Header: The Love Triangle Collective, The Thread That Binds, Courtesy of Tarek Moukaddem
The second expanded edition of Design Doha will take place from November 5, 2026 through January 31, 2027. The expanded program encompasses over 15 exhibitions, large-scale public commissions and designs by more than one hundred multidisciplinary designers and studios from the MENASA region and the diaspora. Heritage districts, Fereej Al Asmakh. will serve as a main exhibition venue, but also as a site of cultural production, engagement, and urban renewal.
Arab Design Now 2026
The program of exhibitions is headlined by Arab Design Now 2026, curated by Noura Al Sayeh. The show will gather together 81 designers, 15 films, and 78 new commissions by international participants from 27 countries working across 15 disciplines. The exhibition will present contemporary Arab design through five thematic segments:
- Narration and Ornamentation
- Land and Agrarian Practices
- Landscapes of Production and Extraction
- Crafts, Technology, and Community
- Belonging and Migrating
The show will take place across several venues, including Msheireb and Fereej Al Asmakh and Qatar Museums’ institutions, heritage sites, and public spaces.
“Design Doha 2026 marks the next chapter in the biennial’s evolution. What began as a platform to map the design landscape of the MENASA region has developed into an institution that understands design as a system of knowledge shaped by language, landscape, ecology, craft, and the accumulated intelligence of generations. By extending the biennial into the public realm and placing equal emphasis on research, making, and collaboration, Design Doha positions Qatar as a place where design is not only exhibited, but cultivated, produced, and shared.”
Fahad Al Obaidly, Director of Design Doha
The Design Doha Prize and commission program
Ten designers, architects, and urban practitioners will get the opportunity to reimagine Qatar public spaces through the Public Design Commissions program. The Design Doha Prize will honour top talents across Craft, Product Design, Furniture Design, and Emerging Talent. On November 7, an international jury led by Iranian-French architect and designer India Mahdavi will announce four winners who will receive a QAR 800,000 support package.
As part of Qatar’s 2026 Years of Culture initiative, the event will partner with Mexican designers and institutions. The Sower exhibition by Mexico-based designer Fernando Laposse will centre on a shared narrative of environment, landscape and craft.
Standout exhibitions
Aslan’s Love Story exhibition that showcases the life and work of Nabulsi tile artisan Jalal Aslan will be followed by the Design Labs II exhibition that transforms nine recipes into installations and furniture. Post-Oil 2026 explores five materials that reshaped Saudi Arabia during the oil boom. The Thread That Blinds honours Khous and Khaizaran weaving traditions through the participatory artwork that allows visitors to weave palm fronds and reeds collectively with artisans. Monumental: A Monobloc’s Memoir is dedicated to the Monobloc chair, while Beyond The Letter explores Arabic and Persian typography.
The Design Doha biennial provides new professional opportunities by connecting designers and makers with the public, production networks, and international design experts. The biennial supports local and regional talent, develops sustainable design ecosystems, and positions Doha as a regional design centre. Early bird tickets for Design Doha 2026 can be purchased online.
