Wow this has been a busy couple of years. I have found myself involved with projects ranging from the design of food stalls to eyewear, birthing stools to street furniture and each project is ongoing. Aside from the educational talks and workshops with the design council and various Universities, and the consultancy work I have been doing with the likes of Sony, Bo Concept and Unilever I have also been pushing my REthinkthings innovative and eclectic product range for retail and the 5ml design group, building the brand identity, widening the reach and visiting various trade shows, home and abroad to offer interesting alternative and give other designers their big break!
In the last year alone we have exhibited at shows nationwide including Pulse London and also the highly regarded European show Maison et Objet! We plan to push this further in the new year. Meanwhile, I have been also getting into feature writing for a national design trade journal "Design Exchange" magazine and thought it was about time I posted some of this on my blog. The first article was an introduction and build up to the Liverpool design festival, explaining how it could be seen to compare with the London shows in advance of its launch. The second is a review of the show following its great success earlier this month - enjoy!
Sunday 28 November 2010
ARTICLE 1 for Design Exchange Magazine - pre show build up October 2010
Liverpool Design show
How will it go down?
Liverpool was described by Carl Jung as ‘the centre of the creative universe!’ - and why not? The quickest and most shallow bout of research into its rich history and achievement of its citizens would surely convince even the biggest of sceptics. Liverpool’s amazingly diverse cultural roots, going back centuries, ensure creativity in every sense of the word, lending Scousers a passion and pride that is worn on a very big sleeve and gives the city a sense of place much more Celtic than Anglo-Saxon. Never afraid to speak up and always looking to make a difference in the world, tell a Liverpudlian that he can’t and he will anyway. Scousers have long been celebrated as creative instigators and engaging characters with warmth and sensitivity, the list of famous names and achievements in all fields will surprise anyone who takes the time to have a look. This appears to be true of all fields apart from contemporary design, it would seem. So why are there so few well-known designers living and working here? Or are there?
This city has a rich array of highly innovative and visible design in it’s historic and internationally important architecture; it’s musical heritage is beyond doubt and continues to go on achieving; the art scene is as vibrant and important as ever with this years John Moores contemporary art competition about to begin and to run alongside the also globally important Liverpool Biennial. The Capital of Culture programme in 2008 brought a total additional income exceeding £130 million into the city and continues to be a catalyst for all things creative. Both business and communities take great pride in pulling together for the greater good of the people and a multitude of brand new social enterprises, commercial initiatives and other opportunities have emerged, encouraging new indigenous talent to step up and make its mark. One organisation however, has long been a rich resource to both the designers of the city and the wider North West region. Since 1992, and long before the wider public recognised the wealth of contemporary design available in the area, the Liverpool and Manchester Design Initiative has been encouraging creativity and instilling confidence in creative businesses hungry to make a difference with their design ideas and services. Making exceptional use of the opportunities that 2008 offered, the Design Initiative co-produced the inaugural Design Show Liverpool, a highly successful event that has, year on year, grown into a popular festival.
Taking place over 5 days in June 2008, Design Show Liverpool was a varied and lively showcase of fashion, accessories, interior products, furniture, jewellery and lighting. There were catwalk presentations, a designer led children’s workshop area, a ‘live’ glass design challenge and a craft industry conference. The event appealed to family audiences, serious design savvy consumers and industry contacts. It attracted an audience of 7000 visitors and had an impact on the local economy worth £0.5 million.
Its success has enabled Design Initiative to expand it into the ten-day Liverpool Design Festival. Now in its second year, the Festival celebrates and promotes quality design and encourages appreciation from the widest possible audience. Design Initiative is keen to mirror the success of Liverpool’s well-heeled art programmes by engaging the public with design ideas that they would find inspiring and intriguing, that would raise awareness at a local and national level about the high quality products being created and the processes that were being used by designers.
The Festival achieves this through a rich selection of citywide events ranging from design trails and school competitions to interactive seminars and talks, all taking place alongside a major design showcase and selling event. Last year it encouraged an audience of 8,500 to appreciate and participate in design led activities that generated a significant visitor spend within the local economy.
