Events
About
Kingston University runs a range of events related to the Creative Economy. Our most recent event was a series of public seminars focusing on different sectors of the creative economy. Check back soon for more forthcoming events.
Releasing Creativity seminars: 30 September 2008–3 March 2009
This series of four public seminars focused on different sectors of the creative economy. We heard from leading creative industry experts about the specific challenges involved in commercialising and ‘releasing’ creativity. They also looked at the extent to which the creative process in their particular context influences how organisations are successfully managed and led.
- Tuesday 30 September 2008: Jon Kingsbury, Director of NESTA’s Creative Economy Programme
- Tuesday 9 December 2009: Will Daley, Former Vice-President of Warner Bros. London
This seminar by Will Daley looked at the legal challenges facing media companies in 2008 and beyond. Will is a UK solicitor who has worked extensively in the media, telecoms and consulting industries as a Legal Counsel at Ericsson, Buena Vista (Disney), Warner Bros. and currently Accenture. Having worked in an international business arena, he has extensive experience of the legal issues connected with advertising and marketing campaigns, distribution arrangements, software support contracts, online sales and promotions, data protection considerations, film rights acquisitions, and intellectual property licensing and ownership. As well as being a qualified solicitor, Will holds an MBA from the University of Adelaide Business School, Australia.
- Tuesday 27 January 2009: Stephen Budd, Stephen Budd Management Ltd
This seminar by Stephen Budd revealed what goes on behind the scenes in the music industry. Stephen is the founder of SBM – Europe's largest producer management company representing many of the most successful and influential producers, songwriters, mixers, engineers and programmers from Europe and the USA. SBM's clients (including Dido, Gwen Stefani, Maps, Nelly Furtado, Bjork, Franz Ferdinand, Kylie, Bonnie Prince Billie, Yusuf) cover the whole spectrum of music genres – with specialists in rock, pop, beats / dance and urban music amongst other styles.
- Tuesday 3 March 2009: Janie Harland, FusionARTS
Want to set up a creative business in a large town centre office block with no money, no partners and no experience? A ridiculous notion, obviously. Or an opportunity to utilise some creative approaches? Janie Harland used this seminar to discuss her path to setting up FusionARTS and creating this unique model. Janie is a professional artist with a previous career as an advertising art director. Initially frustrated by the lack of decent workspaces in Kingston, she sought out other artists who felt the same to investigate the possibilities of setting up a small studio operation. The response eventually led to the opening of the studio spaces at 53 Eden Street, Kingston upon Thames in April 2005. There are 32 studios over four floors, and Kingston University’s MA Art and Space occupies a large space on the third floor. - 3.00pm: Arrival and refreshments
- 3.30pm: Welcome, creative speakers and discussion:
- Welcome from the Rose Theatre – Stephen Unwin (Artistic Director)
- Introduction to Releasing Creativity – Prof Penny Sparke, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research & Enterprise)
- Presentation of ‘Creative Britain: New Talents for the New Economy’ – Matthew Hill (a senior civil servant at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, with responsibilities for the Creative Economy Programme)
- Keynote speech on 'Creativity and New Talents for the Creative Economy' – Richard Gerver (Headteacher of Grange Primary School, Long Eaton and “one of the most innovative and inspirational educators of our time”)
- Introduction to MA Creative Industries & the Creative Economy – Dr Nick Wilson (Course Director)
- Panel session debate on 'what new skills are needed for the creative economy?' featuring Dr Andy Pratt (Reader in urban cultural economy and Director of the Urban Research Centre, London School of Economics); Lesley Morris (Head of Design Skills, Design Council); Clive Harris (Distinguished Engineer, Chief Innovation Officer, GTS, IBM); and Piers Ibbotson (from the Directing Creativity programme)
- 'Dance and Diversity' – performers from the School of Performance and Screen Studies
- 5.30pm: Break-out for networking, University creative showcase and refreshments with creative industries' business managers, creatives, policy-makers, academics and practitioners (music provided by musicians from the School of Performance & Screen Studies)
- 7.00pm: Close
- be inspired by our creative speakers from the Design Council, IBM, London School of Economics, Directing Creativity and more;
- network with key professionals, experts and policy-makers; and
- find out about further training and education in the creative industries and creative economy.
