V&A to host eastern design exhibition

Before the late 1980s the Chinese had no word for "design" or "designer", instead settling for "decorative art" and "artist worker". But now the nation is pouring out graphic design, fashion and architecture at a baffling rate, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London is staging the first exhibition in the UK to document and capture this creative explosion.

The exhibition will open in spring next year, and will gather together more than 200 objects from around 100 designers, nearly all of which have never been seen in Britain before.

It will focus on three eastern cities where design is flourishing most: Shanghai, Shenzhen and Beijing.

The Beijing section of the show will offer an unparalleled opportunity to see plans for the city's transformation ahead of the Olympic games.

Shenzhen, near Hong Kong, according to co-curator Zhang Hongxing, is the birthplace of graphic design for China. The exhibition will look at a relatively established generation of graphic designers who have been working since the 1990s, but also look at a younger group of designers, whose work embraces digital media, animation, street culture, designs for toys, even skateboards.

In Shanghai the focus switched to chic, luxury work in fashion, furniture, ceramics, even cosmetics.

According to co-curator Lauren Parker: "There is truly a sense of design frenzy in China right now." The Guardian is media sponsor for the exhibition.