Estonian design festival features handmade bags and 3D-printed concrete furniture

At the Design Night (Disainiöö) festival in Estonia, visitors could make their own unique handbags, choosing the material and colour themselves. The workshop was led by New York fashion designer Anthony Luciano. According to ERR, American media describe his workshops as a must-attend in New York, and his clients reportedly include Hollywood star Meryl Streep.

Luciano said his design aesthetic is "the more, the better". When he first came to Estonia, he noticed a preference for restraint and simplicity, and he now tries to combine local minimalism with his own bright, lavish style. Estonian fashion designer Ksenia Joost stressed that design evokes positive emotions, and that each visitor leaves with a bag they made themselves.

Ecology and durability

The main focus of this year's festival was ecology and reuse. Estonian designers showed how objects can be given a new life: one of the bags on display was made from old shoes. Festival organiser Ilona Gurjanova said Estonian design often has humour or a distinctive twist, but its main hallmark is a drive towards sustainability and environmental friendliness.

The festival also showed outdoor furniture 3D-printed from concrete. Technical director Gustav Gerrets explained that concrete wears out more slowly than wood outdoors and can last up to 100 years. In an urban setting it may not stand that long, he said, but it would still last considerably longer than ordinary timber.

Durability was also the central theme of the international exhibition "Well Made", where around fifty authors presented their view of timeless objects. Well-known Estonian fashion designer Oksana Tandit showed her favourite accessory, the necktie. She recalled the 1990s, when at 16 she left school and went to study at the University of Tartu wearing her father's trousers, white shirt and tie. In her view, good design is design that serves us for a long time and that we use every day without noticing it.