Design Event invites designers, collectives, curators and organisations to submit project proposals that relate to the theme of Politics and Play. We are looking for new innovative exhibitions, tours, events and installations across all design disciplines as well as existing projects which are relevant to the curatorial theme.

DEADLINE FOR SUBIMISSIONS IS 26 JANUARY 2009.

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The Brief

Throughout the 2009 programme Design Event want to explore the theme of Politics and Play.

POLITICS

With news of a credit crunch and looming recession all around us, we thought it timely to explore the theme of politics and design as part of Design Event 09.

Design has been integral to political activity for many years, from iconic graphic design used in propaganda materials, to design providing solutions to improve education and standards of living such as the One Laptop Per Child, designed by Yves Béhar which won the Design Museum’s design of the year for 2008. Politics and design have been linked in smaller ways too, such as the white wristbands designed for the Make Poverty History campaign.

Globalisation has mean that designers now need to be much more culturally aware at an international level as well as more competitive; and with regards to the environment, sustainability is being taken on board by more and more designers as a core value. Our towns and cities have long since been a visual representation of politics at a local level, and for many years architecture has been used as a show of power and wealth. These stories can be seen in the size and styles of buildings, road layouts and use (or not) of public space.

Conversely, politics has provided inspiration for a number of designers including  camoflage’s move from the front line to fashion, Paul Scott’s ceramics depicting the outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease and the bombing of Baghdad and Dominic Wilcox’s War Bowl, made from melting toy soldiers.

PLAY

2009 is also our 5th birthday so we‘ve also included play into our theme, Design inspired by play generally results in making us smile – prime examples being  Gam plus Fratesi’s antropomorfo chairs inspired by children’s drawings and the Campana Brothers’ Banquete chair made from cuddly toys. Anglepoise made us smile by producing a giant olight for their 70th birthday , and Greg Lynn also had people smiling with his installation at the Venice Architecture Biennale made from recycled Children’s toys.

Play has also infiltrated the work environment and been linked to innovation for some time. More companies are looking at creative ways of working and developing  creative workspaces to encourage creativity and innovation,

These are just some of the things we’ve been thinking about of late, and are looking for projects to form part of Design Event 09 to communicate these thoughts and the idea of politics and play in it’s widest sense.

Download the call documents here.