IDS Vancouver 2026
Deadline: 2026-9-27
# IDS Vancouver 2026 Returns This September: Eight Highlights to Watch
**The Interior Design Show (IDS) Vancouver returns to the Vancouver Convention Centre West from September 24–27, 2026. One of the Pacific Northwest’s leading design events, this year’s edition will bring together immersive installations, spatial experiments, new products and keynote conversations spanning architecture, interiors, landscape, materials and contemporary design.**
IDS Vancouver 2026 places particular emphasis on British Columbia’s design culture, including material innovation, ecological thinking and the ways design continues to reshape how we live, work and connect.
## 1. Experience the Central Bar by Synthesis Design Architecture
At the heart of the show, Vancouver-based **Synthesis Design Architecture** will present the 2026 Central Bar.
Constructed entirely from British Columbia wood, the installation is composed of a sequence of soaring 12-foot interlocking arches. The structure references the vertical rhythm of BC’s forests while showcasing the precision, adaptability and expressive potential of the province’s timber industry.
More than a bar or social hub, the Central Bar is conceived as a spatial anchor for IDS Vancouver 2026 — a place where visitors can pause, gather and experience the exhibition from its centre.
The project is developed in partnership with naturally:wood and Western Forest Products.
## 2. Walk Through Stark Architecture’s Entrance Feature
Vancouver-based **Stark Architecture** returns to IDS Vancouver to design this year’s Entrance Feature.
Following the studio’s 2024 Central Bar installation, *The Perpetua Bar*, its new 2026 installation, **Reflection**, will define the first spatial experience visitors encounter when entering the show.
Through light, material, surface and proportion, the installation explores ideas of perception and reflection. Rather than serving simply as a backdrop, *Reflection* is designed as a moment of orientation — shaping how visitors enter, pause and transition into the broader exhibition.
## 3. Discover a New Landscape Installation by Andrew van Egmond
British Columbia-based landscape architect **Andrew van Egmond**, founder of Designing Landscape, will debut a new feature installation exploring the relationship between design and natural systems.
Working with Broadwell Metal and Solstice Landscape, the project draws inspiration from the complex relationships found within natural plant communities. Texture, movement and seasonality will unfold throughout the installation, creating a landscape that evolves rather than follows a rigid formal order.
The project also considers biodiversity, climate resilience and healthier living environments, demonstrating how landscape architecture can work with natural processes rather than against them.
## 4. Explore the Future Workplace in *How We Work*
Following its debut, **How We Work** returns in 2026 to examine the changing relationship between design, culture and human behaviour.
Moving beyond conventional workplace design, the exhibition invites participating teams to imagine how spaces can respond to new expectations around flexibility, community, technology and well-being.
This year’s participating studios include:
* Kasian
* 126 Design Studio in partnership with Loop Phone Booths
Together, the installations will transform part of the exhibition floor into a living laboratory for emerging workplace ideas, exploring how environments influence the ways people connect, create, focus and thrive.
## 5. Hear from Global Design Leaders on the Keynote Stage
The IDS Vancouver 2026 keynote program will bring together voices from architecture, interiors, hospitality, business and culture.
Highlights include:
**Michael Sørensen — Henning Larsen**
As Global Market Director at Henning Larsen, Michael Sørensen leads strategic market development and client engagement across the Danish architecture firm’s international portfolio.
**Tommy Smythe in Conversation with Kelly Deck**
Designer and television personality Tommy Smythe will join Vancouver interior designer Kelly Deck for a conversation about creativity, design practice and the evolving role of design in contemporary life.
**Mandy Farmer — Accent Inns Inc.**
Chair of Hotels Canada and CEO of Accent Inns Inc., Mandy Farmer will bring a hospitality and business perspective to the program.
**May Globus — *The Craft***
Journalist and podcast host May Globus will record live episodes of *The Craft* during the show, featuring conversations with creatives, entrepreneurs and cultural leaders.
**James Nexw'Kalus-Xwalacktun Harry**
Sḵwx̱wú7mesh artist James Harry will discuss a practice that connects ancestral knowledge with contemporary design and advocates for Indigenous leadership within the built environment.
## 6. Discover Tomorrow’s Designers at Studio North
**Studio North** continues to provide a platform for independent designers and limited-edition work.
The exhibition will feature custom pieces and collections from Canadian and international talent across furniture, lighting, ceramics, textiles and surface design.
Presented in a gallery-like setting, Studio North places an emphasis on craftsmanship, originality, material exploration and collectible contemporary design.
For visitors interested in discovering emerging practices and independent makers, it remains one of the show’s key destinations.
## 7. See Ideas Before They Hit the Market at Prototype
**Prototype** offers a look at products and ideas that have not yet reached full production.
Experimental furniture, lighting and home products will be presented as works in development, giving visitors an opportunity to see how designers are testing new forms, materials and approaches before they reach the market.
For emerging designers, Prototype provides a platform to move concepts out of the studio and into public view. For industry visitors, it offers an early look at ideas that may influence the next generation of residential design.
## 8. Explore Emerging Brands in The District
**The District** is IDS Vancouver’s curated marketplace for independent makers and design-forward brands.
Furniture, lighting, home accessories, textiles and décor will be brought together in one area, giving visitors an opportunity not only to discover new products but also to meet the designers and founders behind them.
Craftsmanship, innovation and sustainability remain central to the experience, making The District a useful destination for discovering smaller brands and new voices in contemporary design.
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## IDS Vancouver 2026
**Dates**
September 24–27, 2026
**Location**
Vancouver Convention Centre West
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
**IDS Party**
Thursday, September 24
7:00 PM–10:00 PM
**Trade Day**
Friday, September 25
9:00 AM–6:00 PM
**Trade & Public Day**
Saturday, September 26
10:00 AM–5:00 PM
**Public Day**
Sunday, September 27
10:00 AM–5:00 PM
IDS Vancouver 2026 will bring architecture, interiors, landscape, materials, product design and cultural conversations together under one roof. Beyond new products, this year’s program highlights regional material innovation, ecological approaches to landscape, the changing workplace and the next generation of independent design.
**Archicasting will be reporting from IDS Vancouver 2026, with additional coverage of selected installations, brands and designers during the show.**