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Present an independent project, submit to our Thematic Exhibition, join our TO DO Talks Symposium, or be a Host Venue. There are so many ways to get involved! Keep reading to learn more about each opportunity.
The Toronto Design Offsite Festival (TO DO) brings people together to celebrate contemporary design across the city January 15-21, 2018.
Join the Festival to become a part of an exciting network of creative people, exhibitions, events, and a captive audience of designers and design-lovers. Last year we had 100+ events and exhibitions across the city, 130,000+ visitors, and 109+ million press impressions. From design talks to experimental installations to prototypes to opening parties and curated exhibitions, the Festival featured the work of over 700 designers and artists. Learn more in our Annual Report.
2018 Exhibitor Registration
Independently-produced events, exhibitions, and window installations are integral to the Festival’s structure. We welcome all who want to present, discuss, demonstrate, or exhibit design in any field and/or related disciplines. Exhibitors include independent designers, design firms, local businesses, academic and cultural institutions, and students. Exhibitors are responsible for arranging their own venue in the city of Toronto, including spaces such as galleries, studios, workshops, cafés, schools, cinemas, and businesses.
The 8th annual TO DO Festival runs January 15-21, 2018. Window installations must run for the entire week, events must take place during the week, and exhibitions must run during some part of the week. Installations and exhibitions can start before and/or end after Festival Week.
Your exhibitor registration includes:
- A listing on the online Festival Schedule (one page with up to 6 images, 200-word description, 1 opening reception or other event);
- A listing on the Festival mobile App (one page with up to 6 images, 40-word description, 1 opening reception or other event);
- A listing in the printed Festival Guide (event or exhibition name, dates, address, website URL) with an anticipated distribution of 15,000 copies city-wide;
- Inclusion in one “What TO DO” daily e-newsletter and corresponding “What TO DO” website post; and
- TO DO venue signage (e.g. window cling).
Deadlines
Early Bird Registration Deadline: Thursday, August 31, 2017
Final Registration Deadline: Monday, October 2, 2017 by 11:59pm EST
Content Deadline: Monday, October 16, 2017 (for all listings)
Click here to learn more and register as an exhibitor
TO DO Talks Symposium: Designing the Future of Work
The world is increasingly digital and with it, so too is work. With a widespread shift towards greater connectivity, and robots capable of performing complex tasks, the landscape of work has changed dramatically, rendering a future that is less predictable and more complex.
This new landscape offers a rousing combination of opportunities and challenges. Technology drives economic growth. It improves workflow, communication, and “efficiency” for organizations and employees, and thereby enriches work lives, making them less tedious, while creating new kinds of value and possibilities. Yet, jobs are increasingly unstable, or have disappeared altogether…
Design plays a major role in reshaping the way we work. It helps us imagine different futures, transitioning “old ways” of doing things, to new and “better” ways of doing and being. We seek designers and thinkers to give presentations that inspire. Talks may be about current research or case studies, new products or technologies, spaces or experiences, speculative design or strategies, or new processes or policies. We welcome diverse perspectives and responses to the theme of designing the future of work.
Deadline: all submissions are due Friday, September 22, 2017 by 11:59pm EST.
Click here to learn more and submit your talk proposal
Call for Host Venues
If you have a venue you’d like to have activated with a window installation, event, or exhibition, we want to hear from you! Potential venues include spaces in the City of Toronto such as shops, galleries, studios, cafés, schools, and cinemas.
By submitting to this call for host venues, you agree to host a creative project by an artist or designer during Festival Week, January 15-21, 2018. The duration and type of participation is entirely determined by you when you make your submission. Host venues pay a registration fee, and provide the venue free of charge to the artist or designer.
Deadline: all submissions are due Friday, July 7, 2017 by 11:59pm EST.
Click here to learn more and register as a host venue
Why Participate?
- Be a part of Toronto’s diverse design community
- Show your work to an enthusiastic audience of designers and design-lovers
- Get exposure through the Festival’s website, mobile App, social media, press releases, e-newsletters, and printed guide distributed at all Festival venues
- Meet and build relationships new designers, educators, curators, and manufacturers
- Explore new ideas
- Add to your brand capital by self-producing your own programming
- Engage with a captive audience for less than standard advertising rates
source: Toronto Design Offsite