The Open Debate formed part of the Design Museum’s programming during the period between closing at Shad Thames in 2016 and opening in Kensington in November 2016. One of two talks which I organised for the Design Museum at Supertalks, London Design Fair (formerly Tent) linked to the museum’s Designers in Residence theme of ‘Open’. Alongside the talks, the museum installed a display celebrating 10 years of the residency programme and its alumni. The installation also announced the theme for 2016 (‘Open’) and highlighted the new spaces and opportunities available to residents at the new museum.

Chaired by Daniel Charny alongside a panel including Joni Steiner (Founder at Opendesk), Alice Casey (Maudsley, formerly Nesta) and Adrian Westaway (Special Projects) the discussion followed this brief.

Reflecting on the provocative theme for this year’s Designers in Residence at the Design Museum, this debate brings together leading thinkers to explore the predominant trends influencing Open design. These include the increasing importance of open and collaborative design and manufacturing processes as well as the increasing prevalence of open design principles to empower communities and challenge pre-existing structures.

The second of the talks was called ‘A Decade in Residence’ which reviewed the past 10 years of the residency and called upon 3 of its alumni to reflect on their experience as residents and the effect it had on their practice and career. Speakers included Stephanie Hornig (2015), Yuri Suzuki (2012) and Giles Miller (2010). The discussion was chaired by Margaret Cubbage, Curator of Designers in Residence.