The_Science_of_Survival_is_shortlisted_for_a_Museums_and_HeritageAward_for_Excellence

The Science of Survival project has been shortlisted for one of this year’s Museums & Heritage Awards for Excellence in the Temporary or Touring Exhibition category.

The Awards celebrate the wealth of expertise and innovation within museums, galleries and heritage visitor attractions. There were a record number of entries this year, so we appreciate our nomination even more.

The Awards Ceremony is taking place in London, on Wednesday 13th May.

ico_is_nominated_for_two_Design_Week_Awards

The Design Week Awards is one of the industry’s most prestigious annual design prizes. ico have been nominated for two awards in the categories of ‘Temporary Exhibition Design’ and ‘Hospitality Environments’.

The nominated projects are The Science of Survival by ico Design and Enigma and Snog Pure Frozen Yogurt by ico Design and Cinimod Studio.

The awards ceremony will be held at the Hilton on Park Lane on 3rd March.

www.cinimodstudio.com
www.enigmacs.com
www.ifancyasnog.com

FX_Magazine_Designers_from_three_disciplines_have_collaborated_on_The_Science_Of_Survival

Designers from three disciplines have collaborated on The Science Of Survival, the latest peripatetic exhibition to emerge from the Science Museum.

The Science of ... Survival

The Science of Survival is the latest in a series of exhibitions put together by the partnership of the Science Museum, London, and the investment fund FlemingMedia. The idea behind the collaboration was to bring popular science to a global audience, to educate and to amuse simultaneously. The exhibition, which has just been shortlisted for the 2008 FX Awards, is on display at the Science Museum until 2 November, and then joins The Science of Aliens and The Science of Spying on tour.

By 2010, The Science of... plans to have 10 exhibitions touring in 20 cities worldwide. The Science of Survival is the result of a collaboration between a team of designers and agencies. The lead design consultancy was Enigma Creative Solutions, which was responsible for the concept, planning and 3D elements of the show.

The Ico Design Consultancy was appointed to complete the 2D design, branding and graphics, and also a number of the interactive displays. KateWilkins was the lighting designer, brought in by Enigma.

Save-the-planet topics are rapidly becoming part of our everyday conversation, and this latest exhibition has been devised to examine how the lifestyle choices that we make today will impact on our lives in the year 2050. How, where and what will we be drinking, eating, driving and living in?

With children in mind, the whole exhibition has the feel of an arcade; it has black backgrounds and dark spaces interspersed with bright primary colours, which exude a neon feel. Each zone is easily distinguishable through the colour-coordinated signage and lighting, surrounding each display unit. Each display has two sections: the first looks at present-day innovations and products that aim to extend the life-span of our planet through existing practices and technologies the second is a futuristic space, exploring
lifestyle choices and their implications.

At the start of the journey, visitors are introduced to four friendly, animated cartoon characters, Eco, Tek, Dug and Buz, who act as virtual guides from the year 2050. The seven colour-coded theme zones – Briefing, Drinking, Eating, Enjoying,Moving, Building, and Future City – relate to aspects of our lives. In each zone, visitors are invited to take stock of their lifestyle, before making decisions about how they would choose to live in the future. With the help of the four characters, they can review the pros and cons of these choices. There are no clear answers, though. If you appeal to Eco then you offend Buz, and so on, because each character has its separate but equally important agenda.

The interactive touch screens in this exhibition allow you to ‘design your own’ house, vehicle or shopping list, each of which is commented on by one or more of the guides. This offers valuable feedback on your selections. Tracked throughout with an Ico-inspired RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) card, similar to Transport for London’s Oyster card, each decision you make during your journey is delivered at the final stage, in the Future City. Here, a huge screen illustrates how you chose to live with your neighbours in 2050.

The exhibition content was researched in consultation with UK scientists, including Dr TimWheeler of the Walker Institute for Climate Change Research at the University of Reading, and Jacob Tompkins, a hydrogeologist and director of Waterwise.