- Matthew Hill, a senior civil servant at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, with responsibilities for the Creative Economy Programme
Matthew Hill went straight into public service after graduating in 1993. Following a year working for Cleveland County Council’s Education Service, he moved to central Government, joining the now-defunct Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
There he worked on genetic modification and food irradiation before being handed the negotiating brief for the European Lettuce Directive. Saved from euro-legislative purgatory by the BSE scandal in 1996, Matthew became the first editor of the BSE Enforcement Bulletin and Meat Hygiene Enforcement Report. He then spent some time helping to set up the Food Standards Agency, before becoming Private Secretary to the Leader of the House of Commons.
After short spells at the Cabinet Office dealing with customer-focused electronic service delivery and the official inquiry into the 2001 foot and mouth outbreak, Matthew moved to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in 2002. He is currently Deputy Director (Programmes) at the DCMS, where he oversees, amongst other things, the implementation of the Creative Industries strategy for the Creative Economy. - Richard Gerver, Grange Primary School
Richard Gerver is a failed actor who is currently headteacher of Grange Primary School in Long Eaton. Prior to embarking on a career in education he supplemented his thespian dreams working in a number of settings – selling mobile phones, estate agency and as a copywriter in a below the line advertising agency.
Richard has a passionate belief in child centric learning that focuses on experience and context. He has worked with various government agencies in the UK and abroad offering consultancy on developing creative approaches to the curriculum that will be fit for purpose in the 21st century. He is an advisor to the DFES and the Government on many areas of education policy, mostly in defining school change for the 21st century. He also works with Sir Ken Robinson on developing the creativity agenda.
Richard is a former National Teaching Award winner. He has been described as one of the most innovative and inspiration school leaders of our time – highly creative, people centric and fun. Richard combines the belief that schools should have the excitement of Disneyland and the purpose of major industry. He has a clear understanding of the challenges facing our children in the future and, uniquely for a primary school leader, works with some of the world's largest organisations to extend the partnership between schools and the business sector.
Richard has given speeches all over the world, including sessions for UNESCO and the Chinese Government. His talks range from the concepts of innovation and creativity, the links between education and industry, 21st century learning and leadership and management.
- Dr Andy Pratt, Reader in urban cultural economy and Director of the Urban Research Centre, London School of Economics
Andy is involved in the analysis of the cultural industries in cities and regions around the globe. This research has two strands. The first focuses on the spatial clustering of new media activities around the world; he is particularly interested in the socio-cultural embeddedness of new media/new economy and the cultural industries. The second strand concerns the definition and measurement of employment in the cultural, or creative, industries.
Andy has produced a definition of the cultural sector that has been taken up and used by national and regional agencies in the UK and a variant of it for UNESCO. He is co-author of the recent ‘London: A cultural audit’ report for the LDA and of a report on the 'Creative Economy and Development' for the UN Commission on Trade and Development. He is also the coordinator of the ESRC/AHRC Cultural Industries Seminar Network. Read more.
- Lesley Morris, Head of Design Skills, Design Council
Lesley develops and manages the Design Council’s higher education work, which aims to help future designers and managers develop effective and relevant design skills. Lesley will introduce the Design Blueprint – an action plan for designers to help them access a range of professional tools, information and advice to improve their skills and career development, and to help prepare design students for the challenges of work. Read more.
- Piers Ibbotson, Directing Creativity
Piers Ibbotson runs the Directing Creativity programme, which was developed for the Royal Shakespeare Company with the support of Allied Domecq plc, the RSC’s principal sponsor. The programme provides management development and consultancy for business using techniques and approaches from the world of theatre, with the dual objectives of enhancing business performance and developing closer links between industry and the arts.
