2021 Schedule
Join the Austin creative community November 8-12 for the sixth annual Austin Design Week and get inspired by a variety of free workshops, talks, and presentations hosted by Austin creatives and showcasing the best in Austin design.
We're offering both virtual and in-person events this year. All times are in CST.
Design A Thon Kick-Off: Mini-Pitch Competition + Find Your Team
NOVEMBER 5, 2021 2:00PM - 5:00PM
- Participate in the 5th annual Design A Thon. During this initial kick-off session, our facilitators will lead attendees through the latest design methodologies and ideation processes.
- Virtual
Pop-Up Design Zine Archive
NOVEMBER 8-12, 2021 9:00AM (11:00AM on Monday) - 5:00PM (2:00PM on Friday)
- Visitors to Austin Design Week’s HUB can browse, view, and create design-oriented zines. Designing future communities and design practices requires archives of stories, processes, and solutions tried.
- The ADW Hub
- 301 W. 2nd St., Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78701
Uncertain Futures: Using Strategic Foresight to Guide Transformation
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 9:00AM - 10:00AM
Nobody can predict the future, but we can generate possible futures through strategic foresight. Learn about foresight methods and how it's used in relation to service design!
Virtual
Co-creating a Storage Space and Employment Opportunities for People Experiencing Homelessness
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 10:30AM - 11:30AM
Beginning with user research, interviews and workshops involving people with lived experience, an idea for a transitional storage center for people experiencing homelessness in Austin was made a reality.
- Native Hostel
- 807 E 4th St.
- Austin, TX 78702
Intelligent Infrastructure of the Future
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 10:30AM - 12:00PM
- The 21st-century Infrastructure supporting Industry 4.0 requires the bridging of the physical world with the digital world.
- Virtual
Microassist Studio Tour: Don't Leave Accessibility To The End
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 12:00PM - 2:00PM
- Don't leave accessibility to the end. Join Microassist's studio tour to learn how to create and be prepared when designing online content to be usable and accessible to all users.
- 8500 Shoal Creek Blvd.
- Ste. 4-225
- Austin, TX 78757
Popcorn Pitches: Persuasion Through Cinematic Storytelling
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 12:00PM - 1:30PM
- Winners of the 2020 Austin Design-a-thon present Popcorn Pitches, a cinematic spin on design challenges. Grab some candy as they walk you through formulating the perfect pitch using film techniques.
- 6101 Highland Campus Dr
- Design Studio HLC 2.2331
- Austin, TX 78752
Retaining Talent and Growing the Next Generation of Great Designers
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 12:30PM - 1:30PM
- Join our panel of design leaders for insights on how these reputable design orgs are ensuring their teams have a professional home where they can aren’t simply “retained” but are growing, skilling up, and thriving in their careers.
- Virtual
The Evolution of Home Design: How It's Changing and Why
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 1:30PM - 2:30PM
- Join several Austin design-industry veterans for a discussion about how home design is changing and why it will affect how you live.
- Curated Home & Jewelry
- 3301 Steck Avenue
- Austin, TX 78757
ACC Fashion Incubator Tour: Future of Fashion
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 2:00PM - 4:00PM
- The future of fashion is here! Meet our Designers-in-Residence and tour the Fashion Incubator lab and studios to see how we are working to move the local industry forward.
- ACC Fashion Incubator, Highland Campus
- 6101 Highland Campus Dr.
- Bldg 4000, Ste 4.1210
- Austin, Texas 78752
Discovering Physical-Digital Spaces
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 2:00PM - 3:00PM
- Emerging technologies like AR and IoT include not just spatial awareness, but spatial understanding. Learn how designing for spatial technologies demands different discovery approaches from screen-based design.
- Virtual
Designing the Future of Online Marketplaces Without Discrimination
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 3:30PM - 4:30PM
As more online marketplaces are built, we need to design ways to prevent discrimination on these digital platforms. How can we create experiences that encourage unbiased participation and fair transactions?
Virtual
Letterpress Workshop
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 4:30PM - 6:00PM
A hands-on letterpress experience, bridging new technology with antique printmaking techniques. Explore the Rob Roy Kelly American Wood Type Collection and take home an original print.
- 2300 Trinity St.
- Austin, TX 78712
Data-Driven: An Interactive Panel on the Future of Design
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 5:00PM - 6:00PM
Join MODintelechy for an interactive panel on data, design, and technology—and how creative thinking augments their compounding impact.
- 4005 Guadalupe Street
- Austin, TX 78751
What Are You Bringing to Your Collaboration?
