ArtRabbit exhibition. Pic: The Proud Archivist
Unseen designs for lava lamps, Superman and more will go on display next week at a new exhibition showcasing some of modern history’s defining moments.
The Eureka Moments exhibition opens November 25 at the Proud Archivist in Shoreditch and includes original sketches and notes from the innovators behind the Shanghai Tower, Hello Kitty and Dennis the Menace.
Curated by inventor-in-residence at the Science Museum, Mark Champkin, in collaboration with O2, the exhibition explores the creative processes employed by designers, architects and animators alike to bring about that “eureka moment”.
Items on display include the initial 1950s drawings for the character that became Dennis the Menace, Andrew Ainsworth’s original pencil sketches of Superman and concept designs of the Brompton Bicycle.
Champkin said: “O2’s Eureka Moments exhibition is a celebration of some of the great creative visionaries of recent times and we hope it inspires people to have their own “eureka” moments”.
He added: “From a personal perspective a rare and elusive “eureka moment” is the flash of inspiration that comes as ideas or concepts that I have been mulling over fuse together to form something totally new and exciting. It is the thrill of turning over a new idea in my mind, inspecting it from different perspectives and then seeking to make it real.”
“There is little better than being able to express human ingenuity in a way that is beneficial to others and can change the world around us. To me, that’s what a Eureka moment is.”
Also featured is what organisers have called the “Most Creative Room in the World”. The room uses some of the latest research on the science of creative thinking, providing the visitor with optimum colour, lighting, smell, sound and taste to induce original thought.
The exhibition includes a bath where visitors can hope to strike upon their own Eureka moment, just like Archimedes himself.
Eureka Moments is part of a two-week series that includes creative breakfasts, trend salons, comedy nights, supper club, mixology lessons and a game design night. It runs until December 7 and is open from 9:00am-6:00pm.
