Dezeen Magazine

London Design Festival 2014 to include spinning sculptures and drones

London Design Festival 2014: installations including a "gigantic scale" rotating sculpture by Barber and Osgerby, a garden installation by Zaha Hadid and a swarm of drones have been announced for this year's London Design Festival in September.

London's V&A museum, where the plans for the week were revealed, will be the London Design Festival's hub from 13 to 21 September and will host some of the week's key events.

London designers Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby have proposed a pair of giant reflective panels that will rotate above visitors in the museum's Rafael Gallery, for an installation for car brand BMW titled Double Space (main image).

"We wanted to give the V&A a large-scale piece," said the designers during the preview. "The Natural History Museum has dinosaurs, the Science Museum has rockets."

Convex on one side and flat on the other, the panels arranged end-to-end will slowly spin in a choreographed programme – sometimes in sync and other times in opposition.

"There's something beguiling about having so much weight moving so gracefully," said Osgerby.

Visitors and artwork in the gallery will be reflected in the polished surfaces, constantly changing as the elements move and potentially "altering the perspective of the room".

Drone Aviary by Superflux in the V&A garden
The Drone Aviary by Superflux, proposed for the V&A museum's John Madejski Garden

The museum's John Madejski Garden will be swarming with unmanned aerial vehicles for The Drone Aviary installation by Superflux, where the public will be able to interact with the flying machines.

Architect Zaha Hadid has been commissioned to create a structure for the garden, which will be moved after the festival to the ME Dubai hotel she has designed.

Elsewhere, designers including Ilse Crawford, Jasper Morrison, Raw Edges and Patternity will each create their interpretation of the ideal home in Trafalgar Square.

A Place Called Home is supported by home-rental website Airbnb, which "will change our idea of what design is" according to Crawford.

Ten architects and designers including Hadid, Norman Foster and Terence Conran will each be teaming up with a young designer to design pieces from American hardwood for The Wish List project.

The Global Design Forum series of talks and panel discussions will return to the Southbank Centre on 17 September, with four main sessions involving over 20 international speakers. The London Design Medal will be awarded on 16 September.

Four large exhibitions 100% Design will take place at Earls Court, designjunction will pop-up at the Old Sorting Office, combined Tent London and Super Brands London will be held at the Old Truman Brewery, and Decorex will land at Syon Park.

Six official design districts will hold exhibitions, launches and parties throughout the week. See our coverage of last year's event here.