Across China, the start of October is synonymous with Golden Week, the public holiday commemorating the founding of the People's Republic. But since the launch of Beijing Design Week in 2011, it's also become an occasion to celebrate the country's burgeoning design scene. Running from Sept. 26 – Oct. 3, the fourth edition of BJDW will be as massive and diverse as Beijing itself, featuring hundreds of events ranging from straight-laced industry forums at China Millennium Monument to experimental sound art on city buses. New additions this year include a design film festival, an original brand and e-commerce platform promoting Chinese designers, and Plug-IN Stations, architect-designed kiosks to help visitors and locals engage. Here, a selection of highlights from the Design Hop program, which spans four areas of the capital.

Dashilar Alley

751 Int'l Design Festival at 751 D-Park

The elegant red-and-gray brick studios of the Caochangdi arts district, an area that was until recently farmland, will host one stop on Maya Rudolph and Wang Xiaowei's Loop Station, an experimental radio project activated by riding Beijing's public buses while streaming the audio pieces. The star designer Li Naihan will present Pop-Up Factory, a temporary experiment by A4 Studios to manufacture simple products for the local community with little to no distribution or storage costs. Slightly more decadent products will be found in “Neo-T'ang Dynasty Style,” by BiruO, a design collective “addicted to classicism and futurism” who will share their pop riffs on Tang aesthetics in the redesign of furniture, home décor, tableware and jewelry.

In the trendy district of Sanlitun, the inaugural BJDW Film Festival will offer six days of screenings, talks and workshops in a custom-made hall by Chiasmus Atelier. The French composer Jacopo Baboni will kick things off in a performance with the Beijing electronic artist Meng Qi, who is known for hacking vintage synths. Though there's no shortage of shopping in Taikoo Li, make sure to visit WUHAO Curio Box, a mobile incarnation of the beloved shop that closed last year, and pick up Yooxygen China's limited-edition face masks for protection against Beijing's infamous pollution, designed by Masha Ma, Sankuanz, Qiu Hao and Xander Zhou.