Interactive installations and immersive experiences come alive throughout both the interior and exterior of The Mart during NeoCon. Attendees can engage with cutting-edge designs, take part in hands-on demonstrations, and discover the latest innovations in technology and design. Explore this year’s featured activations below, with additional dynamic experiences to be unveiled soon.
South Facade, The Mart
LOVE LANGUAGE
Art is our first language, an elemental expression that predates the written word. It begins in personal resonance and expands outward, connecting colleagues, friends, neighbors, cities, and the world beyond. Across distances and differences, we communicate through gestures, forms, and shared curiosity, guided always by purpose. Why? To seek growth, affirmation, and a sense of belonging. To be human is to create with intention and to design with love. At its essence, this is our Love Language.
Runs nightly starting June 4, 9-9:30pm
HDR Firm Bio:
We design to elevate the human spirit and shape environments that ignite possibility, connection, and renewal. By uniting multidisciplinary expertise with research, technology, and bold design thinking, we deliver projects that redefine what architecture can achieve for people, communities, and the planet. Guided by a regenerative ethos, we design places that restore ecological systems, advance human well‑being, and deliver enduring, measurable impact.
Floor 11, Suite 1120
DesignScene by SANDOW is back for another NeoCon! INTERIOR DESIGN celebrates by bringing their favorite brands and emerging designers together to create immersive, educational, and meaningful experiences. Attendees are able to pop into the space for a sneak peek of INTERIOR DESIGN's Show Daily being produced LIVE and get a glimpse of any number of industry roundtables with top industry leaders and specifying designers attending their first NeoCon discussing the future of design.
Floor 11, Suite 1120
The METROPOLIS Sustainability Lab at NeoCon is an immersive exhibit and dynamic hub designed to inspire and empower attendees to drive positive change for people and the planet. This vibrant space showcases the latest innovations, pioneering initiatives, and essential resources to support and elevate sustainable design practices.
Floor 11, Suite 1110
The NeoCon Podcast Lounge is back for NeoCon 2026 on the 11th floor! A lineup of SURROUND Podcast Network shows will be recorded for a live audience throughout the three days of NeoCon. Stop by to meet the hosts, enjoy exciting giveaways, and take part in exclusive hospitality. Sponsored by: Unika Vaev
Floor 1, Suite 121
Sixtysix magazine’s Paved States and Haworth's DesignLab return to NeoCon for an edited vision of what living looks like next. Jointly curated by Patricia Urquiola and Chris Force, the exhibition expands its footprint to take over THE MART lobby, bringing together a sharp cross section of emerging designers working outside usual industry constraints.
The focus is the home as a continuous space where living and working merge, shaped by new rituals, materials, and culture. Anchored by the Paved States concept store and Haworth DesignLab gallery, expect a beautifully curious mix of objects, books and magazines, alongside bold, experimental programming and activations where curation itself becomes the point of view.
The Mart
NeoCon attendees can enjoy the outdoors along the Chicago River and connect with colleagues over lunch or drinks from Marshall’s Landing at The Mart's River Park, presented by Haworth.
Floor 1, Suite 137
Open during NeoCon through September 2026, THE SHOWHOUSE @ THE MART brings together a world-class selection of luxury kitchen, bath and fine furnishings. Illustration by Kristine Steiner.