The range of opportunities available to emerging designers in the city can be exemplified in my own development over the past 3 years. Exhibiting my own REthinkthings product range at 2008’s Design Show Liverpool for the first time was one of three immediate opportunities that gave me a ‘leg up’ with my career. It was at this show that I was asked to apply for the BBC Starck “Design for Life” programme, which I later went on to win. There were a great many gifted and inspiring designers from the North West exhibiting alongside me, many of them remaining undiscovered until then.
Design Initiative proactively introduces as many of these designers as possible to talent seekers and buyers alike where young designers, industry and consumers can benefit from a city-centre Festival full of fresh and innovative design ideas that will emerge this year. The Design Show is now a signature event at the heart of the Festival and this November aims to showcase the best in contemporary design from Liverpool and the North West with other talent from the rest of the UK placing Liverpool firmly on the wider design map and complementing festivals in London, Cardiff, Bristol and the Design Event North East.
This year is set to be more exciting than ever and Design Show will present a selection of over 80 stimulating and original interior products, glass, ceramics, furniture, lighting, jewellery, textiles and fashion. It is a unique experience for everybody to be a part of and well worth a visit. The Festival will also include a programme of design seminars and talks, fringe events involving designers, makers and photographers, professional development workshops for fashions designers and a schools competition. In my perhaps slightly biased opinion it is far from true that the best designers are trained and working in London, this region bore and educated some of the country’s most celebrated design names such as Dick Powell, Ross Lovegrove and Wayne Hemmingway. The quality of work and debate highlighted within the Liverpool Design Festival is indicative of the region’s ability to nuture further design stars of the future. So, maybe it is not that the city’s design talent fails to match its other creative industries, it is more true that the original, vibrant, alive and surprising Liverpool design scene simply remains unexplored by those who could enjoy it the most, just like the city itself...
The Liverpool Design Festival will run from the 18th November to 27th November 2010. The Design Show at St Georges Hall is open to the public on the 20th and 21st November 2010
Tickets for the event cost £5 on the door and discounted advance tickets cost £4 on the festival website www.liverpooldesignfestival.com
How will it go down?
Liverpool was described by Carl Jung as ‘the centre of the creative universe!’ - and why not? The quickest and most shallow bout of research into its rich history and achievement of its citizens would surely convince even the biggest of sceptics. Liverpool’s amazingly diverse cultural roots, going back centuries, ensure creativity in every sense of the word, lending Scousers a passion and pride that is worn on a very big sleeve and gives the city a sense of place much more Celtic than Anglo-Saxon. Never afraid to speak up and always looking to make a difference in the world, tell a Liverpudlian that he can’t and he will anyway. Scousers have long been celebrated as creative instigators and engaging characters with warmth and sensitivity, the list of famous names and achievements in all fields will surprise anyone who takes the time to have a look. This appears to be true of all fields apart from contemporary design, it would seem. So why are there so few well-known designers living and working here? Or are there?
This city has a rich array of highly innovative and visible design in it’s historic and internationally important architecture; it’s musical heritage is beyond doubt and continues to go on achieving; the art scene is as vibrant and important as ever with this years John Moores contemporary art competition about to begin and to run alongside the also globally important Liverpool Biennial. The Capital of Culture programme in 2008 brought a total additional income exceeding £130 million into the city and continues to be a catalyst for all things creative. Both business and communities take great pride in pulling together for the greater good of the people and a multitude of brand new social enterprises, commercial initiatives and other opportunities have emerged, encouraging new indigenous talent to step up and make its mark. One organisation however, has long been a rich resource to both the designers of the city and the wider North West region. Since 1992, and long before the wider public recognised the wealth of contemporary design available in the area, the Liverpool and Manchester Design Initiative has been encouraging creativity and instilling confidence in creative businesses hungry to make a difference with their design ideas and services. Making exceptional use of the opportunities that 2008 offered, the Design Initiative co-produced the inaugural Design Show Liverpool, a highly successful event that has, year on year, grown into a popular festival.
