One dark and damp evening last month two
members of the CATCH team decided to venture out across the Peak District to
take part in a fantastic event organised by Sound and Music Charity as part of the Design Manchester 2016 Festival.
Translational Researchers Dr Katherine
Easton and Dr Stephen Potter took part in the latest Creative Data Club, one of a series of regular ‘datagazing’ events,
which had relocated specially for the Festival from its safe London home to the
trendy Texture bar in the heart of Manchester’s bustling Northern Quarter. The
event brought together speakers from a range of backgrounds to share their
projects, working practices and thoughts with an audience of artists,
scientists and general creative types.
The
event was run in partnership with information design agency Signal Noise, and
addressed the theme of design and diversity – more specifically, how might we
diversify audiences, experiences and accessibility by using data and design in
open and inclusive ways. Katherine discussed the importance of co-production with
end users to the success of assistive technology projects, with Stephen presenting
ways in which data and design processes can mislead and exclude the very people
we try to assist. The other speakers talked about designing adapted musical
instruments, inclusive musical theatre and composition, and wider issues of
data privacy and data inequality. All in all, a fascinating evening that
provided insights into the practices and concerns of communities beyond the
usual reach of CATCH public engagement exercises.
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