Austin Houldsworth graduated from the Royal College of Arts with an MA in Design interaction; having previously studied Interactive Arts at Manchester Metropolitan University.
He strives to create solutions to the problems that are often neglected by industry; sometimes ‘fixing’ thing’s which physically speaking, are not ‘broken’.
To think of money as simply an exchange system belies the true extent of its history and the influence it can have on the way we think and behave.
The Future of Money Award is designed to act as a platform between the financial industry and creative practitioners. Giving designers and artists a chance to present there ideas to an audience of financial payment experts and industry leaders. Arguably there has been no greater time of financial uncertainty than today and no greater need of fresh ideas and imaginative insights.
The competitions website
http://futuremoneyaward.com/
In conjunction with Consult Hyperion’s Digital Money forum sponsored by Visa Europe, Barclaycard and Monitise
Since the creation of the first electronic payment system (the Western Union wire transfers based on the telegraph system back in 1870) money has steadily been transforming from a physical object to an electronic entity. The next stage of this process will focus on our pocket change, replacing metal coins and paper notes with electronic technologies; such as contactless, “near field” communication and microchips.
New monetary innovations, like most advances in technology, cite speed and efficiency as the main engine for change, with the goal of reducing costs, increasing productivity and therefore driving economic growth. Although these very practical goals are necessary, they can sometimes overgeneralise the complexities of our human condition and overlook more subtle idiosyncrasies which are at play while we deal with our personal finances.
We are now accepting entries for the 2012: Future of Money - Design Award.
We invite creative practitioners to employ a speculative design approach and imagine new electronic payment systems (based on real technology) which could help instill an increased awareness of our personal finances. Could new monetary technologies help facilitate a more meaningful financial transaction? What if our emotions could be expressed through our financial transactions? Will quick and easy payment systems inevitably lead to an increase in debt?
We are looking for ingenious inventions, captivating stories and speculative futures.