Taking place over 5 days in June 2008, Design Show Liverpool was a varied and lively showcase of fashion, accessories, interior products, furniture, jewellery and lighting. There were catwalk presentations, a designer led children’s workshop area, a ‘live’ glass design challenge and a craft industry conference. The event appealed to family audiences, serious design savvy consumers and industry contacts. It attracted an audience of 7000 visitors and had an impact on the local economy worth £0.5 million.
Its success has enabled Design Initiative to expand it into the ten-day Liverpool Design Festival. Now in its second year, the Festival celebrates and promotes quality design and encourages appreciation from the widest possible audience. Design Initiative is keen to mirror the success of Liverpool’s well-heeled art programmes by engaging the public with design ideas that they would find inspiring and intriguing, that would raise awareness at a local and national level about the high quality products being created and the processes that were being used by designers.
The Festival achieves this through a rich selection of citywide events ranging from design trails and school competitions to interactive seminars and talks, all taking place alongside a major design showcase and selling event. Last year it encouraged an audience of 8,500 to appreciate and participate in design led activities that generated a significant visitor spend within the local economy.
The range of opportunities available to emerging designers in the city can be exemplified in my own development over the past 3 years. Exhibiting my own REthinkthings product range at 2008’s Design Show Liverpool for the first time was one of three immediate opportunities that gave me a ‘leg up’ with my career. It was at this show that I was asked to apply for the BBC Starck “Design for Life” programme, which I later went on to win. There were a great many gifted and inspiring designers from the North West exhibiting alongside me, many of them remaining undiscovered until then.
Design Initiative proactively introduces as many of these designers as possible to talent seekers and buyers alike where young designers, industry and consumers can benefit from a city-centre Festival full of fresh and innovative design ideas that will emerge this year. The Design Show is now a signature event at the heart of the Festival and this November aims to showcase the best in contemporary design from Liverpool and the North West with other talent from the rest of the UK placing Liverpool firmly on the wider design map and complementing festivals in London, Cardiff, Bristol and the Design Event North East.
This year is set to be more exciting than ever and Design Show will present a selection of over 80 stimulating and original interior products, glass, ceramics, furniture, lighting, jewellery, textiles and fashion. It is a unique experience for everybody to be a part of and well worth a visit. The Festival will also include a programme of design seminars and talks, fringe events involving designers, makers and photographers, professional development workshops for fashions designers and a schools competition. In my perhaps slightly biased opinion it is far from true that the best designers are trained and working in London, this region bore and educated some of the country’s most celebrated design names such as Dick Powell, Ross Lovegrove and Wayne Hemmingway. The quality of work and debate highlighted within the Liverpool Design Festival is indicative of the region’s ability to nuture further design stars of the future. So, maybe it is not that the city’s design talent fails to match its other creative industries, it is more true that the original, vibrant, alive and surprising Liverpool design scene simply remains unexplored by those who could enjoy it the most, just like the city itself...
The Liverpool Design Festival will run from the 18th November to 27th November 2010. The Design Show at St Georges Hall is open to the public on the 20th and 21st November 2010
Tickets for the event cost £5 on the door and discounted advance tickets cost £4 on the festival website www.liverpooldesignfestival.com
ARTICLE 2 for Design Exchange Magazine - Liverpool design show review December 2010
Liverpool Design Show
The New Kid on the Block
Liverpool Design Show, set in St George’s hall, doesn’t follow the shouty, wacky criteria that other design and trade shows often seem to adopt to attract a buying audience. Now in its second year following the inaugural show in 2008, it prefers instead to offer accessible items to the general public designed with both care and attention to detail. The brain child of Design Initiative, this show creates more opportunities for designers outside of the capital, whether they are already established or just graduated. Financially supported by Liverpool City Council and the National Lottery through Arts Council England, I think it’s safe to agree that it is money well spent, not only improving the northern design scene but also attracting more business activity and awareness from those outside of the traditional design field. The show also casts the net of creative opportunities much wider, placing Liverpool firmly on the ever elusive design map.
