2025 DesignTO look and feel

2025 marks DesignTO’s 15th anniversary. For Artistic Director Deborah Wang, the last 15 years have flown by. “Our 10th anniversary felt like a major milestone, but to persevere through the pandemic and the current economic climate has really shown how resilient and adaptive we can be,” says Deborah. The Festival’s endurance is also an important reminder of how deeply people value design and “powerfully demonstrates how meaningful our mission is to our community,” adds Executive Director Jeremy Vandermeij. The team is excited to celebrate the occasion, starting with a visual identity that embodies the celebratory energy of a milestone birthday. “It’s our invitation to come out and celebrate with us!” says Head of Marketing Michael Madjus.

This year, DesignTO worked again with longtime partner aftermodern.lab to create a fresh visual identity that embraces both future-forward innovation and reverence for tradition. Designer Hwa-jin Jun led the process, collaborating with Aaryan Pashine, Amir Khoshnevis, Aiyana Alzamora, and Alexandre Davilmar. The team emphasised DesignTO’s 15th birthday, incorporating celebratory imagery into the design. Drawing inspiration from fireworks lighting up the night sky and confetti cannons bursting with colourful ribbons, they eventually settled on a concept featuring “portals or magical wormholes that open to celebratory dimensions,” says Hwa-jin. The 15th anniversary design sparkles with splashes of vibrant colour, while generative illustrations blossom, bringing a sense of excitement.

The design process presented an enjoyable challenge for the team. With countless ways to visualise a birthday or celebration, maintaining intention became critical. Being clear about what they hoped to convey and how that would reflect in the final design ensured a cohesive aesthetic that aligns with the time and place, adds Hwa-jin.

DesignTO’s rich history and adaptive nature were also top of mind during the creative process. “We thought about nature, flowers blooming and coming alive, and quilting—fragments of stories sewn together,” says Aiyana. In the early planning stages, the team utilised word-webbing to visualise their initial ideas. “I love researching and connecting objects and tangible things to a look and feel. It may seem like they’re unrelated, but I find it helpful to look beyond the scope of what I do,” says Alexandre.

To incorporate the explosive energy of the theme, the team used computational processes. “We built cellular automata algorithms that would constantly form, grow, and change,” explain Amir and Aaryan. This live environment allowed them to generate dynamic, explosive forms that were used as illustrations.

The 2025 look departs from previous DesignTO designs with an electric purple and green-cyan palette, contrasting the pinks and blues of recent years. “The colours are some of my favourite yet,” says Hwa-jin. “With winter in full swing during the Festival, I appreciate the spring-like, rejuvenating vibes of the 2025 visuals.” Similarly, this year’s design features organic, blobby forms distinct from the geometric illustrations and grids of the past. “This year’s visuals are so organic and dynamic,” adds Hwa-jin. “I am looking forward to festival-goers’ reactions to the new look!” Two elements that remain central to DesignTO’s core visual identity are the font, which has been consistently used for years, and a bold use of DesignTO’s logo.

The 2025 design perfectly suits DesignTO’s vibrant and expansive identity, setting the stage for continued growth. “DesignTO has found a place within the design community locally, but also farther afield,” says Deborah. As the world evolves, she is excited to see how DesignTO adapts. “We’ve experienced so much,” adds Michael, “from the organic growth of the Festival to expanding its duration to changing our name and continuing to operate through a global pandemic.” There is no doubt DesignTO will continue to grow, with the team committed to “creating contextual programs that help shape a better world and becoming even more vital to our city, country, community, and the design sector,” says Jeremy. The 15th anniversary design reflects the Festival’s evolution, celebrates its growth, and looks ahead to an exciting future.

We can’t wait to celebrate with you at the 2025 DesignTO Festival this January! Explore the Festival Schedule now.


About DesignTO

DesignTO is a non-profit arts organization celebrating 15 years of designing a sustainable, just, and joyful future. From January 24-February 2, 2025, the DesignTO Festival features 100+ free events across Toronto, showcasing hundreds of artists and designers. Known as Canada’s largest annual design festival, DesignTO has welcomed over 1 million attendees, reached 2.6 billion people through media, supported 6,500+ creatives, and generated $120 million in tourism impact. “DesignTO isn’t just a festival; it’s an anti-loneliness machine,” co-founder Christina Zeidler remarked, underscoring the organization’s power to foster belonging and spark vital conversations about design’s role in shaping a better world.