Creativ'Up Inspiration Day
On 30 September 2026, design will take centre stage at Creativ’Up’s inspiration event
Creativ’Up, Vitrine pour un.e Designer and France Design Week are joining forces for an exceptional day dedicated to design and cross-border collaboration. See you at the Louvre-Lens Vallée on Wednesday 30 September 2026!
A day for designers and businesses
Whether you’re a practising designer, represent a business, are a student or simply passionate about contemporary creative issues — this day is for you!
On the programme: practical workshops during the day, an inspiring evening of discussion, and a unique opportunity to forge links with design professionals from France, Wallonia and Flanders.
On the programme
Practical workshops — 10.00 to 18.00
The day will focus on interactive and participatory workshops, led by HOWEST University of Applied Sciences. Two workshops are planned, in small groups of up to 15 participants, to encourage discussion and active participation.
The topics covered:
- Business models applied to design activities — led by Filip Daniëls, lecturer and researcher at HOWEST, University of Applied Sciences
- Design & Artificial Intelligence — led by Giliam Ganzevles, lecturer and researcher at HOWEST.
The workshops will be conducted in English — however, participants may ask questions or seek clarification in their native language.
Inspiration evening & networking — from 6.00 pm
The evening opens with a special moment: the official handover of the chairmanship of Vitrine pour un.e Designer, followed by the announcement of the call for applications for the Designers en Résidence programme aimed at young designers. The partners of the Creativ’Up project will also present the project’s upcoming opportunities.
The evening continues with:
A round-table discussion between designers and businesses, featuring three designer/business pairs from Wallonia, Flanders and France — to provide concrete examples of the added value of design for the business world.
A networking reception until 10.30 pm, to continue the discussions in a relaxed atmosphere with designers, businesses, schools and institutional partners.
A multilingual event open to everyone
To ensure that language is never a barrier, the workshops will be held in English, although participants are welcome to ask questions or seek clarification in their mother tongue. Interpreters will be on hand during the inspiration evening to translate the discussions into French and Dutch.
Practical
How do you get to the Louvre-Lens Vallée (France)?
We encourage sustainable travel and therefore recommend that you carpool or use public transport.
By train
Lens station is served by trains from Lille (around 30 mins) and Arras (20 mins). From Lens station, the Louvre-Lens Vallée is accessible on foot (around 15 minutes) or by shuttle bus.
- From Belgium, the connection is usually via Lille Flandres, which is the natural hub for reaching Lens:
- From Mons: allow around 2 hours to 2 hours 10 minutes by train, with a change at Lille Flandres.
- From Tournai: the fastest connection takes around 1 hour 25 minutes, with a change, usually via Lille Flandres.
From Kortrijk: allow approximately 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes with a change at Lille Flandres. The direct service from Kortrijk to Lille Flandres takes approximately 37 minutes, with up to 15 departures a day.
By car
The Louvre-Lens Vallée is located at 84 rue Paul Bert, 62300 Lens, near the A21 motorway. Free parking is available.
- From Belgium
- From Tournai, the journey takes around 55 minutes.
- From Bergen or Charleroi, the journey takes around 1 hour.
- From Kortrijk, the journey takes approximately 1 hour 30 minutes.
Are you coming by car?
Offer a lift via the carpooling platform or BlaBlaCar
If transport is a barrier, please do not hesitate to let us know (contact@creativup.eu)
Lise Van Tendeloo
Every year, Lise invites promising international designers to Kortrijk for exciting residency projects. She is responsible for the research and experimentation part of the organisation.
