The Royal College of Art Web Site
Site Navigation

Jeremy Myerson

Jeremy Myerson

Director
Tel: +44 (0)20 7590 4249
E-mail: jeremy.myerson@rca.ac.uk

Academic and professional background
Jeremy Myerson is Director of the Helen Hamlyn Centre at the Royal College of Art. He holds the Helen Hamlyn Chair of Design with a remit to encourage 'design that improves quality of life', and is a member of the College's Senior Management Group.

An academic, author and activist in the field of art and design, he began his working life on The Stage newspaper in the mid-1970s and developed his interest in design as a journalist and editor working on a number of titles including Design (published by the Design Council), Creative Review and World Architecture. From 1986-89, he was Founding Editor of Design Week, the world's first weekly news magazine for designers and their clients.

For much of the 1990s, Jeremy Myerson worked as an independent writer, researcher and curator in design, often with the aim of linking design industry developments to those in higher education. From 1995-8 he was Professor of Contemporary Design at De Montfort University. In 1999, he was invited to join the Royal College of Art to establish the Helen Hamlyn Centre. He is a Board member of the Design Council and a Trustee of the Audi Design Foundation and the Gordon Russell Trust. He holds degrees from Hull University and the Royal College of Art.

Research interests
His research focus is on the study of professional design practice in relation to social and technological change. He is particularly interested in the junction point of inclusive design and innovation - in exploring how people-centred design methods can be a trigger for business productivity and enterprise.

In recent years he has focused this interest on the design of the office environment, writing a trilogy of books on the subject with technologist Philip Ross, the latest of which, Space To Work, was published in October 2006 by Laurence King in London and Abbeville in New York. He continues to research in the areas of inclusive design and workplace design, in an increasingly interdisciplinary way.

He was Principal Investigator of The Welcoming Workplace, funded under the AHRC/EPSRC Designing for the 21st Century research programmeThis project (January 2007-December 2008) looked at designing a future workplace for the 21st century knowledge economy which takes into account the needs of the ageing workforce.

Current projects

Jeremy chairs the Management Advisory Group for InnovationRCA, the network for graduates and business partners of the College.

He is Principal Investigator of the DOME (Designing Out Medical Error) project. This a three-year research study funded by the EPSRC, which began on 1 October 2008, in partnership with Imperial College at St Mary's Hospital and the Imperial College Business School.

Jeremy is Principal Investigator of the i~design 3 project funded by the EPSRC, a partnership with the Engineering Design Centre at Cambridge University looking at ways to help designers work more closely with users.

He chairs the Project Executive of Design London, the RCA's joint innovation centre with Imperial College London which unites design, business, science and technology.

Selected publications

2010

Myerson J, Bichard J & Erlich A (2010) 'New Demographics, New Workspace: Office Design for the Changing Workforce', Gower, UK (forthcoming)

2009

Myerson J. (2009) 'Workplace Design for the Ageing Workforce', Reinventing Retirement Asia Conference, Singapore

2008

Myerson J. (Ed) (2008) 'Welcoming Workplace: Designing office space for an ageing workforce in the 21st Century knowledge economy - Guidance for architects and developers', RCA Helen Hamlyn Centre with British Council for Offices, UK

Myerson J. (2008) 'Discovery through design: how design methods take you closer to the customer'. European Business conference of the Norwegian Design Council, Oslo, Norway

Myerson J. (2008) 'Power of the Network: transitions in working life from Taylorist time and motion to networked space', Networks of Design 2008 Annual International Design History Conference, University College Falmouth, UK

Myerson J. (2008) 'Gordon Russell: Designer of Furniture 1892-1992', Gordon Russell Trust, UK (second edition)

Myerson J. (2008) Introduction to 'Yes Logo: 40 years of Michael Peters Branding, Design and Communications', Black Dog Publishing, UK

2007

  • Myerson J. (2007) ‘A growing movement’ in Coleman R, Clarkson J, Cassim J & Dong H. (eds.) Design for Inclusivity Gower, Hants UK
  • Myerson J. (2007) ‘Space to Work; work space for innovation in the knowledge economy’, Visiting Research Scholar, Department of Architecture & Planning, University of Melbourne, Australia

