The opening ceremony of the 18th Nantong Home Textile Design Week takes place on Sept 19 in Tongzhou district, Nantong. [Photo provided to en.nantong.gov.cn]

The 18th Nantong Home Textile Design Week opened on Sept 19 in Chuanjiang town, Tongzhou district, Nantong, Jiangsu province, bringing together industry practitioners to explore practical ways to advance original design in the home textile industry.

The event features selected works from the WZD International Pattern Design Competition and traditional crafts such as kesi (silk tapestry) and Nantong blue calico that are integrated into modern home textile products.

The event also emphasizes the use of digital technologies that lessen repetitive tasks for designers and allow them to focus more on creative development.

Nantong home textiles feature comic elements. [Photo provided to en.nantong.gov.cn]

Several new initiatives were launched during the event, including the Art Center of the Social Aesthetic Education School of Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts and a talent development base for digital commerce in the home textile sector. A program supporting emerging brands and an online one-person company (OPC) community for independent designers were also launched.

Representatives from universities, inheritors of intangible cultural heritage, exhibitors, and buyers took turns sharing their views, providing firsthand industry insights on talent development, the revitalization of traditional crafts, and real market demand.

A wide range of Nantong home textile products. [Photo provided to en.nantong.gov.cn]

The design week is scheduled to run until Sept 22, featuring themed exhibitions, industry forums, and an opening party, all with the aim at creating opportunities for designers, manufacturers, and buyers to exchange ideas and transform creative concepts into catalysts for industrial growth.