Design Trust Upcoming Grants & Programmes Highlights | September – December 2026

Discover an exciting line-up of Design Trust upcoming and ongoing grants & programmes highlights including Feature Grant research exhibition and publication launch of  "Villa Moderne: in Search of Hong Kong Modern Homes" led by Alex Yuen in Hong Kong, Seed Grant research exhibition “Water Technologies as Community: Rafts, Beacons, and Littoral Narratives” led by Jiyuan Sun with Qizheng Gai and Zeyuan in Macau, along with Design Trust Impact Grant initiatives returning in November 2026.

Hong Kong | September 30^th

Design Trust Feature Grant recipient Ho Rui An will present a community screening of the research film "The World of Lines" in Hong Kong on September 30^th. This long-term research initiative examines over a century of textile history across the Pearl River Delta and Yangtze River Delta. Tracing the shifting dynamics among labor, technology, and capital, the project maps the industry’s trajectory from late 19th-century Shanghai to mid-century Hong Kong, and its subsequent return to Chinese Mainland during the 1980s. A feature showcase and exhibition will be presented in 2027.

Hong Kong | October 16^th - 25^th

Design Trust Feature Grant research exhibition "Villa Moderne: in Search of Hong Kong Modern Homes" by Alex Yuen will open at 15-17 New Street, Sheung Wan from Friday October 16th to Sunday October 25th with book launch, talk and tour programmes. The archive research examines, records, and exhibits the evolution of post-war modern residential villas built in Hong Kong between 1945 and 1990, highlighting 24 case studies across coastal and hilly context in Hong Kong including Shek O, Repulse Bay, Kadoorie Hill, Jardine's Lookout, the Peak, the Mid-Levels and Kowloon Tong through archive drawings, architectural models, public tour and dialogue programmes.

Hong Kong | October 17^th

Design Trust Seed Grant research "Archiving Archiving: Scoping" by Zara Arshad and Vivien Chan will launch its first zine publication at Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong on October 17^th 2026. This research explores archival cultures of design across East and Southeast Asia (ESEA). Spotlighting the Hong Kong and Greater Bay Area contexts, the publication features 8 design archives in East and Southeast Asia including the ones from Hong Kong, Macau, Shanghai and Singapore. The publication expands on and diverts from the growing notion of institutional design archives, particularly in Asian contexts, to include graphic ephemera, type, raw materials, and even books/magazines as archive, showing the possibilities of organisation, motivation, and uses for the grassroots design archive in different cultural context.

Hong Kong | November 1^st – 29^th

Design Trust Impact Grant initiative Inter-island Festival 2026 returns this November 2026 across Cheung Chau, Chi Ma Wan, Mui Wo, and Peng Chau of Hong Kong. Borrowing from the ferry connection between the outlying islands, the Inter-island Festival celebrates, connects, and builds on the rich and varied cultures living by the sea in southwest Hong Kong. Design Trust is proud to support the initiative as Foundation Partner after championing its 2021 and 2023 editions. More details via the link here.

Design Trust Seed Grant documentary "The Shop Below the Hill" led by Bryan Wood, Gabe Singer, and Jimmie Lu will be screening at the Inter-island Festival (IIP) 2026 in November. The documentary examines Peng Chau's shifting socio-economic landscape through the Chan family's long-standing local restaurant. By synthesizing archival research, local interviews, and community event footage, the bilingual film explores regional migration, industrial transformation, and community resilience.

London | November 14^th 2026 – June 20^th 2027

The inaugural Design Trust Fellowship at V&A East fellows Sian Fan exploring the Hakka heritage in Hong Kong, and Adam Huxley-Khng & Jimin Jeon who trace the development of fasteners, will present their Creative Commission installation works and research documentation at V&A East, London in November 2026 till June 20^th 2027. Responding to the theme “The Stories of Clothes”, the fellows’ installation works are built upon their object research and archive activation at the V&A East Storehouse, fieldwork research in Hong Kong, the Greater Bay Area and Chinese Mainland, exploring topics of cultural heritage, manufacturing technologies and material innovation.

Macau, Shunde and Guangzhou | November 21^st – December 22^nd

Design Trust Seed Grant research "Water Technologies as Community: Rafts, Beacons, and Littoral Narratives" led by creatives Jiyuan Sun with Qizheng Gai and Zeyuan Ren will be featured as part of "Confluence: Memories of Water and Future Narratives" exhibition from November 21^st to December 22^nd at Livraria Portuguesa, Macau. The project explores how maritime technologies function as spatial and social structures organizing movement, shelter, navigation, labor, and collective memory. Grounded in Macau's history as a port city shaped by land-water dynamics, the initiative integrates archival research, artistic production, and exhibition-making with a regional public program. Framing technology as an active, community-building process across the Greater Bay Area, the initiative features an opening artist conversation in Macau on November 21^st, community trips in Shunde on November 22^nd and Guangzhou on November 28^th, and a sharing session at Guangdong Times Museum on November 29^th.

Hong Kong | November 28^th – 29^th, December 5^th – 6^th, 12^th – 13^th

Design Trust Impact Grant initiative Open House Hong Kong 2026 will return for its third edition across two weekends on November 28^th – 29^th and December 5^th – 6^th ,12^th – 13^th 2026. Following the inaugural 2024 festival and the expanded 2025 edition, the city-wide programme will open more than 80 sites across Hong Kong through docent tours, self-guided visits, and dialogue programmes. Supported by the Design Trust Impact Grant, the initiative celebrates Hong Kong’s rich architectural heritage and urban culture. More details via the link here.