Advice Council for Culture: DDF in Basic Infrastructure from 2021 onwards

Dutch Design Foundation (DDF), the organisation of a. o. Dutch Design Week (DDW), will be part of the national cultural basic infrastructure from 2021 onwards, according to the advice given today by the Council for Culture to Minister of Education, Culture and Science, Ingrid van Engelshoven.

On the third Tuesday of September (so-called Prinsjesdag), the Minister will announce her final decision based on this advice. It is the first time for DDF to receive this national cultural recognition, and it is also the first time ever that a national design festival such as DDW is included in the cultural basic infrastructure.

In its advice, the Council for Culture states that DDF organises a multifaceted and relevant year-round programme, which is well embedded in the region with close contacts with governments, knowledge institutions and the corporate sector. The Council is positive about DDW, the annual nine-day festival where the various programme components of DDF come together and find a large and diverse audience. In addition, the ambition of the organisation is rewarded and it is confirmed that DDW has proven to be relevant to the sector and consistently delivers quality. The advice shows appreciation for the combination of a curated and a free-form part of the festival. In addition, the council looks forward to DDF expanding the national and international dimension of the festival even further in the coming years.

“We are very pleased with this positive advice,” says DDF director Martijn Paulen. “We consider this a wonderful reward for the work of the many designers and partners who have joined us during the last 19 years of DDW. The confidence that this advice expresses in the design sector is a special ray of hope in this time of transition in which design thinking is more necessary than ever”.

“Confidence in the quality of our organisation is also an enormous support. We therefore feel it is a great responsibility to use resources for the design community with the utmost care by providing an increasingly international platform, making relevant connections for designers, helping talents advance and inspiring visitors and potential clients”.

The advice represents appreciation for the course taken by DDF. The course in which design quality is paramount, and in which the designer demonstrates to be an essential link in finding answers to social issues. This is also the design mentality DDW advocates. Every year in October, DDW introduces the general public to these – and all other, new – forms of design. This approach is now being rewarded.