BA (Hons) Product and Furniture Design

Tutors:

Jason Nicholson Natalie Cole Andrew Trujillo Jason Taylor Wayne Pottinger Brian Adams Dean Cain Chris Emmett William Wofford Richard Underhill Malcolm Hastings Nuno Lourinho

Studio Mentor – Wendy Wen Studio Assistant – Alice Evans

BA (Hons) Product & Furniture Design

This is the first graduating year of Product & Furniture Design and what a remarkable year it’s been (and a most unusual one!). One thing I’ve been impressed with, is the resilience and resolve of our students, continuing their studies in an incredibly professional manner and generating truly outstanding work. Their approach will prove to be an asset for future CV’s and portfolios and it’s certain that employers will be looking for graduates that demonstrated inventiveness, adaptability and initiative whilst making smart design decisions during this period of uncertainty.

With the move to online learning from March, final projects have been developed and realised through a truly innovative use of media. Alongside all of the made objects produced during the year we’ve seen the virtual environment embraced with the generation of sophisticated and extremely well resolved final projects.

The results have been incredible, and this has been an enormously successful end to 3 years hard work with our highest number of first-class honours, with 9 students achieving the highest classification. Our external examiner also commented that the work is of ‘the very highest standard’ and the Product & Furniture Design Course is ‘one of the best IF NOT the best course of its kind in the country’. This is a real testament to the continued hard work and effort of students across the course during this unusually eventful year.

The output this year demonstrates the incredibly high standard of work from our students and the importance of product and furniture design in shaping the future. The course team and I are extremely proud

Charlie Adlem - Chair & Table

of their achievements and wish them every success in the future.

The course team are delighted to know that our students have thoroughly enjoyed their time at BCU. This has been a fantastic year with outstanding achievements from across all years of the course. Achieving 100% NSS score for the second-year running is testament to the continued hard work and commitment from all staff involved in enhancing the student experience. First year and design for wildlife

First years experienced an intensive ‘skills building’ first semester integrating design principles and processes, material experimentation and cultural and historical studies. During the second semester, students created innovative designs for bee homes aimed at a high-end market. The project encouraged students to consider the importance of designing products to increase biodiversity in urban areas. With support from the Wildlife Trust, the project explored the habitats, lifecycle and environmental impact of bees with designs that could also be used for research. The group completed an in-depth research stage followed by designs and prototypes. With the lockdown causing an abrupt halt to all practical work, students continued to create outstanding three-dimensional representations using whatever resources available at home.

We are hoping to continue working with the Wildlife Trust on similar projects in the future to create environmental products that enhance the urban environment.

Jason nicholson. course Director

Worshipful Company of Furniture Makers:

Organised by the charity Furniture Makers’ Company, The Young Furniture Makers’ Exhibition is an annual one-day event at the Dutch Church in Austin Friars, London, showcasing an impressive level of design talent from across the country. Nina’s desk lamp ‘Lucy’ won first prize in the Young Furniture Makers’ Design category, from more than 150 design entries. The event is open to all students and gives them an opportunity to network with the members of the industry and other young design makers that are looking to make an impact on the design sector.

Students are also invited to join the Young Furniture Makers group which gives them access to events and workshops created especially for them. During the design process, Nina explored metal and its use as a material in her design. The lamp creates a sense of calmness and ease expressed through the use of 3D printing and minimal use of materials and makes a valuable addition to any home.

Wayne Pottinger level 5 leaDer

Third year and Birmingham Design Talent

Third years continued to develop their individual design approaches through a combination of live/competition projects.

Birmingham Design Talent is a collective of BA (Hons) Product and Furniture Design students, who come together to showcase and sell their designs through one-off events and exhibitions. The group includes those who produce hand-made bespoke items, through to others embracing digital technologies and batch production techniques. What brings the collective together is their passion for design and the desire to gain valuable experience exhibiting and selling their products. Their latest event was at Minima, one of Birmingham’s top contemporary design showrooms, where the group showed a range of products by first, second and third year students. The final pieces were created in response to a range of briefs, but all were tasked with developing innovative, well made and saleable objects.

natalie cole level 4 tutor

Second year and live project collaborations

Second year focused on employability, with modules enhancing industry knowledge and experience. Live projects, work placement opportunities and collaboration with students from across the faculty helped enhance industry knowledge and experience.

