The Journey so far...

 

Reflecting on recent collaborative discussions, curator producer John Ennis sets down some thoughts ahead of the latest of our Journeys in Design: his background experience and motivation and the aims and objectives of Journeys in Design.

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Once a doctor

 

In brief, I was a family doctor, medical teacher, and primary care researcher, graduating from University of Edinburgh Medical School in 1990 and working in clinical general practice until 2012; I had additional research and development commitments in the fields of Health Services for Young People in Care, Palliative Care at Home and International Collaboration for Undergraduate Medical Education.

 

It doesn’t take long working as a GP in Scotland to understand who is more vulnerable in our communities and in need of greater advocacy and support. Inequalities act against a fair shot at life for some.

I stepped aside from medicine in 2012 to pursue a passion for design with a firm belief that mindful design can enable greater health and well-being for individuals and communities.

 

While still a practicing doctor, I had collaborated on design projects in Scotland and Ghana including curating at the annual Royal College of Physicians Edinburgh Exhibition and in establishing a sustainable design and build initiative in Accra with architect Alero Olympio.

 

In 2000 I acquired and converted an old tire depot in central Edinburgh, supporting several emerging and established curators, artists, and makers (including Doggerfisher gallery and PickOne textiles) Our in-house exhibitions explored contemporary design in the local and national context. Gayfield Creative Spaces closed in 2016 and the current journey builds on experience gained there. 

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Journeys in Design

 

This belief in the power of mindful design finds focus through an initiative called Journeys in Design and by allied contributions to charitable trusteeship (Alero Olympio Trust), board directorship (Fife Employment Access Trust at Silverburn Park) and time-limited steering groups (Art in Health Care Room for Art Scotland and Prescribe Culture University of Edinburgh).

 

Journeys in Design seeks to enable well-being through Design, engaging people at a local level with our walks and workshops and further at the national and international level with our exhibitions and talks.

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Locality

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The key to all our work is a focus on locality. Although we tour across Scotland and engage beyond borders, all our interventions draw on the energy of individuals and communities we meet on the ground. It is an honour to meet like minds in different localities and to draw together in the creative fellowship that enables well-being and change for good. This means time spent before exhibitions emerge and with good people afterwards keen to continue the journey.

 

Internationalism

 

All of us stand taller in the world when we reach out to countries and cultures other than our own. Scotland’s contribution to the world of design continues to be significant on the global stage. Our Exhibitions and Talks give context to home-grown talent, celebrate creatives from outside Scotland who find work here and draw on talents working elsewhere to contribute to our events in Scotland. 

 

Well-being

 

Well-being in its broadest sense includes health, opportunity, agency, locality, sustainability, and regeneration. The World Health Organisation recognises this in a definition of health that includes the physical, emotional, social and spiritual. Scotland has led in gathering evidence of reduced health inequalities when people have agency to link into their localities with purpose. This is one important method by which mindful design can enable healthy ways of being in the world.

 

Sustainable systems

 

Fundamentally, we are each a small part of a big planet, each an important element in a greater, greener eco-system. The link between well-being and sustainability is intimate and strong. To draw a simple medical analogy: if we sprain an ankle and limp, our pelvis tilts and we develop a sore back. In the same way, problems for one part of the planet will lead to problems for another: it's all connected.

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There is pressing need to advocate for Planet Earth as much as we do for ourselves. This is especially true when any one part of the planet is particularly threatened, as true for our vulnerable neighbours as for our oceans, air, and soil. The United Nations recognises this with the Sustainable Development Goals.

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Rolling programmes

 

These beliefs and motivations secure the values underpinning Journeys in Design and help give a steer to our programmes, events, and special projects.

 

Our rolling programmes each focus on different materials, drawn from soil, sea and streets, to venture across art, design, and industry, engaging local communities and reaching out internationally, through an exploration of heritage, sustainability, and contemporary practice.

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We began with flax and natural fibres in 2018 (Our Linen Stories) and added seaweeds and plastics in 2020 (Salvage Scotland). We will be on the ground in 2022 with Concrete Designs to Thrive exploring the world of construction and urban design.

 

Into action with Events 

 

Our primary offering comes with touring Exhibitions, drawing on talent from Scotland and beyond, aiming to include related local stories, platform local design talent and link with local museums and cultural expertise.

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We co-design local walks, (Walks by Design), and offer Workshops for Well-Being pertinent to theme. We meet many talented individuals en route, recording these Creative Encounters as we go.

 

We broaden our design focus to reflect on pressing contemporary issues, posing more searching questions to an expert panel at our Twilight Talks about Design.

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Emerging special projects

 

We ensure a flexibility in approach to projects which allows us to respond to the energies met on the journey. This has driven proposals for innovative design projects called Material Futures, emerging from each of our programmes. 

 

Onward 

 

Each of these journeys allows me to visit enchanting places in Scotland and to meet many engaging people. I feel humbled by our many encounters so far and incredibly lucky to collaborate with great people, finding purpose and pleasure in the work I do.

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In all, I hope my belief in the benefits of mindful design generates a passion that can be transferred to others throughout our Journeys in Design together. 

 

John Ennis, June 2021

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