Case Study

Pervasive Media Studio, Bristol

The Pervasive Media Studio has been a pioneering force in multidisciplinary design since it set up in 2008 behind Bristol's Watershed Arts Centre, to explore how creatives could use the exciting (and then fairly cutting edge) world of digital and interactive media. Its remit and population have expanded so that there are now some 120 assorted artists, musicians, photographers, dancers, coders and academics who have a claim (part or full-time) to the 40 desks in the space. Rent is free in return for a policy of 'professional interruptibility' which means residents are happy to give time advising and collaborating with their fellows. The current intake includes a scientist who has developed a miniature 'pocket space craft' (for just £50,000 these can be sent into orbit); a 'neurogastronomist' working to discover the influence of sight and smell on taste; and street game designer Rosie Poebright, who creates tactile, analogue-looking interactive 'toys' that have even been deployed in National Trust properties, to bring moments of history to life thanks to hidden speakers and GPS tracking devices.

The collaborative pool has widened since the launch of REACT, a programme that brings together practitioners and academics from the universities of West of England, Bristol, Bath, Exeter and Cardiff, but other academics are increasingly welcomed into the collaborative fold.

Photo: Watershed / Photographer: Sayed Shamil Ahmed

A recent workshop, Being There (shown above), saw robotics experts from Bristol, Oxford, Bath and Exeter Universities, and psychologists from Exeter and Bath Universities observing the public reactions when primitive prototype robots were released into the Watershed's public lobby in a participatory experiment.

The Studio's 'cohort' programme - where design talent is brought into the fold for intensive coaching and collaboration - is about to expand from this year's intake of three to 10 promising designers, many of whom will not have come from a traditional design background.

Pervasive Media Studio resident Rosie Poebright's 'Georgian Listening Devices' were trialled at Sydney Gardens in Bath, offering up interactive experiences with Georgian 'ghosts'.

Case Study
Design Council spark

In November 2014, the Design Council launched Design Council Spark, a bid to find the next great wave of British inventors. Announced in the atmospheric new Information Age gallery at the Science Museum, Spark is an innovation and accelerator scheme, open to any UK inventor whatever their background who has come up with a potentially life-enhancing product design. A call for potential candidates received a phenomenal response - 350 hopefuls with their projects - and by mid-2015, 30 were shortlisted and invited to a weekend mentoring workshop with experts. Then eight finalists received £15,000 in investment and were put on a 20-week programme of mentoring and support, with access to a network of peers and experts selected by the Design Council.

They were facilitated through a programme of manufacturing, prototyping, user testing, business development, investment, finance and retail. The three finalists - each awarded a further £50,000 investment pot - were announced this September: design duo Avril O'Neil and John Nussey for Ding, a doorbell connected to your phone that informs you when visitors are waiting; Trace Ward at Ergon Equine for Saddle 2.0, the first new saddle design in 2,000 years, offering greater musculo-skeletal comfort for the horse; and Acya Dundar for the Pop Umbrella - a final solution to all the infuriating collapsible umbrellas that can barely last one outing in the wind. Commenting on its successful first year, John Mathers, Design Council chief executive, said: 'Design Council is enormously proud of the finalists and winners, each of whom has a useful, well-considered and highly commercial product that you'll undoubtedly be able to buy soon.'

The second Spark programme is now underway, with application details on the Design Council's website for all budding inventors.

Case Study
New Designers in Business

New Designers, a two-part exhibition in London for emerging designers, has helped to launch the careers of more than 100,000 graduates since it began 30 years ago. Staged at the Business Design Centre in Islington, north London, it focuses on textiles, fashion, accessories, ceramics, glass and precious metalwork in the first three-day event, and furniture and product design (including spatial and industrial design), graphic design, illustration and theatre design in the second part. The UK's leading art and design colleges book space at the event, and bring either a cherry-picked selection of their latest talent, or the whole year group. Some pay up front for their stands, others crowdfund or charge students to have a presence there.

A standalone segment in the exhibition, One Year On, showcases around 50 designers who have demonstrated exceptional talent and entrepreneurial flair during their first year. It is curated by Gemma Fabbri, a designer in her own right and also the founder of online design shop FAO.com, which regularly sells the work of budding designers. The event is supported with Arts Thread, an online portal promoting the featured designers' work over a year following the exhibition, giving the talent a better chance of securing freelance commissions or full-time employment. Exposure at the event also puts graduates in the path of its key sponsors, such as John Lewis, Pentland (a major fashion brand owner), Sanderson, Virgin Atlantic and Tigerprint, several of which give out cash awards and recruit at the show.