Design Research Hub

The Design Research Hub is focused on the production and dissemination of high quality research in design at Manchester School of Art.

The Design Research Hub encourages and supports both leading and and new researchers who are exploring the theories and practices of a diverse range of design and craft based activities. It consists of, and encourages collaboration between academics, researchers and practitioners drawn from a breadth of disciplinary specialisms including ceramics, glass, textiles, graphic design, illustration, interior and product design. Key themes and interests are—

Community, Culture & Heritage, including social and cultural engagement with diverse cultures and their heritage, in particular with marginalised and displaced groups. More…

Design for Mental Health and Wellbeing, including the application of design to support people living with mental health, dementia and disability as well as addressing stigma, to improve social engagement, agency and quality of life. More…

Design driven innovation and speculative design, including working with businesses to facilitate design-led innovation leading to improved social and economic benefit.

Making and Materiality, including technical, material or process innovation to enable the creative and practical development of novel solutions in both analogue and digital areas. More…

Underpinning these four themes, there are two further trans-disciplinary areas—

Sustainable Design, in acknowledgement of all design interventions having an effect on our natural environment, resource limitations and climate change, which therefore need to be considered in all undertakings

Design Education and the development of its teaching practices are essential to grow tomorrows cohort of ethical and responsible designers able to follow a publicly engaged, collaborative, interdisciplinary and challenge-led approach.

Researchers in this group are engaged in exploring all of the diverse range of the practices, theories, histories, and languages of design. The aims of the centre are to examine the role of design, in its diversity of forms, and to recognize, evaluate and profile its significance. The objectives of the centre are to disseminate designs past, present and future, through the production of a range of works and through many mediums. Our researchers are engaged in the production of objects, books, exhibitions, papers, and many other research initiatives and projects. The centre encourages interaction between subject areas, academic and practice-led projects, and institutional collaboration. It is an intersection between researchers and practitioners, academics and teachers, and a hub for positive exchange and creative production.

Watch four short videos about the Research Hub themes – Community, Culture and Heritage, Design Driven Innovation, Design for Health and Wellbeing, Making and Materiality.

Selected Projects

Members

• Professor
  Kristina Niedderer
  Research Hub Leader
  —
  
• Dr Louise Adkins
  Senior Lecturer
  —
  
• Mark Beecroft
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Dr Ganna Borzenkova
  Research Associate,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Fabrizio Cocchiarella
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Kate Egan
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Professor
  Martyn Evans
  Faculty Pro Vice Chancellor Arts & Humanities
  Director of Manchester School of Art
  —
  
• Lucy Gannon
  Programme Leader, BA (Hons) Interior Design
  —
  
• Adam Griffiths
  Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• David Grimshaw
  Deputy Head of Design
  Subject Lead MA/MSc Product Design & MA/MSc Craft
  —
  
• Jonathan Hitchen
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Rachel Kelly
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Professor
  Alice Kettle
  Professor of Textile Arts
  —
  
• Anastasiya Luban
  Lecturer,
  MSA
  —
  
• Geoffrey Mann
  Programme Leader BA (Hons) Product Design & Craft
  —
  
• Dr Sally Morfill
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Sarah Moriarty
  Senior Lecturer in Product Design
  —
  
• Eleanor Mulhearn
  Programme Leader, BA (Hons) Illustration with Animation
  —
  
• Dr Jea Hoo Na
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Dr CJ O'Neill
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Laura Orton
  Graduate Research Assistant (Design)
  —
  
• Dr John Rooney
  Senior Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  
• Dr Lynn Setterington
  Senior Lecturer, MA Design
  Course Leader, MA/MSc Design for Health & Wellbeing
  —
  
• Jon Spruce
  Programme Leader BA (Hons) Product Design
  —
  
• Ian Whadcock
  Education Lead for Design
  Senior Lecturer, Illustration with Animation and MA/MFA Illustration
  —
  
• Jade Wilson
  Lecturer,
  Dept of Design
  —
  

Exhibitions & Publications

Exhibitions

, 2024. .

Kettle, AM., 2024. Slipware, Crafts Study Centre, Farnham.

, 2023. .

Rooney, J., 2023. "Metamorphosis" a piece included in the "In Case You Missed It" Exhibition at the Modernist Society, The Modernist Gallery Manchester, 3/11/2023 - 24/12/2023.

, 2022. .

