The Winchester School of Art Global Smart Lab was established to advance research at the interface of art and design with respect to smart technologies, experiences and living. Ranging across the domains of health, well-being, education, learning and leisure, the Lab is focused on core challenges relating to the futures of AI, AR and VR, social and smart technologies, inclusivity, data culture and sustainability. In order to address real-world problems and challenges, we encouraged multidisciplinary collaborations and provided our students with opportunities to engage with world-leading researchers, external partners and end users.

The Design for Future Exhibition is based on six student live projects at Global Smart Lab and two research projects at the Design Department at Winchester School of Art, University of Southampton. In these projects, our students and staff worked with expertise from a variety of disciplines, including design, engineering, computer sciences, psychology, health sciences, cultural heritage and museum studies, exploring how smart technologies can be applied to improve people’s quality of life and make our society more inclusive.