Introduction Cities around the world currently face a variety of challenges and opportunities as a result of globalization. The concept of city branding (and relatedly, place branding) has emerged as a way to establish a unique appeal and a distinct identity for cities in an increasingly competitive tourism market. Culture has been seen as the most powerful tool in this context, as a shortcut to global recognition and enhanced local appeal. Cultural events—from large-scale mega-events, like the Olympic Games, to small-scale arts festivals and exhibitions—can aid in the reinvention and regeneration of their host cities. Playing a critical role in this process is the “Artistic Director,” who functions often as manager, curator, marketer, and designer, performing a wide variety of tasks to meet an array of financial and social targets. The role of design in this process is crucial, yet often neglected. Cultural events often benefit from adopting the concepts of design management and employing designers in leadership roles and as creative decision-makers. However, a cultural event’s artistic director is just as likely to be a non-designer and to have no association with designers or design concepts. This article considers the consequences of cultural events management that neither entirely embraces nor totally neglects design, by considering theories of “silent design” and the role of the artistic director as a silent designer. Silent design can be understood as design work done by non-designers, or design tasks that are not recognized as examples of design. This article explores this notion in the process of management and creative decision-making in cultural events by focusing on a case study of the 2010 Gwangju Biennale in South Korea. Curated by a European artistic director, hired specifically for his ability to appeal to international sensibilities, the 2010 Gwangju Biennale proved a fascinating example of cultural policy and silent design in the service of city branding. Artistic Director Massimiliano Gioni is not a designer, but he understands design. He is sympathetic to design work, and he believes in collaboration. He performed management tasks and made creative decisions that can be understood in terms of design management’s conceptual categories; and further, he insisted on involving professional