Cabinets of Curiosities | Shoreditch Design Triangle: CO ‘X x anatomē
CO ‘X
Founded in 2020, CO' X is a multi-disciplinary collective with a shared passion for working together with clients and communities to create magical and practical design solutions. They pursue socially useful design that generates a connection to the places within which we inhabit.
Frequent onRedchurch collaborators, CO ‘X originated the idea for Cabinets of Curiosities with their Common Rooms project for the ShopSmart competition. Here they discuss what inspires them about Shoreditch, and explain how good design always reflects the community in which it is created.
What inspiration do you draw from Shoreditch?
We are inspired by the layers of culture and heritage that exist in this vibrant area of London. With its creative use of live/work spaces spanning the generations, from weavers to artists. We use this inspiration to think about how future spaces can be inhibited and bring life to the streets.
Does your work reflect your community and if so, in what way?
As a multi-disciplinary collective with a shared passion for working collaboratively with clients and communities. Our work is only successful if it reflects the communities and character of the place with which we engage.
We achieve this by opening up the design process to test continuously what form our architectural and design practice should take; self-built, self-initiated or collective projects.
In Shoreditch, we saw the challenge of gentrification. Where new businesses move in, rents go up and the original inhabitants, who gave the place its character, are priced out of the area. Hence we proposed a solution of Cabinets of Curiosity - an affordable space for emerging creatives and entrepreneurs in the area to promote their works and flourish alongside established brands.
If you could collaborate with any Shoreditch-based artist - past or present, living or dead - who would you choose and why?
We would want them all, collectively each of their stories is a valuable source of inspiration for current and future residents
anatomē
Brendan Murdock - anatomē founder - is passionate about the apothecaries of old that dispensed herbal remedies, potions and lotions to support health and wellbeing. Working with botanicals and essential oils for many years and through his creative passions and interest in food, perfume and skincare he has a deep desire to update and reinvent the apothecary for a new generation.
The result is anatomē, a place you can visit not only to shop for the finest products he and his team have developed, but also to speak to health practitioners and receive advice and the strategies you need to support your wellbeing.
Cabinets of Curiosities is a project for Shoreditch Design Triangle, a cultural event that celebrates the creative industry in East London.
it was established in 2008 as a vehicle for the designers, companies, and institutions situated in the East End to collaborate on the promotion of their activities during the London Design Festival.
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