Although essentially a new design show, it certainly wasn’t short of enthusiasts, opening to trade and media on Friday 19th of November with over 50 stands exhibiting the work of nearly 100 individual designers. The show presented the creative offerings of exhibitors with a subtlety and warmth you don’t often find in similar exhibitions in the capital. Each stand was manned by the actual designers, ranging from international names such as Domingo Rodriguez, to new start ups and graduates, with each product on sale backed by the helpful and enthusiastic descriptions of its creator. There was also less of the usual marketing hype and more in terms of valuable content. Set in the historically important and sumptuous grade 1 listed surroundings of St Georges Hall, the venue itself provided both an awe inspiring and opulent canvas for the quality of the items on show.
Liverpool’s long established link with the fashion scene was well represented with well established names such as Kirsty Doyle retaining full involvement in both the curation and presentation of each of the pieces exhibited. There was a wide variety of garments on display that ranged from daring accessories, encompassing ambitious construction techniques, to flamboyant displays of the reused. A real favourite of mine included the deconstructed vintage accessories of Susan Comer, an established designer/maker who works instinctively and sensually with the quality vintage fabrics she personally sources, embellishing the reformed structures with prints and curios that give each piece its own individual identity. Other eyecatching items included pieces from the collections of eco fashion styling specialist Sara Li-Chouhan and textiles designer Christine Toh.
Aside from Fashion there was a broad display of jewellery exhibited by designers from every corner of the UK giving North West consumers at the show a myriad of highly polished, distinctive products that are not only alternatives to the high street in terms of aesthetics but also provide a sense of honour that can only be found when buying from the creators themselves. Particularly exciting was the work of Equilibrium, a collaboration between silversmith and furniture designer Tom Sutton and award winning international enamellist Ruth Ball. The merging of these two creative minds produced some striking and unique items. From silverware to seating: home storage to decorative display, their collective work shares common themes within the creative process but due to the different nature of their skills, unusual cross over elements occur and give new identities to signature items such as Tom’s ‘Sassy’ Chair recently launched at Pulse London and shown at Maison et Objet Paris. The version shown at Liverpool saw ‘Sassy’s’ jaw dropping industrial purity of polished steel legs teamed with an enamelled seat containing striking but beautiful images of various urban environments.
The show really helped to illustrate why it is a widely held belief that the burgeoning Liverpool Design scene is set to take off massively in the coming years and demonstrates equally that the catalyst will not be one of purely stylish flamboyance, consisting more so of the ambition, honesty and integrity of the work created. The items at this years’ show exhibited a permanence that beheld the designers’ desire to produce items that are not fickle and “fashion” led, opting instead to create that which can embody a timeless identity, and convincing reason to exist. The amount of raw and ‘undiscovered’ talent evident at the show was highly refreshing. This combined with more established talent like Sarah Thirlwell for example, stocked previously at the likes of Heals and Habitat and covered widely in national style magazines made for an exciting and eclectic mix of high quality design. Sarahs work consisted of a collection of traditionally turned vessels with a contemporary twist in resulting in 21st century products possessing a visual clarity and impact rarely seen in work of this type another favourite with stunning interior pieces was Industrial designer Michael Thomas who exhibited his sculptural table surfaces entitled “Decipher” following on from his critically acclaimed debut range “Elter” launched earlier this year at 100% Design London 2010.