Industry collaborations took place with Create Seating and Signify (Formery Phillips lighting)

Nina Naversnik - Sustainable Lights Frederic Lacaze - Headphones & Mask

Eboni Molloy - Light drape

Hanna Rosinska - Friendship Mirrors & Shelves

Emma Jones -Environmental & Sustainability Balance Game

Bees, Trees, & Factories is an educational, environmental game for children aged 7-11 years. Inspired by the youth climate strikes and lack of environmental teaching resources available, this game supports teachers and parents in their delivery of environmental education. Bees, Trees, & Factories engages children with a range of environmental topics through a challenging and entertaining balancing game accompanied by colourful, informative, playing cards.”

Frederic Lacaze - Headphones and Mask

INTERTUNE are modular headphones that combine PPE with style. Enjoy a hands-off approach to music with gesture-controlled actions and 500 billion different colour combinations.”

Hanna Rosinska - Mirror

Hanna Rosinska - Mirror ALIGN

My final project was a range created based on an original idea I had for creating a stylish mirror that can store the users cherished items, and can also have notes written on it to encourage families, friends, couples and housemates develop a deeper connection with one another.

Millie Hyde-Jones - Trio

Isabelle Uner - Brut

Isabelle Uner - Brutalist Desk Tidy The BRÜT collection celebrates the beauty of brutalism. Cast Jesmonite objects mimic the geometry and materiality of brutalist buildings, drawing attention to the current debate on whether these buildings should remain as part of our skylines.

The project on display is the YENZA range. The furniture gives the opportunity to children and their parents to assemble together to form a stronger bond. I wanted the experience of assembling furniture to create memories for families. Achieved through intuitive instructions, an app and playful colours.

Nina Naversnik - Stool Nina Naversnik - Collection

I am currently exploring the principles of the circular economy by looking at food waste as a valuable resource and material. My project recognises design as a form of transformative storytelling that has the power to present an alternative future where the man-made world is a balanced system in which materials constantly flow.

Megg is a collection of objects made of eggshells that was created to start a conversation about #thecirculareconomy and to inspire change.

MARQ is a contemporary take on a traditional design method called marquetry. I use quirky designs to give this method a new and modern feel.

Huw Roberts - Schematic drawing

Re-Belt. A table with a leather belt round it’s waist.

Easy to assemble.

Easy on the eye.

Overseas Study Trip Students from across the course spent a week in Lisbon, Portugal. As always on our regular yearly study trips, the students were encouraged take lots of photos, bring their sketchbooks, research the city for other suitable design destinations to visit in their free time, and most importantly use the trip to find potential influences for their future design work. After arriving in Lisbon and dropping their suitcases of at the Hans Brinker Hostel, the week’s activities began with a visit to the Amoreiras 360 Panaromic view of the city. A great chance for some photographs as the sun set in the distance. This was followed by a free group meal at a local traditional Lisbon restaurant set in an old monastery, which offered a taste of Lisbon culture. The following days the students were up on their feet to immerse themselves in everything the diverse city of boundless culture and fabled architecture Lisbon had to offer. The scheduled visits included trips to the Museum of Modern Art, MAAT museum, LX Factory, an eclectic mix, full of unique galleries, shops and street art. Santa Clara also market offered up an opportunity to pick up some intriguing gifts, knick-knacks, or second hand clothes steeped in the Lisbon lifestyle. Students were able to explore the city in their own time, do a spot of shopping, and take plenty of photos for their Instagram followers. They seemed to love been transported up the steep cobbled climbs on the funicular railway…that made for great selfies. As always students love to get around the city, so what better way to do that than rent some electric scooters to whisk themselves around. This ended up being a really fun and surprisingly affordable way to take in the scenery.

LISBON! LISBOA!

A definite highlight of the trip was a day visit to Sintra (a UNESCO World Heritage Site). Starting with rides in tuktuks up the very steep climb to the castle, the students were transported to a truly wonderful place with so much to offer in terms of history, breath taking walks, and amazing sights and scenery. Within the grounds of Sintra’s National Palace, Quinta da Regaleira was particularly interesting with it’s eerie architectural monuments and underground caves….great for more snaps for the memory banks and future design inspiration. We’ve had some amazing study trips over the past years, but I have a feeling that Lisbon was the students favourite of all time! .

richarD unDerhill level 6 leaDer