TRANSFORMING THE BRAND OF THE PRODUCTION INDUSTRY
Posted on 10 mars, 2015 by Reflection Company
Name: #RIWArts, Rebranding Industry With the Arts
Client: Chalmers
Artist: Linda Nordfors
Project Management: Maria Mebius-Schröder, TILLT
Vision: Contribute to a closer, cooler and cleaner industry, in Sweden and Europe.
In Short: There is a huge gap between how the industry describes themselves and how the next generation perceives the industry. It is essential to bridge that gap, as it is a hindrance in attracting the right skills for tomorrow. Getting the right competence is not primarily a question of competition, it is all about saving the world.
In 2030 they say that the global market of products and services will be twice as big as today*. To retain that good news we need to keep transforming the production industry. You probably already know why – in short, it is due to the fact that this planet is a limited resource. This art project is designed to make the production industry cleaner, cooler and closer. And it all starts with them having an honest, open and reflective dialogue with the next generation of industry workers. After all, the transformation will not take place without the engagement of young people. We will help the industry with that dialogue and in addressing the huge gap between how the industry perceives themselves and how young people perceives the industry. We believe that it is a step in the right direction. Do you agree?
#RIWArts stands for Rebranding Industry With the Arts. The mission is to, with art, create a communication concept that stimulates the dialog between the industry, society and the industry workers of tomorrow. The vision of #RIWArts is to contribute to a cleaner, cooler and closer industry together with the next generation of industry workers, in Sweden and Europe. The initiative is a cooperation between Chalmers, TILLT and Reflection Company. During 2014 we did research on the image of the Industry amongst the youth and the Industry themselves. RIWArts was presented to politicians and the public in Almedalen, Västsvenska Arenan in the summer 2014. From the research background Linda Nordfors created an idea of an art concept to fulfill the mission, a large-scale sculpture group with connected pedagogic material. The next step is to realize the idea in full scale during 2015 and 2016.
More about the mission:
The vision of #RIWArts is to contribute to a cleaner, cooler and closer industry together with the next generation of industry workers, in Sweden and Europe.
With closer we mean: Bring them home! Bring the factories and the production centers back to Europe, and keep the ones we have left. We also mean closer in mind, that the relationship between the idea of the industry, the Brand of it, and the employees of tomorrow, becomes more vivid, nuanced and up to date.
With cleaner we mean: Environmentally friendly and energy saving. If we are going to have factories in our own backyard, not only is the environmental effect more obvious to us all, we also have the practical means to create the best solutions possible.
With cooler we mean: That the brand of the Industry today suffers from an image that in many ways is old, untrue and insufficient. This, we believe, is a major barrier for young people in choosing the educational track that could make them the industry workers of tomorrow. And without the right kind of competence in Sweden and Europe, it is hard to bring the industry home.
In the words of the client:
”Art is a way to change the image of the Industry and a powerful tool for renewing old stereotypic pictures. Charlie Chaplin painted a dark picture of the industry of his time. The production of today looks very different and most industries in Sweden adress questions of sustainability on a social and environmental level with great urgency and competence. But the majority of the youth of today are not aware of this. And the fact that their image of the industry will effect how many there will be with the competence and skills needed in the future is evident. That is why we have created the #RIWArts project.”
/Professor Johan Stahre, Chalmers teknisk högskola (Chalmers University of Technology)
In the words of the artist:
”We have before us one of the biggest challenges for modern man. I am talking about the prediction that says that in 2030 there will be a global market of products and services that is twice the size of the market today. Twice the size.
That the market is growing is good news. It means that globally more people are living in a middle-class economy buying things that you and me take for granted to make life easier, better and funnier. To produce more creates opportunity for employment and taxes that contribute to more secure social structures in societies.
But – you get it, right?
It is not like the activity of human kind doesn’t leave its footprint on this earth today. And in 2030 we will produce twice as much!
It´s up to us to make this right now. We need to make sure that a growing market stays good news. And to make this happen the Industry need to keep changing, they need to attract people with great hearts and bright brains. And we can affect who will work in the industry tomorrow by addressing the image of the industry today.”
Related links
Made In Sweden 2030 (PDF)
Team:
Maria Mebius-Schröder och Johan Lundbladh TILLT www.tillt.se
Linda Nordfors, Reflection Company
Johan Stahre, professor, Chalmers Tekniska Högskola www.chalmers.se
