Hella Jongerius Named Permanent Design Director of the Vitra Design Museum
Hella Jongerius was appointed permanent Design Director of the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein — the role she had held on an interim basis since 2024 — with a mandate to expand the museum's focus on design's role in ecological and social transition.
Vitra Design Museum·February 6, 2026
Hella Jongerius was confirmed as permanent Design Director of the Vitra Design Museum following an 18-month interim appointment. Her programme has significantly expanded the museum's focus on design's role in ecological transition — including a major 2025 exhibition on non-extractive material futures and an ongoing research programme with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation on circular design.
Museum president Rolf Fehlbaum said Jongerius 'brings a unique combination of design practice, theoretical rigour, and institutional vision that is transforming the museum's intellectual standing.' Her first permanent commission — a new permanent collection display strategy opening in autumn 2026 — foregrounds designers working at the intersection of craft, ecology, and social equity.
Content credit: Vitra Design Museum