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 5:00PM - 6:00PM
Somehow we’re just expected to know how to collaborate. Little time is spent on why/how. Or how diversity of perspective is usually why it fails. Let's talk about it.
Virtual
Austin Design Week Opening Night
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 6:30PM - 8:30PM
Austin Design Week and the School of Design & Creative Technologies together invite the Austin design community to celebrate futuring. Come immerse yourself in a projection and lighting experience, hear from Austin's premiere futurist, and social reception with bar provided.
Doty Fine Arts Building
2301 Trinity St
- Austin, TX 78712
(VIRTUAL) Opening Night
NOVEMBER 8, 2021 9:00PM - 10:00PM
Can't join our opening event in person? Tune in to hear the talk online.
Virtual
Austin Biophilic Urbanism
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 9:00AM - 10:00AM
- Join us at the UTSOA Living Wall for a panel discussing biophilic urbanism in Austin or stop by the wall anytime to enjoy a slice of nature in the city!
- UT School of Architecture
- 310 Inner Campus Drive
- Austin, TX 78712
Painting the Town: How Murals Can Empower, Inspire, and Educate
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 10:00AM - 11:00AM
- Murals are powerful. They can positively transform public spaces, provide a visual history of a community, communicate important messages, and even play a role in shifting individual and community perceptions. Austin has a vibrant mural scene that is as colorful as it is rich in meaning.
- Waterloo Park
- 1401 Trinity Street
- Austin, TX 7801
The American Coverlet: Bringing a 300-year-old Folk Weaving Tradition Back to the Future
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 10:30AM - 11:30AM
- What can a 300-year-old folk weaving tradition teach us about Futuring? Let’s get together to uncover the American Coverlet. We’ll explore how these antique textiles can inform our design values and provide modern-day lessons in responsible design practice.
- The ADW Hub
301 W. 2nd Street, Suite 100
Austin, TX 78701
Best Practices for Inclusive Product Roadmapping
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 12:00PM - 1:00PM
- Product roadmapping is privileged—often capturing one person's perceived path to solving pain-points. The pitfall? Potent perspectives are left un-prioritized. Learn practices to remove privilege and bias from product roadmapping and design.
- The ADW Hub
- 301 W. 2nd Street, Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78701
Art Island Does ADW
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 12:00PM - 2:00PM
- This ain't no zoom room- it's a choose-your-own-adventure virtual studio tour created by a local art collective! Wander around Art Island ATX's digital world to uncover secret worlds of art, music, and conversation.
- Virtual
The Future is Freelance: How to Embrace the Freelance Economy
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 1:30PM - 2:30PM
- Join a panel of freelancers as we discuss how to design your career in a sustainable way through freelancing and independent work.
- The ADW Hub
- 301 W. 2nd Street, Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78701
Workplace Design for Neurodiversity
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 2:00PM - 3:00PM
- Learn how through design we can create work environments that help address unemployment and under-employment for neurodiverse adult workers including those with Autism Spectrum Disorder and those who are neurotypical.
- Cushing Terrell
- 316 W 12th St
- Austin, Texas 78701
Failing Forward with ATX Fail Club
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 2:30PM - 4:00PM
- Join us to explore the interconnectedness of dreaming big, failing forward, and embracing vulnerability with vibrant support networks. ATX Fail Club exists to reframe failure as growth and empower more people to persist through setbacks.
- Virtual
What Advertising and Design Can Learn From Each Other
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 3:00PM - 4:00PM
- What happens when you build a team that's half product designers and half advertising creatives? How we leveraged a hybrid approach to drive better outcomes.
- The ADW Hub
- 301 W. 2nd Street, Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78701
Driving Inclusive Design in Your Organization
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 3:30PM - 4:30PM
Looking to make sure your company is recognizing exclusion? This panel of leaders will talk about their journey in driving inclusive design within their organizations.
- Projekt 202
- 1300 Guadalupe St, STE 300
- Austin, TX 78701
Model Home of the Future: Flexible, Affordable, Quick-Build Home For Urban Infill
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 4:00PM - 5:00PM
- The Plugin House is a quick-build, affordable, stylish home that addresses today’s multi-pronged housing issues.
- 2016 Alamo Street
- Austin, TX 78722
Embracing Diversity: Psychological Safety and DEI to Enable Futuring
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 4:30PM - 5:30PM
One thing is certain, we're all different; thus today’s organizations must learn to embrace diversity. By identifying our assumptions, we can create psychologically safe spaces for people to be effective.
