Archtober, Design Week Lagos, Designblok and Design Week Mexico are among the key events featured in Dezeen Events Guide this October.
Other events taking place during the month include the Stirling Prize ceremony, Dutch Design Week, Design Miami Paris and Design Week South Africa.
Archtober
1 to 31 October, USA
Archtober is an annual architecture festival that takes place throughout the month of October in New York City.
The festival programme follows the theme In Our Hands, with exhibitions, talks, tours and screenings addressing resilient, inclusive and sensorial design.
Design Week Mexico
5 to 11 October, Mexico
This year, Design Week Mexico has chosen to honour Chile through its exhibitions and talks, reflected in the festival theme Perspectives from the Global South.
The week-long festival also hosts tours and fairs in Mexico City. Each year it also transforms a residential property into an indoor and outdoor immersive showcase.
Designblok
5 to 11 October, Czech Republic
Located at various venues in Prague, including the Prague Industrial Palace, the National Gallery Prague and the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague, Designblok's festival programme spans exhibitions, awards and talks.
The 28th iteration celebrates a range of disciplines, including art, jewellery, fashion and product design.
The Design Talks 2026 programme is presented in partnership with Dezeen, and welcomes designers Lee Broom, Laurids Gallée and Daniel Rybakkenas speakers.
Design Week South Africa
8 to 25 October, South Africa
Design Week South Africa takes place over two separate weeks, hosting Johannesburg and Cape Town editions, with the former running from 8 to 11 October and the latter from 22 to 25 October.
The festival organisers have set the theme The Shape of Us for the events programme, focusing on local design, heritage and culture.
For four days, each city will be home to exhibitions, installations, open studios and showrooms, workshops, talks and tours.
Stirling Prize ceremony
15 October, UK
This year's Stirling Prize ceremony, hosted by The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), takes place at London's Old Billingsgate Walk.
The evening will celebrate the six architecture projects that are nominated for the award and announce the winner of the prize.
The shortlisted practices are Sergison Bates, Bennetts Associates, Mary Duggan Architects with RUFF Architects, Renzo Piano Building Workshop with Adamson Associates, Haworth Tompkins and Witherford Watson Mann Architects.
Dutch Design Week
17 to 25 October, the Netherlands
2026 marks the 26th edition of Dutch Design Week, which takes over the city of Eindhoven, spanning its galleries, studios, institutions and public spaces.
The theme for the latest edition is R.A.W., highlighting unpolished design in its rawest state. This is explored through exhibitions, workshops, seminars, film screenings, performances and parties.
The festival's events cover a range of topics, including ecology, care, inclusion, sustainability, education, liveability, digital, public, and personal.
Design Week Lagos
18 to 25 October, Nigeria
Design Week Lagos is an annual festival that spotlights pan-African design through exhibitions, talks and workshops.
This year, the festival addresses five key categories: design culture and systems; manufacturing, brands and trade; product, furniture and industrial design; interior design; architecture and the built environment.
Key events in the programme include the Made by Design trade show and the Design and Innovation Exhibition.
Design Miami Paris
20 to 25 October, France
Located at L'hôtel de Maisons, the Design Miami fair hosts its Paris edition, showcasing furniture and design objects from 20 global galleries.
The upcoming event explores the theme Design for Presence, which frames design as a means of connecting with others and staying present.
About Dezeen Events Guide
Dezeen Events Guide is our guide to the best architecture and design events taking place across the world each year. The guide is updated weekly and includes virtual events, conferences, trade fairs, major exhibitions and design weeks.
Inclusion in the guide is free for basic listings, with events selected at Dezeen's discretion. Organisers can get standard, enhanced or featured listings for their events, including images, additional text and links, by paying a modest fee.
In addition, events can ensure inclusion by partnering with Dezeen. For more details on inclusion in Dezeen Events Guide and media partnerships with Dezeen, email eventsguide@dezeen.com.