The RCA at the London Design Festival 2021

Teams from across our research centres and taught programmes including the Textiles Circularity Centre (TCC), the Design Age Institute (DAI) and our MA Design Products are presenting work this year as part of the Brompton Design District. 

Here’s a round-up of the RCA events that are part of this year’s programme with details of how you can join them.

New Contracts: MA Design Products at the London Design Festival

Taking place from 18 to 26 September at Thurloe Place, New Contracts will bring together work from our MA Design Products graduates to consider how the past year has brought into question the stability of the systems we depend on across technology, social institutions and the state. Against this backdrop, they will consider the ways in which designers might draw up new contracts with the world around us.

These new contracts will address subjects ranging from the relationship we have with the materials and resources we use; to the application of disruptive technologies in reshaping the physical world. Our graduates will aim to reconsider the ways we relate to one another, as well as to non-human entities and to society as a whole. 

Taking place alongside this, ‘The New Extraordinary’, a studio project with our technology partner OPPO will invite us to reimagine technology for life beyond the new normal – embracing a humanistic approach to the massive changes taking place in our everyday lives and enabling us to flourish through design.

A series of live talks will accompany the exhibition. For more details visit our event page.

Textiles Circularity Centre Annual Showcase at London Design Festival

The Textiles Circularity Centre (TCC) is a four year research programme that aims to realise a future circular textiles economy for the UK SME apparel-fashion industry based on bio waste and shaped by people’s participation in materials circularity.

At the London Design Festival, the TCC will host its first public event to share its research, showcase its ambitions and broaden its network of partners and collaborators. The showcase will take place in the Dyson Gallery at our Battersea campus from 20 to 25 September.

Research Project Case Study, BBSRC, Dr Miriam Ribul

Now nine months into its first year, the event will articulate the vision and ambition of this new design research centre. With each research strand – Materials Circularity, Supply Chain, and Consumer Experience – exhibiting illustrations, films, technical demonstrations and material samples.

The TCC welcomes the opportunity to discuss new partnerships and collaborations with citizen groups, apparel brands, manufacturers and more. And as part of the showcase, a symposium on 23 September at RCA Kensington will present research and emerging insights from the centre’s work. More details can be found here.

Designing for Your Future Self: Designing a World for Everyone

To launch their new programme of events with the Design Museum, the Design Age Institute will host Designing a Word for Everyone on 23 September as part of the Design Museum’s programming for the London Design Festival.

Designing a Word for Everyone will bring together researchers, designers, innovators and policymakers to explore the latest research that could transform towns, cities and public spaces to better enable thriving intergenerational communities, particularly in a post-Covid society.

Find out more on the Design Museum website.