Sustainability, ethics, and subtraction drive the new era of design. The historic Grando warehouse in Portorož unifies architecture and product design into a single great ecosystem
The historic Grando warehouse in Portorož, Slovenia, played host to the BIG SEE Festival 2026. The event confirms its status as the leading international platform for architecture and product design in South-East Europe. For the first time, the organization merged its two historic branches—BIG Architecture and BIG Design—into a single, cohesive ecosystem. The two-day event drew over 3,000 professionals, including architects, designers, investors, and policymakers from around the globe. The gathering provided a crucial forum for addressing the ethical responsibilities and systemic changes currently facing the creative industries.
An Urgent Question: “Too Much? What is Just Enough?”
The festival moved beyond temporary aesthetic trends to tackle the challenges of an era overloaded with images, products, and construction. Participants and speakers engaged with a central theme: today’s challenge is not about our capacity to build, but rather the utility and profound purpose of every new project. The BIG SEE Festival 2026 championed the concepts of moderation and restraint. Far from limiting creativity, this approach is viewed as a precise professional responsibility to bring order and dignity to a complex world.
Critical Debates, Cinema, and Architecture’s Biggest Names
The main conference stimulated professional dialogue across five thematic sections: Architecture and Relevance, Urban Humanity, The Great Reduction, BIG and Measure in Architecture. The curators paired established masters with emerging designers. The program featured globally prominent figures from internationally renowned firms and foundations, including:
- Mecanoo
- Norman Foster Foundation
- Renzo Piano Building Workshop
- Groupwork
Additionally, dedicated talks for academics and design journalists analyzed the evolution of education and art criticism. The festival also carved out a space for architectural cinema, featuring the premiere of the documentary K67 by Filip Filković and screenings of Brutalism by Miloš Jaković and Hossein Fani.
Ph Jakob Cehner
BIG SEE Festival 2026 and the Grand Prix Winners
The exhibition sector of the BIG SEE Festival 2026 hosted more than 100 selected exhibitors, offering a high-quality alternative to mass commercial trade fairs. The parallel exhibition mapped out the most innovative materials and systems for sustainable construction, while also celebrating Italian Design Day 2026, which focused on urban regeneration.
The gala evening honored projects that prioritize substance over monumental scale. The international jury awarded the prestigious Grand Prix titles, recognizing excellence across three macro-categories.
The BIG SEE Festival 2026 has solidified its role as a regional catalyst. The event leaves the design community with a clear vision and tangible tools to build in a more responsible, relevant, and lasting way.
