Beazley Designs of the Year 2017

Interesting exhibition at the Design Museum showing award winning designs from 2017.

The show itself was an amazing design with large concrete looking structures made of recycled material with the signage slotting into holes in the blocks. It was themed loosely by the purpose of the designs. As ever there was so much to see, much of it fascinating.

Practical highlights included a wheelchair which could go up and downstairs, a real time, spoken word translator and interactive fabric from Google.

There was a political section including Wolfgang Tillman’s pro-Europe posters, the flag used at the Rio Olympics for refugees which was inspired by the colours of life jackets, and a pussy hat. I hadn’t realised that the knitting pattern for the hat was downloadable, free from the internet.

I loved a virtual reality trip round an Art Deco House and the designs for a new shopping centre in a Renaissance palazzo by the Rialto Bridge in Venice as I had stayed next to it when I was in the city a couple of years ago.

Slightly more silly things included a basinet to rock babies back to sleep, isn’t that what we used to call a cradle?

Closes on 18 February 2018

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