APDIG Visits Design Museum

Monday 5th July 2010

On Monday the APDIG took a group of Parliamentarians down to Shad Thames for an introduction to the Design Museum, conducted in person by the Museum's director, Deyan Sudjic. 

Norman Foster's Masdar development for Abu Dhabi, a scale model of which features in the Sustainable Futures exhibition

The evening was an opportunity for Parliamentarians to learn first hand about the work and future plans of the UK’s premier Design Museum, whose goal is to help establish London as a world design capital and raise the profile of UK design. 

Deyan's introduction was followed by a short response from David Kester, Chief Executive of the Design Council, and Barry Sheerman, founding member of the APDIG.

The visitors also had the chance to view the exhibitions currently on show, minus the crowds. Sustainable Futures is an exhibition of propositions for achieving a more sustainable world - some on the scale of entire cities, others at the level of improving packaging and consumer products, still others projecting future scenarios and imagining new forms of energy generation. One particularly interesting exhibit is the periodic table of elements threatened with extinction; with so much focus on oil reserves, perhaps not many people know that in four years we are likely to run out of Lithium.

Urban Africa is one architect's (David Adjaye's) incredible photographic documentary of African capital cities. And Brit Insurance Designs of the Year is a collection of some of the most innovative, interesting and forward-looking work from designers and inventors on an international scale.

Many thanks to the Design Museum for opening its doors after hours for the APDIG, and hosting such an interesting and enjoyable evening. Thanks also to the Design Council for its support for this event.

For more information about the Design Museum, visit the website here