Open Studios is a key part of Design Vancouver Festival, inviting the public into Vancouver’s design community through studio visits, conversations, and behind-the-scenes access to creative practice.

Open Studios is curated and focused on design disciplines and design-led practices. We welcome studios working in fields such as architecture, interior design, industrial design, graphic design, landscape, and interdisciplinary design.


Design Districts
Open Studios has grown quickly. In past years, Open Studios brought great energy, but with so many studios open at once, it was difficult for visitors to see multiple locations across the city. In 2026, DVF is introducing Design Districts. Studios will be grouped by neighbourhood, and each district will have a dedicated day in the festival calendar. This makes Open Studios more walkable, easier to plan, and better organized for both visitors and studios.


Date and hours:
Armoury/Railtown/Other (Vancouver): Sat, Sept. 19, 10am to 4pm
Granville Island: Sun, Sept. 20, 10am to 4pm
Downtown/Gastown: Fri, Sept. 25, 3pm to 7pm
Mount Pleasant: Sat, Sept. 26, 10am to 4pm


What it looks like
Open Studios is drop-in and informal. Visitors come to see how things are made, meet the team, ask questions, and experience design up close. It is a great way to build public awareness, connect with peers, and welcome students and emerging designers into practice.

How to participate
Studios can keep it simple or make it special. Examples include:

• Studio tours and behind-the-scenes walkthroughs

• Process displays (materials, sketches, prototypes, models)

• Short talks or Q&A sessions

• Hands-on demos or mini workshops

• Neighbourhood “studio crawl” collaborations
  
  

  
  

Key requirements

• Open Studios is focused on design disciplines. Submissions must reflect a design-based practice or process.

• All participating studios must be within the City of Vancouver.

• Studios must be open and staffed during the assigned Open Studios hours

• Clear visitor access plan, including entry, wayfinding, and capacity

• Basic accessibility notes included in your listing

• Participants are responsible for securing access and any necessary approvals for their space

DVF provides

• Listing on the DVF schedule and Open Studios map

• Promotion through DVF channels (as capacity allows)

• Brand assets and guidance for marketing

• DVF signage and posters for on-site use

Registration Fees

DVF has a registration fee for accepted events, scaled by organization size. This fee supports the administrative and design support required to coordinate listings, promotion, and participant communications. DVF is funded through registration fees and sponsorship.

• Solo designer or ad hoc collective: $250

• Small businesses (4–40 employees): $350

• Large businesses and institutions (40+ employees): $500

Curation and Refund Policy

• DVF is curated. Submitting does not guarantee acceptance. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis weekly.

• Not all submissions can be accepted into the festival due to capacity.

• If a project does not meet our artistic guidelines and is declined, DVF will notify the applicant and refund the registration fee in full.

• If you withdraw before June 5, 2026, we will refund your fee minus a $50 administration fee. After June 5, 2026, fees are non-refundable.

OPEN STUDIO REGISTRATION FORM