Virtual
How to Have Fun Doing Work That Matters
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 5:00PM - 6:00PM
Great Scott! Every brand looks the same and everyone is burnt out. We’ve got to go back… to basics. How do we build meaningful brands? By embracing these five fundamentals.
- Vuka at North Loop
- 5540 N Lamar Blvd
- Austin, TX 78756
The Dissolving Line Between Business and Design
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 5:30PM - 6:30PM
- Attend a panel discussion consisting of over 75 years of experience in shipping user experiences to learn more about the ongoing dialog between Business and Design.
- The Foundry, at The University of Texas
- 2306 Trinity St
- Austin, TX 78712
Inclusive Design for the Future of a Sustainable Community
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 6:00PM - 7:30PM
- Clay Imports invites Austin’s creative and design community to enjoy inclusive, play-based experiences to understand handcrafted products that inspire a collective future for a healthy maker and consumer community.
- Clay Imports Studio
- 12024 N Lamar Blvd
- Austin, TX 78758
Hear the Future: Co-Creating the Next Generation of Accessible Design
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 6:00PM - 7:00PM
- Let’s explore the future of accessible design through the lens of deafness and hearing loss. We’ll discuss a holistic approach and how to co-create with community advocates and living experts.
- Virtual
The Future of Meetings Isn’t Zoom, It’s Icebreakers
NOVEMBER 9, 2021 7:00PM - 8:30PM
Let’s be honest, either you love them or you hate them. But the fact is, when successfully facilitated, ice breakers can turn meetings into collaborations.
Doty Fine Arts Building
2301 Trinity St
- Austin, TX 78712
Waterloo Park: Investing in Austin’s Urban Open Space
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 8:30AM - 9:30AM
- Waterloo Park represents the largest economic parkland investment in generations. The social, economic, and environmental benefits from this transformation of our urban fabric speaks to the future vision of Austin.
- Waterloo Park
- 500 E. 12th St.
- Austin, TX 78701
Imagining What's Next for Design Education
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 8:30AM - 9:30AM
- Join us for a panel discussion exploring the current state of design education and what some leading practitioners are envisioning for the future.
- Virtual
The Future of Cities
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 10:00AM - 11:00AM
Local governments around the nation are struggling with incredible challenges. Citizens must find their voice in shaping the future of our cities and the way we live in them.
- Capitol Factory - Voltron
- 701 Brazos St.
- Austin, TX 78701
Designing for a Multigenerational Workforce
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 10:00AM - 11:30AM
The value of multigenerational teams is clear - especially in the creative economy. This interactive workshop teaches you how to amplify your team's impact by fostering unexpected new collaborative partnerships.
- Capitol Factory - Devvie
- 701 Brazos St.
- Austin, TX 78701
Infusing Customer Engagements Within Your Product Development
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 10:00AM - 11:00AM
- Let's talk about the ways, tools and techniques for infusing and engaging your customers within your product development process. Beginning, middle and end, not just at the end.
- Virtual
American Building Podcast Live
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 11:30AM - 12:30PM
Join a live recording of American Building, a podcast about how iconic buildings came together from the perspective of their designers and developers.
- Fallout Theatre
- 616 Lavaca St
- Austin, TX 78701
Making Room for a Diverse Audience: Designing with Your Community's Voice at the Table
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 12:00PM - 1:00PM
- Explore how building and collaborating with your community can help inform your brand's visual design, shape effective outcomes, & expand opportunities to promote inclusion and engage a diverse audience.
- The ADW Hub
- 301 W. 2nd Street, Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78701
How We Can Use Stories and Objects to Imagine the Future
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 12:00PM - 1:30PM
In this brief workshop, you will be introduced to several alternative speculative design methods that connect aspects of storytelling and scifi-prototyping to help you imagine new desired futures.
Virtual
Co-Creating With The Youniverse
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 1:30PM - 2:30PM
- Dive deep within yourself and let's remember how to co-create without the fear of limiting external "what ifs".
- The ADW Hub
- 301 W. 2nd Street, Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78701
A Design Futuring Workshop presented by GA & AIGA
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 2:00PM - 3:30PM
Learn how to design emerging technologies and participate in crafting a vision for how these ideas will exist in the future.
- Capitol Factory - Voltron
- 701 Brazos St.
- Austin, TX 78701
frog Studio Tour: Reconstructing Collaboration
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 2:00PM - 4:00PM
- Explore frog's new studio and get hands-on with our experiments where we are exploring the future of our collaborative ecosystems. Come along with us during this historic moment of reimagining.
