What's on?
West Ward Works was home to the printing and binding of DC Thomson’s best-loved comic book annuals for over sixty years. Beezer, Twinkle, Black Bob, Sparky and Topper were all produced here before the factory closed its doors in 2010. The factory has since been emptied of its machinery. In 2016, the cavernous spaces of the old building were transformed into the home of the first ever Dundee Design Festival.
The theme for this year’s festival is Factory Floor through which we celebrate and explore makers, machines, and the future of manufacturing.
We’ve drawn inspiration from Dundee’s illustrious yet complex industrial heritage and the extraordinary festival venue itself to describe what making means now. Across three enormous galleries, we present a programme of design-inspired exhibitions, talks, film screenings, live performances and family events.
You can expect to experience an assembly line of creative activity at West Ward Works. Try out new techniques at one of our many drop-in and ticketed workshops, including plaster casting, ceramic mould making, and carving jewellery.
This year’s festival is all about making, so we invite you to don a smock, roll up your sleeves and try something new.