Open Design Dialogue (ODD)

Details

Orchard Design District is guided by the concept of Open Design Dialogue (ODD) – the belief that meaningful design begins with open conversations. Through exhibitions, installations, workshops, and brand collaborations, ODD invites fresh perspectives, creative exchange, and open-ended dialogue.

Exploring SDW 2025’s theme of Nation by Design, everyone, especially youth, is invited to shape and examine the narratives of our future.

Dialogue isn’t just talk – it’s about connection: between a person and an object, a space, a time, an idea, or even oneself. At ODD, dialogue is the design tool. Visitors can expect key activations, exhibitions, and satellite events that pique curiosity, spark ideas, and open new ways of imagining what a nation can be – together.

Follow ODD’s Instagram account, @odd____odd, for the full programme line-up.

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Key Activations

Low Res: Design Pavilion
Venue: *SCAPE – Playspace

More than a gathering space, the Design Pavilion is a platform to explore the role of design – how the built environment shapes, and is shaped by, human activity. Through a series of talks, showcases, and performances, it invites dialogue on how design influences the way we live, interact, and connect.

Conceptualised by Studio Grain in collaboration with spatial designer Nous Nous, botanical designer This Humid House, kinetic technologist Insert Coin, and built with upcycled plastics by BYO Living, the Pavilion will serve as the home ground of ODD.

New Orchard (Exhibition)
Venue: *SCAPE – L1 Commune

Five diverse designers and design collectives – Emeline Ong, Habitat Collective, Mark De Winne & Rauf Zulkiflee Soh, Studio Gin&G, and Syafiq Halid – reimagine and redefine the Orchard–Somerset district’s spaces and features, and envision a more soulful, sustainable, and nuanced New Orchard. Exhibition design by O Design Office, curated by Studio Grain.

Hoop Bench (Urban Furniture)
Venue: *SCAPE – Open Plaza

Visitors are invited to pause, reflect, and engage in more intimate, introspective activities within the public space, through a series of thoughtfully designed urban furniture. The installation, a collaboration with Studio Juju, forms part of a broader effort to reimagine the area as a more inclusive, creative and people-centric environment. It also supports communal activities – complementing an outdoor film screening that encourages people to experience design in a relaxed, open-air setting.

Design In Situ (Designers x Brands Collaboration)
Venue: ION Orchard, Liat Towers, Ngee Ann City, Plaza Singapura and Tanglin Mall

This programme pairs brands and designers to co-create imaginative and meaningful in-store activations. Visitors can explore retail spaces where brands’ products or environments are reinterpreted by designers in innovative, experimental ways, demonstrating how design-led collaborations can drive creativity, sustainability, and business innovation.

Follow the Design In Situ Lifestyle Trail from 11 to 21 Sep, and collect customised token puzzle pieces unique to each participating brand to build your own design sculpture. Snap a photo of your creation, tag the district’s Instagram, and stand a chance to win in a lucky draw.

– ION Orchard: Aesop, In Good Company, and The 1872 Clippers Tea Co.
– Ngee Ann City: Beyond The Vines
– Liat Towers: Castlery
– Tanglin Mall: Moleskine
– Plaza Singapura: MUJI

OFFSITE Creators Market
Venue: *SCAPE – Design Pavilion

ODD’s very own OFFSITE Creators Market brings together independent makers, designers, and artists showcasing their unique creations, alongside F&B, workshops, and live music performances at the Design Pavilion in *SCAPE.

On 19 and 20 September, ODD editions of CDC credits (Creative Dialogue Coins) will be distributed by ODD Design Ambassadors stationed along Orchard Road. Follow ODD on Instagram for more information.

Organiser

Studio Grain

Studio Grain is a creative consultancy working closely with forward-looking brands that seek to add value to the world, through strategy, design, and storytelling. Led by Creative Director Jerry Goh, a President*s Design Award recipient, the studio specialises in brand building and content curation.

Co-organiser

*SCAPE

*SCAPE Co., Ltd. is a non-profit organisation, a registered charity, and an Institution of a Public Character that engages and nurtures youth by developing their talents. The organisation offers a holistic network of programmes, communities, and facilities to support youth in their pursuit of interests and passion areas. Together with partners, *SCAPE inspires and empowers youth to discover boundless possibilities.

Contact

Name: Studio Grain
Email Address: [email protected]