Arts Council England
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Design Museum’s new home opens doors to the next generation.
Last Friday, London’s Design Museum opened the doors to its new home – and the next generation of designers with its Designers in Residence scheme.
The repurposed former Commonwealth Institute on Kensington High Street is 10,000 square meters – triple the size of its previous site in Shad Thames, south-east London.
The Arts Council supported the move and the £83million of investment, with £3million of National Lottery money awarded through our large scale capital programme.
Among the new developments, including two major temporary gallery spaces, a free permanent collection display, an auditorium and library, are brand new design studios and learning facilities.
This is brilliant news for the #ACEsupported Designers in Residence programme.
Designers in Residence
This is the Design Museum’s annual bursary programme for four early stage designers. Each designer responds to a brief, and works with the Museum curator and external mentors on their response, culminating in an exhibition.
The Museum’s new home will provide exciting new aspects to the programme. The designers will be able to work on site for the first time, in the new studios, with the inspiration and expertise of the Museum and its staff all around them.
The studios will also be accessible to the public at certain times, so people can learn more and get involved in activities.
Alix Bizet, one of the four designers, said:
“The Designers in Residence programme has supported my exploration of human hair in an extraordinary way. It's given me unique support to meet up with schools in different parts of London and explore the hair of their communities, and access to a community of makers across London and the UK.
“The new Design Museum is a platform where the idea of a museum becomes more flexible. Visitors can engage in conversations with the designers directly, and tactility (rare in a museum) is encouraged. It’s a unique location where barriers between the outside world and the strict world of institutions disappear.”
Joyce Wilson, London Area Director, Arts Council England, said: “It’s excellent to see this ambitious relocation finally realised. Increased scale will enable the museum to become more enterprising and resilient, and secure a future for the next generation of creative talent.
“It will connect with a wider audience, and help them access and understand this valuable part of our nation’s culture.”
The Designers in Residence programme is a core part of the museum's activity, and exists to provide emerging designers, across any discipline, with time and space away from their regular environment to reflect, research and consider new ways of developing their practice.
It is directly supported by the Arts Council, with £170,000 a year going to this and other learning activities, as part of our National Portfolio.
Leading change
We also recently awarded the Design Museum £150,000 to work with Textile Designer Ameena M McConnell as part of our Change Makers fund.
The bursary will help Ameena realise her professional leadership growth and, with the Museum, make a change in the leadership of our cultural sector. Find out more about the fund.
