Creative Industries - What's happening now?

The UK as a whole currently holds the second biggest design sector in the world, gaining approx £36 billion a year from creative industries such as art, film, music and media - 8% of the UK's GDP coming from these sources. The country's capital, London, was also dubbed the most influential city amongst the creative industry by Forbes magazine, and the country in its entirety is regarded for its influences world wide - even working collaboratively with other countries. Our creative graduates also benefit from our renowned creative industry status and are often exported world wide to move on to bigger and better things within the design industry, an exciting and motivating aspect.

As an aspiring graphic designer myself it is key for me to acknowledge what is happening now within the creative industry. Current trends and popular artists include information which designers should always be kept up to speed on in order to produce quality work which fits into the contemporary standards and gains the interest of the general public.

Some general topics which designers need to know include the seasons colour, top selling contemporary artists, Oscar awards for the likes of best animation, popular artists within the music industry, who won what festival and even food fashion trends. All of these aspects help keep an artist with the times and ensure that their work fits recent standards set by said 'trends'.

The website NOWNESS is a good way to keep up with contemporary culture via film. They release new films each and everyday which "gets under the skin of the most influential names across art and design, fashion and beauty, music, culture and food and travel."

Newcastle.

Newcastle is surprisingly regarded as a creative city which is located just on the banks of the River Tyne in the Tyne & Wear, and with the overall decline of industries such as the wool trade, coal mining and ship building, it has made way for a much more innovative approach to the design industry.

"... Newcastle's economy is thriving with learning, digital technology, retail, tourism and culture all playing a part in its success. What's more, the creative industries are rapidly growing here and the city has plenty to offer the discerning freelance profession who's looking for somewhere to live, work and play."

It is even said to offer some of the best places to set up a secure establishment for design based careers outside of London, allowing some great opportunities for aspiring designers who are more locally based. The thriving atmosphere of this so called creative city also grant access to potential networking, an essential aspect for any designer (new or experienced) and in 2014 it hosted the 'Newcastle Arts Festival'.

It also has its fair share of art museums and exhibitions, including:

• The Laing Art Gallery, which features paintings from 18th-20th century.
• The Biscuit Factory, an expansive art, craft and design gallery which I actually paid visit to during a trip in college. It proved to be both inspirational and motivational, one of the most memorable pieces displaying a fair amount of decor flamingos.
• BALTIC Center for Contemporary Art, a major international gallery and events hub.

And finally, Newcastle even offers unique spaces in which you can work, including Hoults Yard, a friendly office and studio complex which hosts events such as 'Warehouse parties', live music, barbeques, and art exhibitions - making it great for networking too, and the Toffee Factory, a refurbished building which provides both contemporary and high quality office space for digital and creative businesses alike, claimed to be "an inspiring and stunning place to work."

Sources used:

Websites:

1. https://www.nowness.com/about
2. http://www.creativeboom.co.uk/travel/creative-cities-newcastle-upon-tyne/
3. http://www.newcastlefestival.org/
4. http://www.twmuseums.org.uk/laing-art-gallery.html
5. http://www.thebiscuitfactory.com/
6. https://www.balticmill.com/
7. http://www.houltsyard.co.uk/about/
8. http://www.toffeefactory.co.uk/