Image: **Audo** presents MONUMENTS at this year’s 3daysofdesign.

This June, Copenhagen didn’t just host a design event—it became one. Across three sun-drenched days, the city itself transformed into a living, breathing celebration of creativity. And at the heart of it all was a quiet but resonant call to action: Keep It Real.

Representing Istorja, we wandered through the city not as passive spectators, but as participants in a kind of design pilgrimage. 3 Days of Design is unlike traditional fairs—there are no vast halls or overwhelming crowds. Instead, there are courtyards, cafés, centuries-old buildings, and canal-side spaces, all quietly humming with intention.

This year’s theme—KEEP IT REAL—echoed deeply with our own philosophy. More than a tagline, it was an invitation: to be authentic, to strip back the noise, to celebrate the soul of objects and spaces, and to reconnect with the people and stories behind them. From tactile surfaces that bore the trace of the maker’s hand, to collaborative installations that blurred the lines between fashion, food, and furniture, the event reminded us that honesty is a form of elegance.

The festival stretched across eight design districts, but unlike its global counterparts, it never felt exhausting. There’s a kind of slow beauty to 3 Days of Design—one you experience not just in the exhibits, but in how you move through them. By foot, by bike, or even by boat, you experience the city’s design ethos in rhythm with its architecture, its cuisine, its people.

Salone del Mobile may be industry-focused, but 3 Days of Design is intimate and inclusive. It’s less about product launches and more about sensory connection. You might find yourself drinking a herbaceous, green-hued KEEP IT REAL cocktail by Aeris at one of the festival’s i-Points, or eavesdropping on a conversation about AI and design at the AI & I Symposium, where artists, technologists, and thinkers explored what it means to be human in the age of machines.

Evenings unfolded gently—with happy hours that welcomed everyone, regardless of badge or affiliation. There were no velvet ropes, no exclusive guest lists. Just a shared desire to connect—over design, over drinks, over ideas that matter.

And perhaps that’s the enduring charm of this festival: its radical sincerity. Whether in the stories told by independent makers, the reflections shared by designers like Longfei Tōsei Wang and Nathalie Schwer, or the soft-spoken collaborations between brands, there was a collective refusal to perform. Instead, there was presence. There was care.

As we return back to our House, we carry with us more than visual inspiration. We carry the stillness of a city that dares to design at human scale. We carry new connections and quiet reflections. And we carry the reminder that authenticity isn’t a trend—it’s a practice.

In Copenhagen, for 72 thoughtful hours, we remembered how to keep it real.