Rejoining

Dear Friends

Scotland's capital is buzzing once again as Edinburgh Festivals take over, with events online and on the ground. Next month, our Journeys in Design have Festivals in mind too.

Working with the Scottish Civic Trust and communities throughout Fife, Journeys in Design is delighted to bring you Scotland's first Flax and Linen Festival. From our Festival Hub and Exhibition in Kirkcaldy, we explore heritage and design with walks across the county, opening doors to studios and workshops, and offering an online roundtable and in-person talk.

Flax and Linen Festival 2021 Events Registrations for can be found here.

Last year we established our second programme, Salvage Scotland, a summer sailing to coastal communities, interviewing environmental artist, Julia Barton. Our material focus is Seaweed and although we won't sail that way this year, check out Julia's latest inititive, the Isle Martin Seaweed Festival.

In relation to Climate Change, we all now consider our communities in a global context.  Journeys in Design joins with others in the run up to the UN COP26 Summit in Glasgow, as part of Climate Fringe.

In a co-production with Prof Helmut Langer and his global design academy network, we bring 'OCEAN POSTERS against plastic pollution' to the UK for the first time. After an inaugural showing at United Nations New York on World Ocean Day, this International Eco-poster Design Exhibition has toured around the world, next month to The Scottish Maritime Museum in Irvine.

Finally, our lead image today is courtesy of the African Futures Institute (AFI) and features the visionary architect and activist, Alero Olympio (1959 - 2005). I learned much from Alero as both friend and colleague, and her insight continues to inform our Journeys in Design.

AFI inaugurates the Alero Olympio Memorial Lecture on 19 August, this year delivered by acclaimed Niger-born architect, Miriam Kamara.

With best wishes from all the team,
John
John Ennis, Curator Producer, 
Journeys in Design