Discovering community-led design in China

Read about our latest work in China on the British Council blog.

Many sectors suffer from ‘jargon-overload’. The international development sector and emerging maker community are no different. Words can help us to be more precise, but they can also become a barrier to honest communication; too technical, too full of their own importance and arguably can discrimate against the poor.

Participatory design is not a new approach, but the buzz around these terms (co-, community-led, impact-driven, humanitarian, human-centred…) is hot. Should we agree on their definitions? Can they be overused? Do they mean the same thing in different places and to different groups?

“In November, we set out as explorers. What does ‘community-led’ mean in China? We wanted to challenge our own assumptions, discover best practice and hear from makers. We connected with communities and designers in Beijing, Henan, Hong Kong, Hunan and Fujian, of Chinese, Taiwanese, English, Irish and French origin.”

Read the entire article.

Who are museums created with?

"I'm not sure if that's right..." He expanded,

“the things I suggested - I’m not sure if they are the right design answers for those problems.”

The gentleman had participated in a workshop with AzuKo at Tate Britain as part of the museum's Soapbox series, "for people near or beyond the age of 60 to meet up and share views on life and art through topical discussion and debate".

The Public Programmes team at Tate hired us to design and facilitate the July edition of Soapbox - Who are museums created with? (Though we were quickly informed by one of the participants that museums are where dead elephants and historical artefacts are housed and galleries are where art is presented. A common mistake, she reassured us.)

The man was unsure about the recommendations he had made about the signage design for one of the galleries. He suggested that the intention of the room should be communicated better and that the signage be designed in a way that was more welcoming and informative.

He was critical, he had a point of view and he was confident about the types of design changes that could make the space more user friendly. Nevertheless, he was uncertain about his voice as a designer.

We asked the group to explore and observe the galleries and speak with other visitors about the current experience at Tate Britain. We prompted them to challenge how participatory the spaces currently are, and why that was relevant.

When we spoke with the group about their observations and their conversations it was immediately apparent that the discussion was a voicing of design perspectives on how the museum could be more welcoming, more useful and how it could support a better experience.

We were inspired by the diversity of ideas they put forward, despite only having half an hour to complete their task. They touched on:

• Particular aspects of the galleries that aren't culturally relevant for foreign visitors

• Importance of communication and signage in the space and the ineffectiveness of some signage in the galleries and the Common Ground community garden. The size, messages, colours and coordination were all discussed.

• Learning styles that should be considered which would affect the nature of the experience e.g. extroverted and introverted personalities will experience the space differently

• Insights about the user experience - some staff have the opportunity to participate in the experience of the museum unlike roles such as Security, spatial curation could be better and certain rules in the space didn't work for their age group e.g. no sitting on the temporary exhibition which has several spaces to seemingly sit

• Seasonality and planting in the Common Ground garden, and how it could have been more collaboratively created

• Children offer their own perspective (a mindset and from the floor) on the art in the museum; a relevant perspective

(Photo: N. Ardaiz)

The man's comment after the workshop is telling. It highlights to us the hierarchy inherent in the world of design and, more importantly, the nature of education in our society. Of course he was correct - he was also incorrect - there is no right design for the museum which would meet the needs of all users at Tate Britain.

What was most impressive about the session, was that despite any doubt the group had about their age, their lack of training as designers or the subjectivity of the 'right' design, in just two hours the group united around a task and over-delivered an assembly of relevant design voices that Tate couldn't ignore.

Learn more about our public workshops and events.

Author: N. Ardaiz

Who cares?

On International Women's Day, 8 March, our Founder Jo Ashbridge and Trustee Katie Crepeau were invited to speak about their journeys into social impact design.

The event, as part of the annual lecture series 'Who Cares?' by Unit 6 at the Cass, explores humanitarian architecture. The series examines and questions what it is to work in these environments, the motives for doing so and the reality of not for profit practice. 

International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity.

“Gender equality in architecture is not just a headline, it is a boardroom issue that requires urgent attention and action plans. It is within the profession and our individual powers to make a change. ”

— Jennifer Sale / Design Manager, Plan A Consultants

The architecture and construction industry is notoriously male dominated. Statistics from the annual AR 'Women in Architecture' survey are sobering:

• More than half of women have experienced discrimination, indirect or direct, during the past year, including sexism, bullying and/or sexual harassment

• There is a gender pay gap with men earning more at all stages of their architectural career

• Many believe having dependents can hamper if not halt career progression due to the uncompromising work schedule and culture

• 60% believe the industry has not fully accepted the authority of the female architect

• There is a huge disparity of gender diversity in senior management positions.

We need more female role models.

To #PressforProgress, Jo and Katie shared their work and experiences in the industry. Two female speakers + an all female panel. They hope to inspire the next generation of women in architecture to break through that glass ceiling as well as present their non-traditional leadership roles.

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

“Being a woman in a very male dominant industry poses lots of challenges. Jo Ashbridge and Katie Crepeau have proven it’s not impossible and have inspired me to continue upon my journey to becoming an Architect. The humanitarian work presented by Jo has motivated me to step outside of my comfort zone and explore architecture beyond its verticality. Similarly, Katie’s consultancy services to help those seeking to take the first step towards creating their own design space is a vital source to those not familiar to the business aspect of the design world.

The evening was filled with incredibly eye opening and inspiring conversations. Thank you to both AzuKo and Design Affects for a fantastic evening!”

— Jessica / attendee

We'd love to hear your thoughts. Get in touch.