The international design world has a new event to mark in its diary: The London Design Biennale (LTB), which will be inaugurated on September 7, 2016, concurrently with the London Design Festival.The first LTB will take place at the Somerset House, featuring newly commissioned works by an array of designers and groups from more than 35 countries on six continents. The LTB is directed by Christopher Turner, who also serves as the Design Festival’s co-director,Intended as an investigation into “contemporary design, design-led innovation, creativity, and research,” the LTB cooperates with a fine selection of international institutions, curators, creators, and cultural bodies: New York’s Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum and its Moscow counterpart, Austrian Design Net, Milan’s Triennale Design Museum, the German Design Council, and South-African design platform Southern Guild, are part of the project; as are leading creators from Eastern Europe, Asia, the African Continent, and Australia.With its impressive line-up and agenda, the LTB aims to position itself as a global survey of design and design visions, as well as providing a platform for creators and design lovers.“Utopia by Design” is the overall theme of the first edition. The title is both a tribute to the 500th anniversary of British statesman Thomas More’s philosophical novel “Utopia” (which is also featured prominently in the Somerset House’s programming this year) and an impulse for contributing creators to reflect on “the role of design in our collective futures.” Individual projects aim to find ways on how design can take a positive impact on global challenges such as migration, environmental sustainability or social equality, as well as analyzing past utopias and visions for a better world.“The London Design Biennale 2016, in partnership with Jaguar, runs from September 7 – 27, 2016 at Somerset House, London (prices £15 and £10). Click here for more information.   Read more