Best of Show
SEE MONSTER
by Newsubstance
SEE MONSTER saw the repurposing of a disused oil rig on Weston-super-Mare beach as an installation which responded to a Government brief to showcase science, technology, engineering, art and maths (STEAM) as part of the Creativity in the UK festival.
Its designers delivered on this in an exceptional way. The idea of reimagining an oil rig as a cultural space is a world first according to Newsubstance which conceived, pitched, designed and delivered the project, recognised by our judges for its staggering ambition.
It is the winner of the exhibition category and did well in the Social Design category where it was highly commended.
Newsubstance collaborated with practitioners from across STEAM sectors to create the final experience, which demonstrates experiments in sustainable energy generation including a wild garden of plants and trees, irrigated by a solar-powered system on the rig.
A kinetic installation made up of 6,000 pieces showing the “monsters’ scales” and a 10m high waterfall help animate the structure, which also contains a broadcast station and a seated amphitheatre. Everything is designed to be physically accessible.
All the while the structure stands as a grand metaphor asking questions around reuse and regeneration, given that it would normally be recognised as a totem of fossil fuel production.
When Design Week spoke to Newsubstance founder and creative director Patrick O’Mahony at the time of launch, he spoke of the importance of “reuse as a principle” coupled with the Great British weather as a further theme of exploration.
Since then, 500,000 visitors are understood to have made their way to the SEE MONSTER from September to November 2022.
Our judges said: “Extremely impressive one-off project, with a team that made something very unique, bringing together a huge collaborative effort. Every part of the project links to the core messages. There’s so much to discover given the level of detail here and explorative elements. It’s also absolutely right that access was central to the design process.”
winner