A strong message at the show was that designer working independently, clearly work hard to take account of the current economic climate, and new collectives were present around the show. The 5ml Design Collective which has been operative just six months has taken the work of its established and emerging practitioners to shows in London and Paris prior to its Liverpool presence. Two of the 5ml directors Michael Cloke and Ilsa Parry are better known as the finalists on the Philippe Starck BBC tv series which aired last year, are on a mission to bridge the gap between great ideas and market supply and demand. They offer a unique cooperative business model where designers club together to consolidate market demand for new, futuristic, socially responsible, concept led wares before licensing opportunities can arise through its product realisation partner REthinkthings Ltd. 5ml best sellers included “Screw it” candelabra by Mike Cloke, “Hold my Trainer” by established conceptual garment and accessory designer Jo Cope, “Loop Slippers” by national textile brand Oromono and “Urban Garden” teasets by new graduate Sarah Bray. Another designer in the collective, Julia Jacob recently secured a large trade order through this collective and her work is set to be distributed Europe wide. At Liverpool her quirky “Bauhaus” birdfeeders could be found on the REthinkthings stand around the corner production ready and available to consumers along with other unique and meaningful home accessories which were swamped with enquiries. These included designs such as the “Pawly” pet lamp with it’s playful take on the ‘Elizabethan collars supplied to pets when they are unwell “Spyke” drinks glasses and “Kaspa” glow lamp. It seems that here in Liverpool more than anywhere there is real opportunity for aspiring creatives to become commercially successful due to the locals’ renowned spirit for “giving each other a leg up”.
Developing new and engaging products isn’t easy or cheap, but luckily for their clientele, the designers and makers remain aware that despite production costs it is important to offer value. The quality of the exhibitors work is outstanding yet the accompanying price tag is empathetic and receptive to market aspirations, this only further reflects their personal desire to succeed in the industry and the generous character of the social entrepreneurs up north. As the sale receipts stacked up, there was an overwhelming sense of pride at a job well done. The creatives had clearly been well prepared to astonish and delight its audience and they spoke with passion and animation about their work and the opportunities the show provided, freely revealing their philosophies and insights to inform the interested parties about the integrity of their designs. They believe in their work and are eager to convince others of the real worth of their brand. Trade was brisk at the stands, crowds formed hourly for the catwalk fashion shows and the informative “behind the scenes” design talks from the key exhibitors were completely filled by visitors keen to gain an insight into the creative process.
Tara Badami, Director of Design Initiative which organises the Festival said;
"This year, we built on our inaugural event and doubled the number of exhibitors on show. We offered a unique opportunity to meet designers, to learn how things are made and to buy exclusive creations. We also doubled our visitor numbers with nearly 3000 people joining us, to take part in workshops, talks, networking and shopping. I believe we really boosted the local design economy and have put people in touch with each other that will go on to create new products and new businesses."
Of the exhibitors who were kind enough to share a few words, they all seemed to view the Liverpool design scene the same, their perception one of calm yet determined evolution that is slowly but surely being recognised by industry specialists further afield, but also one which requires much more support from external agencies if it is to continue to make impact and afford the creators scope to innovate and the visitors the tools to learn about design, ecology and the creation of daily items, one exhibitor commented:
“The future is promising if the right kind of support and promotion is brought in. The festival has the potential to be an important international event staged within the north of the country, but this may only be achievable if we gain more backing”
From the quality of the work seen at this show, one could quite easily envisage Liverpool up there with the likes of Milan, Paris, Tokyo and certainly London. Let’s hope that Design here continues to gather momentum and becomes synonymous with other celebrated talent related industries in the city such as Music, Literature and Sport, with the wealth of local skill and enthusiasm much in evidence, there is huge investment opportunity here for those wishing to be a part of some of the most iconic design brands of the future.
For more information: www.liverpooldesignfestival.com/designshow
Words: Ilsa Parry
Phorography credit: Brian Roberts
The New Kid on the Block
Liverpool Design Show, set in St George’s hall, doesn’t follow the shouty, wacky criteria that other design and trade shows often seem to adopt to attract a buying audience. Now in its second year following the inaugural show in 2008, it prefers instead to offer accessible items to the general public designed with both care and attention to detail. The brain child of Design Initiative, this show creates more opportunities for designers outside of the capital, whether they are already established or just graduated. Financially supported by Liverpool City Council and the National Lottery through Arts Council England, I think it’s safe to agree that it is money well spent, not only improving the northern design scene but also attracting more business activity and awareness from those outside of the traditional design field. The show also casts the net of creative opportunities much wider, placing Liverpool firmly on the ever elusive design map.
