Lon Done
Welcome to the big city!
Or rather my recap on design student exploration of said big city. What big city you might ask, well the city of London. The red buses, old and new architecture filled city, full of design related events and spaces. The whole trip was planned by one of my lecturers as part of the Product Design programme for the second year. The trip was especially interesting since it wasn’t planned with the usual London attractions in mind but rather the design museums and activities, which as a first time London visitor I have to admit was a brilliant option.
The London design scene is really big and small nods towards it could have been seen all around the city. From the fashion on the streets, to the always lively and busy markets, museums and street by street changing architecture. London is a space filled with creatives whether local or visiting and it has so much to offer for inspiration as well. You can just stop by a local bakery in the morning and start people watching, and by 10 you will be able to fill your sketchbook out with all of the rushing past silhouettes with material worth being titled as London everyday fashion of the month.
London however is also tiring when you come in with the aim to absorb as much inspiration and its culture as possible. Being on your feet for the whole day while visiting museums and markets makes for a perfect blend for sensory overload. So taking a break from absorption of the city was a crucial element of the whole trip. Just coming back after a long day, sitting on a hostel bed, sketching down what you saw today and having a chat with friends until a later time in the night when the party going side of the group gets back. Or going on your own in the early hours of the day to a nearby park to, yes, you guessed it, do some people watching and sketching the city in the morning light. A break from the constant tourist rush to just absorb yourself in the fleeting moment, it makes you feel like you are a part of the bigger picture that’s the 9 million population city.
An interesting and surely worth recommending element of the trip was the possibility to visit design related spaces, because what designer would you be if you haven't ventured into at least one of the places, especially when you know that the admission is free or at least quite cheap. So let me tell you about two of those spaces curated to showcase product designs. The Design museum is a must have and it even has some spaces to sit in if you want to launch yourself into creative self expression (they even had a prompts brochure to help you with kick starting the designs). It doesn’t take too long to walk through space so it might be a great opportunity to discover some of the products put in the main exhibition space and think about how they weave into our daily life. The three main themes of the exhibition: designer, maker, user also bring in an additional layer of context to ponder upon. Also, fun fact, the design wall at the entrance of the space was actually curated not by the museum itself but by the visitors and those interested in the design. All of the products featured on the “wall of fame” were put there because of someone’s suggestion. It was so nice to see that even as the end users we can also contribute to the shaping of the design world and decide on which design is actually worth the spot in the contemporary space.
The V&A museum in London is a completely different story, with multiple exhibition themes it has something for everyone. But to actually explore it properly and take time within each of the spaces to properly inhale the showcased products and relics one would really need to spend a whole day there, if not two. The product design exhibition space is not a huge one but if contemporary design is the main thing that rocks your boat, then you shouldn’t be getting scared of experiencing information overload.
Other than that, the whole trip was also a study week, and so my output from that experience can be seen in the form of a digital scrapbook you can explore HERE or a London vlog.
Also designer problem of the week: when the exhibition spaces are so interesting that you start getting late to your next points on the programme.
Love and joy,
The one and only Maria K.