Joan Ribó reaffirms his commitment to Valencian design and receives the official book of the bid

The mayor of Valencia, Joan Ribó, this morning visited La Base at Valencia Marina to express his support for Valencia’s bid to become World Design Capital, in the first official act of his second term of office.

Ribó held a meeting with the president of the Associació València Capital Mundial del Disseny, Marisa Gallén, and the strategic co-director of the project, Xavi Calvo, who presented him with the book of the bid.

A digital version of this illustrated document, which presents the merits of Valencian design, was submitted in March to the World Design Organization (WDO), based in Canada, and it has led to the shortlisting of Valencia, together with the Indian city of Bengaluru, in the selection process. The book has been designed by graphic designer Ibán Ramón and printed by La Imprenta.

Ribó has qualified the shortlisting of Valencia as “magnificent news” and has highlighted the fact that it has been the only European capital to pass the selection process. “We must celebrate this. It represents progress for the city and for the knowledge economy. It is especially important that we have many companies that are concerned about innovation and design.” For Ribó, “design is a key element in which Valencia has been prominent for a long time. It is a city with a design vocation at all levels.”

Ribó participated in a visit to the furniture and graphic design exhibition hosted by La Base of the Marina, organised on the occasion of Placemaking Week Europe, a meeting linked to urban development and the sustainable furnishing of public spaces, held last weekend. La Base was, in fact, equipped with the furniture of some of the firms promoting the bid – Actiu, Andreu World, Capdell, Equipo DRT, Gandiablasco, POINT and Torrecid – and presented an exhibition of institutional graphic posters by professional Valencian designers promoted in recent years by the City Council and the Regional Government of Valencia.

The World Design Organization (WDO), a non-governmental organisation that selects the World Design Capital every two years, is based in Quebec (Canada) and the qualifying jury that has selected our city has emphasised the “mature status of Valencian design”.

In July the WDO will organise an official visit to Valencia to collect information about the city and the project, which will be taken into account in the final assessment by the Selection Committee, whose definitive decision regarding the winning city will be announced in October.

The promoting companies that support this project and the representatives of which were present at the event today, are Actiu, Andreu World, Capdell, Equipo DRT, GandiaBlasco, AIDIMME, Istobal, La Imprenta, Point, Suavinex, Grupo Torrecid, Trèbol, Vondom and Cervezas Turia.