The Design We Hide Away

Exhibition - 3daysofdesign - Copenhagen - 2026

Street scene with a sign on a wooden stand reading 'THE DESIGN IN THE HIDE.' Background shows historic building with a domed roof, people walking, and parked cars.

The Design We Hide Away brought together design, research and care around one central question: how can design create greater dignity for people whose lives are shaped by vulnerability?

The exhibition presented 15 products centred around the work of co-founder and designer Anker Bak.

Across six rooms, visitors moved through personal stories, curated reflections and objects connected to memory, transitions, rituals and grief.

Alongside the exhibition, daily symposiums gathered experts from architecture, healthcare, design, research and culture to discuss dignity as a stronger design principle.

The exhibition was praised for opening difficult taboos in a physical and tactile way, and for showing how design can create more dignified approaches to vulnerability, grief and care.

Politiken, one of Denmark’s leading newspapers, selected The Design We Hide Away as one of the five best experiences at 3daysofdesign 2026 in a recommendation by design editor Lars Hedebo.

An art gallery interior with white walls, wooden display shelves, chairs, and brown mats on the shiny floor.
Two people, a man with a beard and a woman with long dark hair, are smiling and engaging in a conversation in an art gallery. The wall behind them features a wooden shelf with decorative items and a framed photograph, while to the left there is a white artwork surrounded by a wooden frame and a wall with electrical outlets.
Two chairs with wooden frames and brown cushions in a light-colored room. The chairs are positioned in front of a plain white wall with two framed diagrams of furniture labeled 'Support stool' and 'Bathroom stool'.
View through a doorway showing a person with gray hair wearing an orange jacket, black pants, and sneakers, standing in front of two framed diagrams labeled 'Bathroom stool' and 'Support stool' on a white wall. To the left, a floor lamp with adjustable lights is visible.
Round wooden shelf with decorative items including a model lighthouse, a penguin figurine, a polar bear figurine, a black and white stone, a framed black and white photograph of a person, and a small sculpture of a polar bear. To the right of the shelf, there is a framed informational poster on a wall.
A person wearing a gray beanie and black clothing holding a wooden object in front of a white wall with large text that reads 'THE DESIGN WE LOVE'.
Colorful modern hanging lamps and decorative vases displayed on a white wall and floor, creating a minimalist aesthetic.
A woman with glasses speaking on a stage during an event titled 'The Design of the Future,' with a man sitting beside her and a large informational poster in the background.
A modern indoor space with a white wall, a wooden floor lamp, a wooden chair with metal legs, and a high ceiling. The floor is white and shiny, and there is a small opening on the wall to the right.
Two women with dark and reddish hair standing in an art gallery, viewing a wall display of pastel-colored handbags with wooden straps, hanging from the ceiling. The gallery has a white wall and lighting fixtures overhead.
Person viewing a display of wooden chairs in a furniture store.
A man with dark hair wearing a beige blazer, white pants, and red sneakers, leaning over a wooden and metal cart with wheels, in front of a sign that reads 'People's Lives Are The Starting Point of Design', in an indoor setting with light-colored tiled floor and neutral walls.
A woman with long brown hair, wearing a light blue coat and black pants, carrying a large metallic bag, seen from behind, standing in front of framed artwork on a white wall in an art gallery or museum.
A panel discussion or talk with three people, one man speaking and two women listening, in front of a white wall with text about design and an exhibition by Dignity Design.
An art exhibit features a wooden sign with text and a small trolley cart, with a framed schematic drawing on the wall behind.
An elderly man with glasses, a gray hat, and a beige jacket, using a cane, standing next to a woman with glasses, short hair, wearing a gray jacket and a red sweater, both smiling and walking through a doorway. There is a wooden box labeled 'EIGHT' and a walker in the foreground.