Although essentially a new design show, it certainly wasn’t short of enthusiasts, opening to trade and media on Friday 19th of November with over 50 stands exhibiting the work of nearly 100 individual designers. The show presented the creative offerings of exhibitors with a subtlety and warmth you don’t often find in similar exhibitions in the capital. Each stand was manned by the actual designers, ranging from international names such as Domingo Rodriguez, to new start ups and graduates, with each product on sale backed by the helpful and enthusiastic descriptions of its creator. There was also less of the usual marketing hype and more in terms of valuable content. Set in the historically important and sumptuous grade 1 listed surroundings of St Georges Hall, the venue itself provided both an awe inspiring and opulent canvas for the quality of the items on show.
Liverpool’s long established link with the fashion scene was well represented with well established names such as Kirsty Doyle retaining full involvement in both the curation and presentation of each of the pieces exhibited. There was a wide variety of garments on display that ranged from daring accessories, encompassing ambitious construction techniques, to flamboyant displays of the reused. A real favourite of mine included the deconstructed vintage accessories of Susan Comer, an established designer/maker who works instinctively and sensually with the quality vintage fabrics she personally sources, embellishing the reformed structures with prints and curios that give each piece its own individual identity. Other eyecatching items included pieces from the collections of eco fashion styling specialist Sara Li-Chouhan and textiles designer Christine Toh.
Aside from Fashion there was a broad display of jewellery exhibited by designers from every corner of the UK giving North West consumers at the show a myriad of highly polished, distinctive products that are not only alternatives to the high street in terms of aesthetics but also provide a sense of honour that can only be found when buying from the creators themselves. Particularly exciting was the work of Equilibrium, a collaboration between silversmith and furniture designer Tom Sutton and award winning international enamellist Ruth Ball. The merging of these two creative minds produced some striking and unique items. From silverware to seating: home storage to decorative display, their collective work shares common themes within the creative process but due to the different nature of their skills, unusual cross over elements occur and give new identities to signature items such as Tom’s ‘Sassy’ Chair recently launched at Pulse London and shown at Maison et Objet Paris. The version shown at Liverpool saw ‘Sassy’s’ jaw dropping industrial purity of polished steel legs teamed with an enamelled seat containing striking but beautiful images of various urban environments.
The show really helped to illustrate why it is a widely held belief that the burgeoning Liverpool Design scene is set to take off massively in the coming years and demonstrates equally that the catalyst will not be one of purely stylish flamboyance, consisting more so of the ambition, honesty and integrity of the work created. The items at this years’ show exhibited a permanence that beheld the designers’ desire to produce items that are not fickle and “fashion” led, opting instead to create that which can embody a timeless identity, and convincing reason to exist. The amount of raw and ‘undiscovered’ talent evident at the show was highly refreshing. This combined with more established talent like Sarah Thirlwell for example, stocked previously at the likes of Heals and Habitat and covered widely in national style magazines made for an exciting and eclectic mix of high quality design. Sarahs work consisted of a collection of traditionally turned vessels with a contemporary twist in resulting in 21st century products possessing a visual clarity and impact rarely seen in work of this type another favourite with stunning interior pieces was Industrial designer Michael Thomas who exhibited his sculptural table surfaces entitled “Decipher” following on from his critically acclaimed debut range “Elter” launched earlier this year at 100% Design London 2010.
