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Epoch goes to Birmingham Design Festival
Last week, Birmingham Design Festival, the most awaited design event of the year, took place in Birmingham, and we were lucky to be there for two out of the three days.
BDF, as it’s now known, is the brainchild of Luke Tonge & Daniel Alcorn, and is in its 7th year – bigger than ever. Three days, three districts (Digital, Analogue, and Graphic) spread out across the city centre, dozens of speakers, and thousands of attendees.
As it is with those design events, it’s impossible to attend and not feel inspired, motivated, and full of creative energy.
The talks were challenging and thought-provoking, like Signalism by David Johnston from Accept & Proceed, and Feel the Fear – Do it Anyway by Kevin McCaul & Emma Hetherington from Allies. They were inspiring, like the incredible work done by Dom Edwards & Lauren Archer from The Arena, and also absolutely bold and unapologetic like the work from Too Gallus, a Glasgow-based agency led by Barrington Reeves.
We also had time to go back to school and learn really clever connecting techniques from Sabrina Shim & Cesca Hadland from Reeds Words, who told us that our designs don’t speak for themselves and the importance of copywriting bringing it altogether.
Epoch sent two of our designers to attend the event, and we asked one of them what his biggest takeaway was, and here’s what he had to say:
Events like BDF are always incredibly energizing as a creative. The sense of community they’ve built is something special, and the passion and knowledge every speaker brings is infectious. Numayr, Junior Designer
He continues: “One of my biggest takeaways is a reminder of the power we have as designers. With the rise of AI, it can sometimes feel like our skillset is becoming undervalued, but the reality is, what we bring is human. We all have something unique to say, shaped by our own experiences, and that’s something AI can’t replicate or truly understand.”
We’re already looking forward to coming back for more next year.