Piers trained originally as a scientist and worked in the oil industry for a number of years before entering the theatre in 1980. He had a successful career as a performer, working at the Royal National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company as well as making appearances in TV and film. Piers is a member of the creative faculty team for the Leadership Development programme at the Banff Centre, Canada, and teaches on the MA Creative Economy at Kingston University. Piers is also author of ‘The Illusion of leadership’, to be published later this year. Read more.
- Clive Harris, Distinguished Engineer, Chief Innovation Officer, GTS, IBM
Clive Harris is an IBM Distinguished Engineer within IBM’s Global Services division. He has over 20 years' IT experience, particularly focused on delivering complex client solutions and architectures, e-business solutions, distributed systems and client-server systems.
His recent focus has been on delivering innovation and emerging technology solutions, along with complex and large scale e-business solutions, architectures and strategies. In particular, Clive has been leading a joint global innovation team (Value Creation Centre) with ABN AMRO Bank, and has also recently been appointed as the UK Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) within IBM's Global Technology Services.
Clive is the author of the publication 'The IBM RISC System/6000', a book published by McGraw-Hill that has been a best-selling technical publication. In addition he is the author of a large number of IBM publications and technical White Papers. He has filed a patent for an invention related to a delivery environment for Enterprise Architecture initiatives. Clive is also a fully qualified and active helicopter pilot.
- Stephen Unwin, Artistic Director, Rose Theatre
Stephen Unwin’s career began at the Almeida Theatre on an Arts Council Director’s Bursary. Stephen then went on to become Associate Director of the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, and Resident Director at the National Theatre Studio. In 1993 he founded English Touring Theatre, for whom he has directed almost 30 productions of new and classical work, both on national tour and in London.
Stephen has also written several books on drama and has taught in universities and drama schools nationally and internationally. He became Artistic Director at the Rose Theatre, Kingston, in January 2008.
Releasing Creativity networking event: 28 April 2008
This creative networking event, marking the launch of the MA Creative Economy (MACE) programme, focused on the Government’s strategy Creative Britain: New Talents for the New Economy.
The event took place on Monday 28 April at the Rose Theatre, Kingston upon Thames.
Timetable
Attendees at this event had the chance to:
Background to the event
The Cox Review of Creativity in Business (2005), commissioned by HM Treasury, called for the HE sector to "run masters programmes that bring together the different elements of creativity, technology and business". Cox also suggested the development of up to five Centres of Excellence to specialise in such multidisciplinary programmes, encompassing both postgraduate teaching and research.Kingston University has responded to this challenge by launching the MA Creative Economy programme, which comprises 20 masters-level courses and brings students together from different subject specialisms to help produce creative graduates who can speak the language of business.
The University has also been awarded significant HEFCE Strategic Development funding to enable it to set up a new Centre for Design and Innovation – Innoversity – from September 2008.'Releasing Creativity', held in the wonderful surroundings of the new Rose Theatre in Kingston upon Thames, provided an opportunity to mark Kingston University’s achievements and to debate the Government’s challenge to industry and academia “to build on their success in equipping students with the skills they need to make the most effective contribution they can to the creative economy” (BERR, 2008).
Specifically, we drew on the Government's recent strategic initiative – Creative Britain: New Talents for the New Economy (PDF) – to debate ‘what new talents are needed for the creative economy?’. To help us in this respect, we had an expert line-up of speakers, providing a range of perspectives on the provision and development of creative and business skills.
Speaker details
Speakers included Richard Gerver from Grange Primary School; Lesley Morris from the Design Council; Clive Harris from IBM; Piers Ibbotson from Directing Creativity; Andy Pratt from London School of Economics; Stephen Unwin from the Rose Theatre; and others.Other details
After the panel discussion in the main auditorium of the Rose Theatre, guests had the opportunity to network and browse our showcase of specialist creative courses from across the University (including the MACE programme). Academic staff were on hand to answer questions relating to specific courses and opportunities for knowledge exchange.