A strong message at the show was that designer working independently, clearly work hard to take account of the current economic climate, and new collectives were present around the show. The 5ml Design Collective which has been operative just six months has taken the work of its established and emerging practitioners to shows in London and Paris prior to its Liverpool presence. Two of the 5ml directors Michael Cloke and Ilsa Parry are better known as the finalists on the Philippe Starck BBC tv series which aired last year, are on a mission to bridge the gap between great ideas and market supply and demand. They offer a unique cooperative business model where designers club together to consolidate market demand for new, futuristic, socially responsible, concept led wares before licensing opportunities can arise through its product realisation partner REthinkthings Ltd. 5ml best sellers included “Screw it” candelabra by Mike Cloke, “Hold my Trainer” by established conceptual garment and accessory designer Jo Cope, “Loop Slippers” by national textile brand Oromono and “Urban Garden” teasets by new graduate Sarah Bray. Another designer in the collective, Julia Jacob recently secured a large trade order through this collective and her work is set to be distributed Europe wide. At Liverpool her quirky “Bauhaus” birdfeeders could be found on the REthinkthings stand around the corner production ready and available to consumers along with other unique and meaningful home accessories which were swamped with enquiries. These included designs such as the “Pawly” pet lamp with it’s playful take on the ‘Elizabethan collars supplied to pets when they are unwell “Spyke” drinks glasses and “Kaspa” glow lamp. It seems that here in Liverpool more than anywhere there is real opportunity for aspiring creatives to become commercially successful due to the locals’ renowned spirit for “giving each other a leg up”.
Developing new and engaging products isn’t easy or cheap, but luckily for their clientele, the designers and makers remain aware that despite production costs it is important to offer value. The quality of the exhibitors work is outstanding yet the accompanying price tag is empathetic and receptive to market aspirations, this only further reflects their personal desire to succeed in the industry and the generous character of the social entrepreneurs up north. As the sale receipts stacked up, there was an overwhelming sense of pride at a job well done. The creatives had clearly been well prepared to astonish and delight its audience and they spoke with passion and animation about their work and the opportunities the show provided, freely revealing their philosophies and insights to inform the interested parties about the integrity of their designs. They believe in their work and are eager to convince others of the real worth of their brand. Trade was brisk at the stands, crowds formed hourly for the catwalk fashion shows and the informative “behind the scenes” design talks from the key exhibitors were completely filled by visitors keen to gain an insight into the creative process.
Tara Badami, Director of Design Initiative which organises the Festival said;
"This year, we built on our inaugural event and doubled the number of exhibitors on show. We offered a unique opportunity to meet designers, to learn how things are made and to buy exclusive creations. We also doubled our visitor numbers with nearly 3000 people joining us, to take part in workshops, talks, networking and shopping. I believe we really boosted the local design economy and have put people in touch with each other that will go on to create new products and new businesses."
Of the exhibitors who were kind enough to share a few words, they all seemed to view the Liverpool design scene the same, their perception one of calm yet determined evolution that is slowly but surely being recognised by industry specialists further afield, but also one which requires much more support from external agencies if it is to continue to make impact and afford the creators scope to innovate and the visitors the tools to learn about design, ecology and the creation of daily items, one exhibitor commented:
“The future is promising if the right kind of support and promotion is brought in. The festival has the potential to be an important international event staged within the north of the country, but this may only be achievable if we gain more backing”
From the quality of the work seen at this show, one could quite easily envisage Liverpool up there with the likes of Milan, Paris, Tokyo and certainly London. Let’s hope that Design here continues to gather momentum and becomes synonymous with other celebrated talent related industries in the city such as Music, Literature and Sport, with the wealth of local skill and enthusiasm much in evidence, there is huge investment opportunity here for those wishing to be a part of some of the most iconic design brands of the future.
For more information: www.liverpooldesignfestival.com/designshow
Words: Ilsa Parry
Phorography credit: Brian Roberts
Sunday 18 July 2010
First post
My first post as ilsa parry and not rethinkthings, more than likely prompted by my day of reciept filing yesterday when I discovered that it is far more profitable for mr to have this separate identity full scale. It's been a crazy 9 months since the starck show ended, started with concept commission for mc donaldson lighting and bespoke furniture for Kirsty Doyle, this progressed onto ghe development of 8 new products for rethinkthings, consultancy work for Sony and Unilever, collaborations with Bo concept and lego, the reurn to my seating project for national museums Liverpool, a merchandise commission for Liverpool biennial and talks at universities and design associations across th country, needless to say I have had to drop down to just two days Lecturing.... Fast learning curve but loving the freedom and choice that comes with self employment!
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