need something to get those creative juices flowing? Here are some ideas - if one of these is a good fit, run with it -  but really this is just the beginning. Remember, the theme for this year is This Place. Show us what you’ve got, Halifax.

You can choose if your project is an exhibition that runs for more than one day or an event that runs for one day at a set time in person.

    • A group show of local designers and craftspeople making objects for interiors

    • VR/AR/immersive experience station

    • A window installation series along a single street or block

    • A solo show for a local artist with a strong sense of material and design exploring themes of place

    • Interactive digital installation (generative art, data visualization, browser-based work that responds to user input)

    • A product launch of locally manufactured products

    • A student exhibition

    • Showcase of design prototypes

    • An immersive lighting experience

    • A ticketed dining event where a chef and interior designer speak to what they are trying to express through the meal and the space

    • A cross-discipline salon bringing together designers from different fields to share work and spark conversation

    • A conversation on designing for equity — who gets good design and who doesn't

    • A talk on wayfinding and how signage and public information shapes how people move through a city

    • A discussion on designing for an aging population or for accessibility

    • Emerging technologies shaping design

    • A conversation on local manufacturing — what it takes to make something here and sell it here

    • A feedback workshop where students and emerging designers can bring projects in and receive feedback from more experienced designers.

    • A workshop or discussion on designing community spaces

    • A kid-friendly event where participants can design their own chair for a toy/doll.

    • A participatory mapping project exploring how residents experience design in their neighbourhood

    • Workshop on emerging tech in design

    • A furniture maker, ceramics studio or print shop opening their doors for guided or drop-in visits

    • A behind-the-scenes tour of a local production or manufacturing facility

    • A design firm sharing current work in progress — what they are working on and why

    • A guided tour of a neighbourhood in transition — what is changing, what is staying, and who is deciding

    • A walk focused on adaptive reuse and buildings that have found new life

    • A design trail connecting several participating venues across the peninsula