Design Month Graz 2014’s motto “Discovering Design” prompted a total of 64,000 visitors to discover local and international design in all its different aspects and disciplines at 98 programme items. All in all, 67 programme and co-operation partners and sponsors joined forces to make sure that Design Month Graz 2014 would leave an unforgettable and convincing mark on the international event calendar. As in the preceding years, the designHalle served as this year’s hotspot and lynchpin and was able to welcome 7500 interested visitors. The programme featured an exhibition promoted by this year’s French partner city UNESCO City of Design Saint-Étienne: “City of Design Saint-Étienne Design meets Graz”. In addition, Design Month brought interior design trends from ten other countries to Graz as part of the “SELECTED: it’s just design!” programme. A further highlight at the designHalle was “100 beste Plakate” (100 top posters), showcasing poster art from Austria, Germany and Switzerland.

15,000 visitors came to see the premiered format “Design in the City” in which 30 creative shops presented their extraordinary products directly on the spot, thus importantly promoting regional products and local quality. On that occasion, GrazGuides’ newly conceptualized Segway city tours were offered to the public per Smartphone app, with a BikeCityGuide leading from one station to the next.

Design Month 2014 continued to focus on fashion and product design, thus accentuating its clear-cut presence on the international stage. assembly design festival presented state-of-the-art items from the international fashion scene. Presentation and sales platform Edelstoff paid a visit to Graz for the first time ever, bringing along 63 labels and a range of different items from the world of fashion, accessories, jewellery and interior design. Presenting itself as an international player, designforum Steiermark hosted a display of “New Go(o)ds” by young Czech designers. This year’s Lecture Days invited renowned international designers such as Disney animator Al Gaivoto to take a bow in Graz. Once again, Design Month Graz 2014 spotlighted the region in its newly opened exhibition “Der Berg ruft 2.0” (The mountain calls 2.0) in the Castle Hill’s underground shelter, which focused on Graz’s local hill and its future.

Design Month Graz 2014’s presence in the media was resounding. Design Month Graz’s exhibitions, events and workshops inspired some 400 articles in the regional and international media, thus also promoting public awareness for the subject of design.