Following the success of its first two editions, the Design Talk Festival returned from 4 to 6 June as part of Genova Design Week, further establishing itself as a leading international platform for dialogue on design culture.
Promoted by the Genoa Chamber of Commerce, the Municipality of Genoa and the Liguria Region, the festival has consolidated its role as a space for exchange between architecture, design, institutions and the public, bringing together global perspectives and local specificities.
Curated by Simona Finessi and Alfonso Femia, the 2026 programme unfolded through three events dedicated to the relationship between culture, infrastructure and urban transformation, hosted across Palazzo Tursi, the Liguria Regional Headquarters and the Sala delle Grida of the former Stock Exchange.
Cities: Culture as a Generator of Urban Processes
The first event explored the role of culture as an intangible infrastructure capable of shaping urban development and enhancing the quality of public space.
With Francesca Coppola, Sandy Attia and Matteo Scagnol (MoDus Architects), Paolo Verri e Mattia Palazzi.
Surf and Turf: Infrastructure, Landscape and Global Visions
The second day, hosted in the Sala Trasparenza of the Liguria Region, featured the international practice One Works.
Leonardo Cavalli and Francesca Pintus presented projects of international scale, ranging from the Doha Metro to the ports of Genoa and Savona, from the Marina di Ventimiglia to the expansion of Genoa Airport, demonstrating how infrastructure can become an active tool in shaping the contemporary landscape.
Concluding the 2026 edition, the festival hosted a lecture by Odile Decq as part of the Road to Cersaie programme, reaffirming the Design Talk Festival’s vocation to create opportunities for dialogue between international experiences and reflections on the future of cities and design culture.
