Thinking Aberdeen
The Six Cities Design Festival in Aberdeen celebrated the creative thinking that inspired design innovations throughout the city's many industries.
From the utilitarian equipment of the fishing and oil industries to intellectual discourse about form and function in the city's many learning centres, Aberdeen has a strong history of considering how design can impact on the world.
The Festival in Aberdeen discovered how professionals use design solutions, and are inspired by the creative thinking that sparks innovative design.
Festival Highlights in Aberdeen
Aberdeen Art Gallery hosted its first contemporary design exhibition; Extreme North - Twelve Scenes From the Outer Edge of Europe. This exhibition, by Norsk Form and the Norwegian Design Council, featured innovative products and architecture designed for optimum functionality in the harsh climates of the far north. Combined with a series of participatory workshops, Extreme North gracefully conveyed how much more there is to good design than strong visual appeal.
In a shop on Upperkirkgate, designers Steff Norwood and George Gray created The Shop. A beautiful bespoke interior that highlighted the importance of retail design without the distraction of actually selling anything.
Adaptation at Peacock Visual Arts examined the impact of design in our daily lives and the ‘redesign' of public spaces by the people who use them. A group of international contemporary artists had work on display both in and out of the gallery in this exhibition.
Other Aberdeen highlights included The Monkey Puzzle Pavilion, a temporary structure at Castlegate; The Pavilion acted as the Festival Information point, housing a steady stream of activity. School groups filled the Pavilion to remodel their city with plasticine at Claystation, passers-by popped in to catch screenings and design-enthusiasts filled the house for talks.
Our Designer Double Bill talk featuring Charles Holland from the London-based architects, FAT (Fashion, Architecture and Taste), and Alan Pert, director of Glasgow architecture studio, NORD, discussed their own practice and most important projects before a Q&A session with the audience. You can watch it online here.
The Design into Business programme in Aberdeen featured Josephine Green, Director of Trends and Strategy at Philips Design, who gave a fascinating talk about the future of design. Other events included a talk discussing successful design collaboration, Design to Sell series, Design Your Business and Creative PR for Designers. Also a series of workshops specifically centred on helping designers to become market-ready, and a Designer's Helpdesk, providing information for designers about support agencies.
The Learning programme presented practical workshops inspired by Extreme North, as well as a lecture by Carole Collet from the Textile Futures Research Group.
