The Design Museum, originally located by the River Thames near Tower Bridge, reopened last November on High Street Kensington.
It was founded in 1989 by Sir Terence Conran (the famous designer and founder of Habitat and then the Conran Shop). The Design Museum worked with John Pawson’s team on the museum’s interior fit-out to turn it into a 21st century’s landmark. I was quite excited a few weeks ago to see the new creation of Sir Conran.
Today, DOYOUSPEAKLONDON invits you to explore the brand new Design Museum!

A great architecture

The move to Kensington gives the museum three times more space than in its previous location and allows the presence of a (Swarovski) Foundation Centre for Learning and an auditorium, in addition to the galleries which display either the permanent collection or the temporary exhibitions.
Even if I was not totally convinced by the Museum’s exterior building at first, I instantly appreciated the interior very much.
The big space is full of light, there are many graphic lines, the simple organisation of the museum makes it very convenient so that we really enjoy the visit.

The meaning of Design

It is quite hard to define properly what Design is. Is it related to aesthetics? efficiency? Is it a symbol of modernity? Everything at the same time? Is it aimed at the whole community or just at a few people? And what is “good design” ??
The top-floor gallery is dedicated to the permanent collection, called “Designer – Maker – User”.
This collection of many objects from the 20th and 21st centuries presents the development of modern design through these three interconnected roles: the designer who thinks about new projects according to the makers’ and users’ needs, the manufacturer who validates the manufacturing process of new designs according to technological progress, and the user who will interact with new products and adapt to or inspire new evolutions. Design is the result of these three viewpoints.

The impacts of Design

This exhibition was very interesting and I needed to look at it a second time to absorb it properly. It questions a lot the role of design in our lives, and its possible impact on our personality or emancipation, as this architect below stresses: the design can help the society to evolve, either on a social or economic level.

But it can also have bad influences on human kind, and one have to be alert not to turn a sign of progress into a destructive science.

Interactive and large exhibition

The exhibition gives a large overview of design disciplines, from architecture and engineering, to the digital world, fashion and graphics.
It also offers many interactive points, to better understand how the design is everywhere in our lives.
Take some time to visit this beautiful and reference museum! Last but not least: the permanent collection is accessible free of charge. And there are also many temporary exhibition, all worth of interest. Stay tuned!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this post and found inspiration here. If you are planning to visit The Design Museum soon, please share your experience and opinion on DOYOUSPEAKLONDON’s blog!

To go further:
An interview of Sir Terence Conran, speaking of the reopening of the Design Museum.
The museum’s website.