2016 was the 500 year anniversary of Utopia – a term and concept developed by philosopher Thomas More in 1516. He believed the only true way to achieve such a place was to ‘dream in the now’. This was the starting point for London Dreaming, and it aimed to inspire Londoners to dream of a more creative future.

Throughout June 2016 this message came alive in a variety of engaging ways, starting with a Time Out cover and all building up to the opening weekend of the new Tate Modern.

We worked with interactive designers Studio PSK to devise an installation that took over an entire floor of the new Tate Modern Switch House building on the opening weekend.

As visitors arrived in the space they were each given a ribbon to attach to the future they most resonated with. In all, there were six futures, each one came in the shape of a large wind-blowing structure. As the ribbon votes added up, the structures became more and more colourful and energetic. Once a visitor had made their choice, they received a challenge card containing a playful brief to help make their future a reality.

A week before the new Tate Modern opened we organised an interactive London Dreaming installation at Here, It’s Nice That’s annual creative symposium. Visitors were invited to dream up an answer to questions such as ‘You’re a famous artist in the year 2160, what’s your most iconic piece of work?’ or ‘In the future, what object would you love to see invented?’. Their responses were then brought to life by some of London’s best illustrators and added to a purpose built gallery, celebrating people’s vision for a creative utopia!