Seoul Design Olympiad 2008
10 - 30 October, 2008
Seoul will position itself as a design mecca in line with its designation as World Design Capital 2010
Seoul Metropolitan Government will host the very first Seoul Design Olympiad (SDO) 2008 from 10-31 October 2008 for 21 days at the Jamsil Sports Complex where world class designers and citizens will gather for the festival. Seoul Design Olympiad is a comprehensive design event organized to enhance and promote Seoul as the world center for design, supported by its designation as World Design Capital 2010. The World Design Capital is a project where the International Design Alliance (IDA) selects a city--that has achieved development based on design or has utilized its design potential--through international competition and designates it for two years as World Design Capital (WDC). Torino, Italy was selected as the WDC pilot city for 2008, while Seoul was officially designated as the first World Design Capital on 21 October 2007 through open competition.
Promoting Seoul, a city of culture, via the first SDO
Seoul Design Olympiad focuses on expressing Seoul’s vision and determination to reach a new level of design, based on the Olympic spirits of joining nations, politics, economies, and culture and challenging to achieve new limits.
The first SDO has significant historic meaning since it will be held at Jamsil Sports Complex, which celebrates its 20th anniversary of hosting the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Seoul became famous 20 years ago via the hard element of sports; this year Seoul is promoting itself as a city of creativity and rich culture through design, a soft element. The main stadium of Jamsil Sports Complex will not only be the venue of this event, but will also be transformed into a symbol of design representing Seoul as a design city.
A festival for both designers and citizens
SDO seeks to express that design is "a value that exists in our everyday lives" rather than a concept or idea that is simply applied to the exterior design of products. So far the majority of design events were mostly for designers. However, SDO is a comprehensive design festival for both designers and citizens to enjoy and experience a crossover of various designs, parting from the conventional disciplines of graphic, industrial, space, fashion, public and urban designs.
From Seoul Design Olympiad 2008 Official Site