The content director Stephen Foulger explains: ‘The Science of... tackles the big questions in science and technology and there are no bigger questions at the moment than how we cope with changing climate and the availability of resources like oil and water.We know everyone is bombarded by messages about living more sustainably, but these can be confusing and contradictory, so we developed The Science of Survival to enable people to explore and understand some of the options for sustainable living.’

At no point in the exhibition are visitors judged on their choices; they are only informed of the pros and cons, and of how their decisions may affect other areas. However, it is clear that climate change will affect our lives, and that we need to all work together to find a solution. So, by what criteria can we measure the success of the exhibition? Kids go wild with the interactive stuff, that’s for sure. The subject matter may be confusing with no right or wrong answer, but overall it is part of a brilliant and entertaining show, which has an educational appeal that encourages a sense of responsibility in every visitor, worldwide.

I left the show with the feeling that I was a better-educated person, with ideas about how ‘my planet needs me’.

The Science of ... Design

Enigma was appointed to supply the 3D design, including the original concept, planning and exhibition design, as well as the implementation of the display. Enigma had worked on a number of touring shows, including Alice Through the Looking Glass and Great Apes, organised in collaboration with At-Bristol, and now on display at the Sensation Science Centre in Dundee. As lead designer, Enigma was involved in the drawing together of all the other agencies and specialist contractors in the project. It awarded the 2D branding and graphic design to the Ico Design Consultancy, which went on to win the contract for the interactive design as well.

Specialising in digital media and property design, Ico has recently finished two interactive installations for the permanent collection of the Wellcome Collection on biometrics and ‘face capture’, and is currently working on a state-of-the-art office block, the Heron Tower, London.

Working with other design practices from alternative perspectives is becoming increasingly common, and is often seen to have positive effects. Both Enigma and Ico have collaborated with others before; and both feel there is much to be gained from the process. Tom Prendergast of Enigma commented on the pleasure of collaborating with such a passionate team, led by Craig Hatto, exhibition director of The Science of...; while Steve Lloyd of Ico felt that by working with other designers, they achieved better results on the basis that the ‘sum of the whole is better than that of its parts’.

The science of designing a touring exhibition differs enormously from that of a static show. In a static show there is freedom to design to the available space, according to the specifications of the ceiling height and corners, niches or windows.With a travelling exhibition, the displays have to be flexible enough to fit into a variety of spaces, so many of the elements are restricted. The height, size and shape of each display stand is not only limited but must be adjustable to fit any space. The lights need to be attached or integral to the structure rather than suspended from ceilings or walls. The materials need to be durable, not just due to the wear and tear from children in this particular show, but to allow for the attrition that accompanies five years of globetrotting.

Of particular relevance for an exhibition relating to the sustainability of our planet was the ability to transport the show in the most environmentally efficient manner. Taking
all this into consideration, Enigma created a lightweight, hardwearing pod-based modular design, and used two giant inflatable displays. This combination reduced the number of trucks needed for transportation by half, thus decreasing carbon emissions.

In another concession to sustainability, Ico chose to use vinyl wherever possible in the signage to allow for the necessary language changes, so minimising the amount of waste.

The Science of ... Lighting

The use of lighting designers on projects is becoming an increasingly popular means of maximising colour and impact of any project. This project was no different, with the lighting design integral to its success, particularly due to the touring aspect of the exhibition. Lighting designer Kate Wilkins was brought in to the team by Enigma due to her previous exhibition experience.

The travelling element of the show limited the choice of equipment greatly, because it needed to be durable, easy to dismantle and maintain, and low-energy with the right colour pigments for specific zones, all on a restrictive budget – a tough challenge.

To meet the criteria, the pod lighting consists of Luxeon LEDs, while the strong neon colours are provided by fluorescents. The collaborative process has also been praised by Kate, who found working in such a huge team ‘tricky at times, but mostly fun’.

The project is sponsored by BASF, HSBC and Nissan.

www.scienceof.com
www.enigmacs.com
www.icodesign.co.uk
www.katewilkins.com
www.sciencemuseum.org.uk