- 1221 South Congress Ave
- Suite 300
- Austin, Texas 78704
Systems Leverage Mapping Workshop: A Systemic Design Approach to Envisioning Better Futures of Health
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 3:00PM - 4:30PM
- Join a workshop with the Design Institute for Health to explore applying systems design methodologies to increase the leverage of your concepts and design interventions for systems change in health.
- Virtual
The Game of Rent: A Gamified Conversation About Austin’s Affordable Housing Crisis
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 4:00PM - 5:30PM
- Join NOMA Central Texas to play the Game of Rent, a board game designed to build empathy and awareness about Austin’s affordable housing crisis.
- Ann Richards School For Young Women Leaders
- 2309 Panther Trail
- Austin, TX 78704
Data & Design: Creating in a Post-Cookie World
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 4:00PM - 5:00PM
- A roundtable panel discussion on the potential effects of the internet’s transformation from third-party cookie data to aggregate first-party data on advertising creative and design.
- 201 E 5th Street
- Suite #103
- Austin, TX 78701
Achieving Equity in Tech: A Practical Guide to Systemic Change
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 5:00PM - 6:00PM
Systemic problems require systemic solutions and systemic solutions require collective effort. Regardless of our seniority, industry, strengths, and identity, there are methods of making this world more inclusive.
Virtual
Is the Future Better Wherever?
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 6:00PM - 7:30PM
“Working” as we know it has changed dramatically. Led by data, technology, and some of the industry's leading design minds, explore what’s working and what isn’t with working from wherever.
- Cushing Terrell
- 316 W 12th St.
- Austin, Texas 78701
Futuring Your Design Career: How to Craft Your Path in the Design Industry
NOVEMBER 10, 2021 6:30PM - 7:30PM
- The last year inspired many designers to reassess their careers. Do I still love what I do? This panel will help you define your path and future your design career.
- Virtual
Expanding Perspectives: A Systems-Thinking Approach to Design
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 8:30AM - 10:00AM
Learn how taking a systems view can be a powerful approach that enables collaboration and unlocks the unexpected, driving solutions to the challenges we face in business, design, and society.
- Native Hostel
- 807 E 4th St.
- Austin, TX 78702
Black Gold: A Case Study of a Design Project in the Amazon Rainforest
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 9:00AM - 10:00AM
"Black Gold” is a case study of a project carried out in the Amazon rainforest. The designers and local community members created the safety equipment supporting climbing the acai palm trees.
Virtual
How Can I Help You? The Service of Design
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 11:30AM - 12:30PM
Delivering excellent service is a skillset that may fall by the wayside. Gain the respect and loyalty of clientele and maintain your integrity as a designer at the same time.
- Native Hostel
- 807 E 4th St.
- Austin, TX 78702
Durable Design: Leveraging Foresight for Multiple Scenarios
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 12:00PM - 1:30PM
- How can you leverage foresight & design to improve social issues (eg. diversity, inclusion), commercial offerings (eg. products, experiences) or systems? Join us for an engaging presentation and hands-on workshop.
- Virtual
Matt Fajkus Architecture Studio Tour & Gallery of Student Work
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 12:00PM - 2:00PM
- Visit Matt Fajkus Architecture for an open studio and informal discussion of sustainability, resilience, and looking forward with the next generation of architects.
- Matt Fajkus Architecture Studio
- 900 East 6th Street, Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78702
Foresight CAN be 20/20: How To Get Alignment With Tough Stakeholders
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 2:00PM - 3:00PM
- Stakeholders can derail a project, but if we work with them early, we can get alignment and buy-in and keep projects on track.
- Virtual
HEB Digital Studio Tour: Future of Design Teams
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 2:00PM - 4:00PM
As the state of the design industry rapidly evolves, so does our understanding of what it means to be a designer. Join us for a self-guided visual tour and engage in conversation with H-E-B designers as we work together to reframe the business of building a better design team.
- 2416 E 6th St.
- Austin, TX 78702
Pascal NU Studio Tour: Designing Architectural Handbags
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 2:00PM - 4:00PM
- You’re invited inside the Pascal NU Studio, where Devon Stonebrook designs and fabricates architectural handbags + accessories. Explore her latest collection, and chat with the designer about her unique process.
- Pascal NU Studio
- 2401 E 6TH St, #6095
- Austin, TX 78702
Designing an Apology
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 2:30PM - 4:00PM
- In this workshop, the team at Now Accepting Apologies will lead folks through communication strategies for how to make amends.