2006

  • Gheerawo R & Myerson J. (2006) ‘Living Independently - Inspirational Kitchen and Bathroom Design for Older People’, 2nd Conference of International Association for Universal Design (IAUD), Kyoto, Japan
  • Myerson J. (2006) ‘Creative Discovery: What design schools can bring to innovation’. DesignEd Asia 2006, Hong Kong
  • Myerson J. (2006) ‘Using Inclusive Design to Sharpen the Competitive Edge of Innovation’, 4th Annual PDMA Conference, Managing the Front End of Innovation, Boston, USA
  • Myerson J & Ross P. (2006) Space To Work: New office design, Laurence King, London

2005

  • Myerson, J. (2005) ‘Designing for Inclusion’ in Capture It: A future workplace for the multi-generational knowledge worker, Vickers G. (ed) HHRC, RCA, London

2004

  • Myerson J. (2004) ‘After Modernism: The contemporary office environment’ in Interior Design and Identity, McKellar S & Sparke P (eds) Manchester University Press, Manchester. pp191-208
  • Myerson J. (2004) IDEO: Masters of Innovation (second edition) Laurence King, London
  • Myerson J. (2004) ‘Sensuality at Scale’ in Profile Pentagram Design, (ed) Yelavich S. Phaidon Press, London and New York. pp102-111
  • Myerson J. & Gheerawo R. (2004) ‘Inclusive Design in Practice: Working with industry’, Designing for the 21st Century III, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

2003

  • Coleman R, Lebbon C & Myerson J. (2003) ‘Design and Empathy’, Inclusive Design: design for the whole population, Springer Verlag, London, pp. 478-499
  • Myerson J. (2003) ‘Design pour Tous’. Design: carrefour des arts’, Guidot R (ed). Editions Flammarion, Paris. pp 350-375
  • Myerson J & Ross P. (2003) The 21st Century Office Laurence King, London

2002

  • Myerson J & Vickers G. (2002) Rewind: 40 years of design and advertising Phaidon, London
  • Myerson J. (2002) ‘Urban Focus: Northern soul’. Pride of Place. Ed Alex Stetter. Arts Council of England. ISBN: 902854 16 0 pp54-61

2001

  • Myerson J. (2001) IDEO: Masters of Innovation Laurence King, London. Co-editions: Teneues Publishing Co (US and Canada), Teneues Verlag (Germany).
  • Myerson J. (2001) ‘Introduction’ in The International Design Yearbook 2001. de Lucchi M (ed) Laurence King, London 87 pp6-7

2000

  • Myerson J. (2000) Making The Lowry, The Lowry Press, Salford

1999

  • Myerson J & Ross P (1999) The Creative Office Laurence King, London. Co-editions: Gingko Press (USA), Doubleday (US book club edition)
  • Myerson J. (1999) ‘Light, Air and the Modernist menu: Three London restaurants’ in Modernism and Modernization in Architecture, Castle H (ed). Academy Editions, Chichester pp36-41
  • Myerson J. (1999) ‘Murphy, Mass Production and Modernism: Gordon Russell 1929-40’ in Modern Britain 1929-1939, Peto J and Loveday D (eds), Design Museum, London. pp117-127

1998

  • Myerson J & Turner G (1998) New Workspace New Culture: Office design as a catalyst for change, Gower, Aldershot UK & Vermont USA
  • Myerson J. (1998) ‘Introduction’ in Design for Change: The Architecture of DEGW. Duffy F (ed), Watermark (Haselmere UK)/ Birkhauser (Basel, Boston, Berlin), 10-23
  • Myerson J. (1998) ‘Things to Enjoy: Reassessing craft and design objects in an age of technology’, in The Role of Product Design in Post-Industrial Society, Balcioglu T (ed) Kent Institute of Art and Design/ Middle East Technical University Faculty of Architecture Press, Ankara, Turkey, 59-76

1997

  • Myerson J. (1997) ‘Tornadoes, T-squares and Technology: Can computing be a craft?’ in The Culture of Craft, Dormer P. (ed) Manchester University Press Manchester and New York
  • Myerson J. (1997) ‘Introduction’ in Brand Identity for Television: With knobs on, by Lambie Nairn M. Phaidon Press, London, 7-16

1996

  • Myerson J. (1996) New Public Architecture, Laurence King, London
  • Myerson J. (1996) ‘Commentary’ in Beware Wet Paint: Designs by Alan Fletcher Phaidon Press, London

1992

  • Myerson J. (1992) Gordon Russell: Designer of Furniture 1892-1992 Design Council, London