Clerkenwell Design Week – Tuesday 20th May 2025

As a creative, one needs to take an interest in everything; the greater and more varied your input, the greater and more varied your output.. in theory anyway.

Consequently, I attend as many events and talks as possible (which in London, is practically a full time job!).

It was the first day of Clerkenwell Design Week, and Farringdon was abuzz with creative types, as well as exhibition spaces and networking hubs. Farringdon in general is becoming one of my favourite places, purely because it’s not full of tourists, “students” and those infernal delivery drivers on bikes, who cause mayhem on the pavements and the roads! It reminds me of London twenty years ago, when it was less congested, and more civil.

I attended a talk hosted by the Italian Trade Agency, on design materials, and I was heartened to hear how the design world is focused on sustainability. I’ve been an Environmentalist since I was a child, and in that time, despite the awareness, the natural environment has only grown closer to annihilation.

As a filmmkaer, I’m only too aware of the lack of sustainability within the industry, as sets are constructed and disposed of without a second thought; even the sheer number of plastic water bottles used is astounding. If only every industry was as committed to protecting the environment as they are to maximising profits, the world would be a better place.
Interestingly, the two outcomes are not mutually exclusive!

What I found most interesting was how mycelium is being used to bring new life to materials that have been disposed of, such fabricating new textiles from old ones. Mushrooms really will save the world!
One of the speakers mentioned that wood is the rarest material in the universe; as far as we know, it can only be sourced from trees on one planet. Diamonds and precious metals are far more abundant in the universe.

..my dream is to find me a girl that would accept a wooden engagement ring, instead of a diamond one!