the Design Museum

The world's leading museum devoted to contemporary design in every form.

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Join us on 7 December for a 3D printing workshop 💍

In this full-day workshop, learn how to use the free 3D computer-aided design software Blender to model a signet ring from scratch.

Book now: https://t.co/CZal9II42R

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Alexandra Road Estate is an iconic brutalist landmark within London’s urban landscape 🩶

Completed in 1978, it features 4-story high terraced buildings with a continuous public walkway that serves both rows of homes.

The architect behind the estate, Neave Brown, broke away from post-war norms of standardised high-rises, crafting a low-rise, geometrically coherent estate inspired by traditional terraced housing.

Over time the estate has become celebrated as a great example of people-focused design, with every flat having a private open space and spacious rooms.

Recognised for its innovative approach to social housing, Alexandra Road Estate was awarded Grade II status in 1993.

📸 dec_michal on IG

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Join us on 19 November for a special evening with Oscar nominees Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer 💞

Sarah and Katie worked together on the much-celebrated set design for the Barbie film. They will be in conversation with #BarbieTheExhibition curator Danielle Thom.

Book now: https://t.co/gebesP0NGO

[Visit London @visitlondon]

Delve into the fantastical world of Tim Burton at the @designmuseum✨

While most well-known for his cinematic work, this exhibition will display the full extent of his production as an illustrator, painter, photographer and author.

#LetsDoLondon #VisitLondon

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Happy Halloween from all of us at the Design Museum 🎃

Pictured is a 9-year-old Tim Burton wearing a skeleton costume his mother made him for Halloween in 1967.

It was this costume that would later inspire the character, Jack Skellington, from the stop-motion animated 1993 film, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas.

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Join us on 9 & 10 November for the Drawing Gym ✏️

In this two-day adult course, learn about sketching, and explore diagramming, visual storytelling, and mapping techniques.

Book now: https://t.co/ix8PlN4JaD

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

@stanloi Members can enjoy unlimited entry to our exhibitions, even on sold out days! When you arrive show a member of staff your membership number and you'll be allowed in 🙂

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

#DesignOfTheWeek | The very first @Barbie doll from 1959 🖤​
​
This doll was marketed as a 'Teen Age Fashion Model'. Her groomed appearance and glamorous accessories gave her an air of maturity, akin to prominent 1950s models such as Dovima and Dorian Leigh.​
​
Nevertheless, her swinging ponytail, which came in blonde and brunette, ensured that she could be perceived as a teenager, since the hairstyle was associated with young actors like Sandra Dee.​
​
See this doll as part of #BarbieTheExhibition, on until February 2025 – tap the link for tickets (members go free!): https://t.co/jSz3ULv6m2
​
📸 Jo Underhill for the Design Museum © Mattel, Inc

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Celebrating one of the 20th century’s most significant designers, Enzo Mari, who died #onthisday in 2020.

As an artist, teacher and theorist, Mari had an uncompromising belief in the social responsibility of design that still resonates today.

Many of his projects were experiments in restoring autonomy and creativity in workers, and to Mari, these were ways to practice equality, raise collective consciousness and ultimately transform society to be fairer.

Mari's work was the subject of our recent #EnzoMariExhibition which closed at the museum just a few weeks ago - did you see it?

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

One week to go until #TheWorldOfTimBurton opens at the Design Museum ⏳

Delve into the fantastical world of the famous director in this major exhibition which will explore his remarkable artworks and key collaborations with designers.

Tap the link to book your tickets (members go free!): https://t.co/m1eWlr2UWl

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

A look at a few of the Ken dolls you can find on display as part of #BarbieTheExhibition 💚​
​
The character of Ken has undergone as profound an evolution as @Barbie herself.​
​
Originally presented as her 'boyfriend', today the relationship between Ken and Barbie is deliberately undefined, allowing children to project their own assumptions and imagine different play scenarios.​
​
See these dolls as part of #BarbieTheExhibition, on until February 2025 – tap the link for tickets (members go free!): https://t.co/jSz3ULv6m2
​
📸 Earring Magic Ken doll, 1993, Mod Hair Ken Doll, 1973, Ken Fashionistas Doll, 2017 © Mattel, Inc

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

#DesignOfTheWeek | The ‘House of Cards’ by Charles Eames sparked architectural creativity for all ages 🃏

Created in 1952, House of Cards was a unique toy designed to inspire, consisting of cards with six slits around the edges. This allowed them to be easily connected and built into various structures.