- Cushing Terrell
- 316 W 12th St
- Austin, Texas 78701
The Cathedral Gallery Tour
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 4:00PM - 6:00PM
- Join us for a tour of The Cathedral and learn more about the history of the space, design inspiration, and view/shop their art exhibit.
- The Cathedral
- 2403 East 16th Street
- Austin, TX 78702
The Future of the Design Agency
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 4:00PM - 5:00PM
- Enterprises have more diverse design needs than ever before. As the race for in-house design accelerates, will design agencies adapt and thrive, or flounder and become irrelevant?
- 916 Springdale Rd
- Bldg 4 Ste 101
- Austin, TX 78702
The Future of Work: How to Prepare Your People and Your Organization For What's Ahead
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 4:00PM - 5:00PM
Nobody knows what the future will look like, but we do know what workers need to thrive anywhere. Leaders can begin by redefining inclusive work policies and strengthening worker-employer relationships.
- Virtual
Design A Thon Final Pitches + Awards Ceremony
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 5:00PM - 6:15PM
Cheer on our Design A Thon finalists as they pitch their research and possible solutions to a panel of esteemed judges for a chance to win prizes!
- Virtual
Designing Change Through Creative Empowerment
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 5:30PM - 6:30PM
- Participate in a guided discussion exploring how creativity facilitates change and how to support ourselves and each other in embracing more creative lives.
- Virtual
Shaping the Future of Housing Access in Central Texas: Intersections of Architecture and Advocacy
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 6:30PM - 7:30PM
- Providing shelter in times of the pandemic and beyond. How do designers make good on their oath to provide health, safety, and awareness on housing for the public?
- Ann Richards School For Young Women Leaders
- 2309 Panther Trail
- Austin, TX 78704
Emerging Designer Lightning Talks
NOVEMBER 11, 2021 6:30PM - 7:30PM
What will the future of design look like? Hear directly from the future of industry—emerging designers—on what excites them, scares them, and more.
- Cheer Up Charlies
- 900 Red River St
- Austin, TX 78701
CreativeMornings ATX
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 8:00AM - 9:30AM
CreativeMornings/Austin is a free monthly speaker series based on the belief that everyone is creative and everyone is welcome. November's theme is Liminal.
Virtual
Everything I Know About Brand Identity I Learned in the 1980s
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 9:30AM - 10:30AM
Growing up in the 1980s I didn't think twice about the design and branding around me. Years later, I understand how influential it all was.
Virtual
Childhood, Optimized: Designing the Future of Growing Up
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 10:30AM - 12:00PM
- How might technology help raise our future generations? In this design fiction workshop, you receive a challenge from everyday parenthood, explore brainstorming cards, and invent the future of childhood.
- Capitol Factory - Captain America, 8th floor
- 701 Brazos St
- Austin, TX 78701
Let's Make Letters ... with Paper!
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 10:30AM - 12:00PM
In this workshop, we’ll use paper, pencil, and scissors to make folded paper structures that will serve as scaffolding for typographic manipulation.
- The ADW Hub
- 301 W. 2nd Street, Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78701
Intro to Customer Journey Mapping
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 11:00AM - 12:30PM
- This interactive workshop focuses on creating and understanding a customer's journey to drive better businesses.
- Virtual
Designing the Future for a Worker Driven Economy
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 12:30PM - 1:30PM
The future of work is decentralized and remote, but how do we design companies that support a worker-driven economy?
- Capitol Factory, Omni Downtown
- 701 Brazos Street
- Devvie Room
Architecture of Recognition
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 1:00PM - 2:00PM
- Why are monuments trophies? Why do we all need recognition? Why does design matter? You’ll discover how the need for recognition has and continues to drive centuries of human achievement.
- The ADW Hub
- 301 W. 2nd Street, Suite 100
- Austin, TX 78701
Design Makes Futures
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 1:00PM - 2:00PM
- What is the relationship between futures literacy and the design of services and systemic interventions? Adam will speak about how he coheres Design + Systems + Futures through the lens of Strategic Design.
- Virtual
Futures Fair
NOVEMBER 12, 2021 2:00PM - 5:00PM
- Don’t miss the ADW closing happy hour and career fair! Join this social event for a chance to meet hiring managers from growing design teams, get involved with new organizations, and build connections with future collaborators.
- The Riley Building
- 3rd Floor Rooftop
- 315 Lavaca St, Austin, TX 78701