Jenkinson, J., Khan, F., Earnshaw, J., Kettle, A., Wahid, M., 2022. Reclaiming the Narrative: Portrait Youth, British Muslim Heritage Centre, 22/10/2022 - 27/10/2022.

Artefacts

Whadcock, IJ., 2024. 'Imaginary Worlds.', Oriel Davies Gallery Newtown Powys Wales..

Mann, G., 2024. 'Poise'.

Mann, G., 2024. 'The Leith Pattern'.

Mann, G., 2024. 'The Second Line'.

Rooney, J., 2023. 'Cap 1 A Modular Typeface.', https://f37foundry.com/f37x.

Broadbent, S., Davidson, P., 2022. 'Global Patterns', Rochdale.

Egan, K., 2022. 'Out of Place'.

Broadbent, S., 2022. 'Pilgrim Porch', Chester Cathedral.

Books

, 2023. .

Book Chapters

Zhang, W., Walker, S., Evans, M., Humphreys, P., 2023. ''The Located Making Framework' for Sustainable Enterprise'. In Zsolnai, L., Walker, T., Shrivastava, P. (eds.) Value Creation for a Sustainable World: Innovating for Ecological Regeneration and Human Flourishing, pp. 153-186, Palgrave Macmillan.

, 2022. .

Media

British Council, IM Motors, 2022. 'Making Matters: China Challenge Project Review Film for Exhibition_November 2022'.

Data Sets

Orton, L., Tournier, I., Niedderer, K., Threfall, S., 2024. 'Ido Service project - work package one data'.

Orton, L., Tournier, I., Niedderer, K., Threlfall, S., 2023. 'Ido Service project - work package two data'.

Reports

, 2022. .

Journal Articles

, 2024. .

, 2024. .

, 2024. .

, 2024. .

Niedderer, K., Townsend, K., 2023. 'Editorial: Shifting craft's horizons: From individual makers to post-anthropocentric models of co-production', Craft Research Journal, 14 (1), pp. 3-8.

Niedderer, K., Tournier, I., Orton, L., Threlfall, S., 2023. 'I Can Do: Co-Designing a Service with and for People with Dementia to Engage with Volunteering', Social Sciences, 12 (6), pp. 364-364.

Niedderer, K., Townsnd, K., Potter, G., 2023. 'Making: Place, material and metaphor', Craft Research, 14 (2), pp. 191-198.

Egan, K., Turner-Pemberton, B., Potter, G., 2023. '“Out of Place”: Cross-Cultural Collaboration and Virtual Space', Textile: the journal of cloth and culture.

Niedderer, K., Townsend, K., 2022. 'Editorial: Nature as source and inspiration for materials and making', Craft Research Journal, 13 (1), pp. 3-8.

Setterington, L., 2022. 'The Grenfell Memorial Quilt', Theconversation.com.

Walker, S., Evans, M., Zhang, W., Humphreys, P., 2022. 'The located making framework for supporting craft maker enterprises in China', The Design Journal, 25 (6), pp. 976-996.

Niedderer, K., Holthoff-Detto, V., van Rompay, TJL., Karahanoglu, A., Ludden, GDS., Almeida, R., Durán, RL., Aguado, YB., Lim, JNW., Smith, T., Harrison, D., Craven, MP., Gosling, J., Orton, L., Tournier, I., 2022. 'This is Me: Evaluation of a boardgame to promote social engagement, wellbeing and agency in people with dementia through mindful life-storytelling', Journal of Aging Studies, 60, pp. 100995-100995.

Conference Papers

, 2024. .

, 2024. .

, 2024. .

, 2024. .

O'Neill, C-J., Mayo, N., 2023. 'Flightlines: Lives lived with clay', International Ceramics Festival 2023, University of Aberystwyth, 30/6/2023 - 2/7/2023.

, 2022. .

Morfill, S., Giles, S., 2022. 'Drawing Descriptions: revealing dynamic lines of gesture through drawing', International Society of Gesture Studies Conference 2022 - Gesture: from description to application, Loyola University Chicago, 13/7/2022 - 15/7/2022.

Presentations

, 2022. .

Morfill, S., Giles, S., 2022. 'Synchronising Hand and Thought: Gesture, Language and Drawing', Keller Center, University of Chicago / online.

Posters

, 2024. .

Theses and Dissertations

, 2022. .