The House of Cards was available in two editions. The first set featured a variety of textures and colours, while the second set (shown here) included a collection of different photographs. When assembled, these cards come together to form a myriad of playful designs.

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

We're thinking of founder of the Design Museum Sir Terence Conran, on what would've been his 93rd birthday.

Since the 1950s, Conran worked as a retailer, an entrepreneur and a restaurateur. He ran businesses, wrote books and worked with architects and property developers. But he always described himself as a designer, first and foremost.

Conran reshaped design in Britain, his ideas revolutionising everyday life. His definition of design was not determined by luxury or exclusivity, but rather by the premise that form and function could come together in a timeless way to improve the quality of life.

Through his educational charity the Conran Foundation, he founded the Design Museum in 1989, which he later described as one of his proudest moments.

📸 Terence Conran in 2011 at the opening of the exhibition 'Terence Conran: The Way We Live Now' at the Design Museum

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Looking to keep your kids entertained this October half term? 🎨

Our Design Camps are fun in-person workshops for children aged 8 – 11 and 11 – 14, with activities which include digital character design, stop motion animation, architecture and more.

Explore all the Design Camps here: https://t.co/o1HzmuWvkN

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

It's officially October which can only mean one thing... Spooky SZN is here 👻

With our #TheWorldOfTimBurton exhibition just a few weeks away, we're fully ready to embrace all things spooky.

Have you got your tickets yet? Head to the link to grab them now (members go free!): https://t.co/m1eWlr2UWl

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Four weeks to go until #TheWorldOfTimBurton opens at the Design Museum 🎺🎶

Tim Burton is the creative force behind some of the most celebrated films of the last four decades, internationally recognised as a master of the darkly comic and the endearingly misfit.

Catch the exhibition from 25 October - tap the link to book your tickets (members go free!): https://t.co/m1eWlr2UWl

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Join us on 6 October for a cyanotype photography workshop 🍃

Immerse yourself in the magic of the cyanotype process to create amazing designs on paper and fabric using leaves and flowers.

Last chance to book now: https://t.co/ibwGmvwpme

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

📣 2025 announcement 📣

Next year is set to be an excitingly eclectic year at the Design Museum - check out our full exhibition programme for 2025… 👇

🏊‍♀️ Splash! A Century of Swimming and Style (28 March 2025 - 17 August 2025)

A major show exploring our century-long love affair with swimming, looking at design’s influence on everything from swimwear to art deco architecture. Guest-curated by dress and design historian and broadcaster, Amber Butchart.

🌎 More Than Human (6 June - 5 October 2025)

A groundbreaking exhibition bringing together art, science and radical thinking to ask how design can help our planet thrive by shifting its focus beyond human needs. Created in collaboration with #FutureObservatory, the museum’s national research programme for the green transition.

🪩 Blitz: the club that shaped the 80s (19 September 2025 - 29 March 2026)

Forty years after its closure, visitors can return to London’s trailblazing Blitz club, where the 1980s began and where the careers of the decade’s biggest music stars were made. The exhibition will be a sensory extravaganza of music, flamboyant fashions and pioneering art, film and graphic design.

🎬 Wes Anderson: The Exhibition (21 November 2025 - 4 May 2026)

The unique cinematic vision of Wes Anderson will be examined in a first-of-its kind exhibition, showcasing how the celebrated American filmmaker’s dedication to detail has created some of the most visually and emotionally compelling films of recent times. The exhibition will be made in collaboration Anderson, as well as with @cinemathequefr and American Empirical Pictures.

Tap the link below to find out more about these exhibitions, as well as all the exciting free displays we have planned, including a showcase of the work of Bethan Laura Wood, and plenty more.

https://t.co/PpPb7IgWiE

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

@Barbie Pink is one of the greatest branding successes of our time – did you know this colour was not always a core part of the brand? 💕​
​
The reign of bright pink began in 1977, with the release of Superstar Barbie and the adoption of consistently pink packaging.​
​
Its success was partly due to its effectiveness in toy shops, where row upon row of pink boxes allowed Barbie products to dominate the consumer's view.​
​
Pink is a colour with many cultural connotations. In the world of Barbie today, it signals optimism, confidence and the power of femininity.​
​
Catch #BarbieTheExhibition until February 2025 – tap the link for tickets (members go free!): https://t.co/jSz3ULv6m2

[the Design Museum @DesignMuseum]

Join us on the weekend of 28 & 29 September for a tailoring masterclass 🧥

In this two-day course, you will learn how to create a professional paper pattern template for a fully lined tailored jacket.

Book now: https://t.co/VgrmYplSdC