The Creative Bridge Podcast

This weeks episode features Paolo Ciarrocca from Kin. He was on the very first cohort of Creative Bridge, and sits firmly in the tech camp of the creative industries. He’s been an invaluable mentor for non technical folks interested in scoping out building software, and mentored many Creative Bridge alumni. He has also retrained as a counsellor, and in this episode Oli and Paolo talk a lot about the impact of tech on mental health - how we can build better products that put the human first, and don’t create stress or anxiety for the user.

Paolo Ciarrocca is the co-founder of Kin, a web studio that specialises in building human-friendly websites and web applications that work for everyone, everywhere.

He is an "old internet person" nearing his 30th anniversary of being online and started coding not long after that. Having seen a number of "Next Big Things", "too big to fails", "One True Ways" come and go, he focuses on the human side of tech with a particular focus on mental health and accessibility.

We love stories like Laura’s - a background in fashion and art, now finding herself in a startup that creates electronic skin. In this episode we hear how Laura ended up doing this - how hard work and throwing yourself into learning every day is crucial. There’s also discussion to the Scottish technology ecosystem, how welcoming everyone is, and how sometimes moving slower is better.

Laura is currently the Chief Design Officer at Touchlab where she manages the final product development stage and testing of prototypes as well as working closely with the sensor design, routing and integration. Laura has experience as a product designer in technology start-ups as well as materials in construction. She has a background in art sculpture and design. Laura has professional experience in tailor-made production using different materials such as textiles and composites. She has developed a broad academic curriculum being part of many institutions around Europe such as University of Barcelona, Aalto University, Central Saint Martins and the University of Edinburgh where she obtained her Master’s degree.

This week Oli is chatting with Rebecca Kaye from Ploterre. Becky’s work draws on both her maths and design backgrounds to create visual art using environmental data. They talk about the project, how it came into being and what the future holds. They then ramble off into a discussion of what community means to people in 2021 - how we’ve found our digital tribes and what that means for local ecosystems. They also talk about grant funding (and how to get it), and finding a true purpose in what you do.

To read more about Ploterre and see Becky’s work, head to https://www.ploterre.com.

Rebecca J Kaye is a designer and image maker based in Scotland whose professional journey began in mathematics. She works under the moniker of Ploterre to explore the natural world through design and mathematics by creating visuals based on environmental data.

Covid-19 has sent a shockwave through the world of theatre. As curtains have fallen and venues have closed their doors, the future looks uncertain for many in the industry. Craig Fleming was one of those people working in theatre who saw work disappear overnight. But the unexpected space has given him time to work on his other project: collaboration platform Centrline.

From his decades of experience working in Scottish theatre, Craig’s gained a deep understanding of many of the logistical and data-sharing problems facing the industry. Seeing the chance to fix a few longstanding issues, Centrline was born.

In this episode, Yasmin chats to Craig about his journey and the a-ha moments that led to Centrline. They also talk about entrepreneurship more broadly - what it means to found a company and be part of a community.

Changing sector dynamic, outdated systems and silo working are all preventing the performing arts from reaching their true potential. Centrline is a new producing and collaboration platform which aims to transform how arts organisations, artists and the predominantly freelance workforce work together and share resources. Co-founder Craig Fleming draws from two decades of managing national and international touring productions to create this solution which will unite the sector to recover, grow and prosper post Covid-19.

Many of us have spent much of our lives sharing a physical space for our work. Whether you’re in a startup balancing your laptop on a rickety IKEA desk, or at a corporate with brand identity dripping off every wall, your environment ends up influencing your culture. ArtThou asks: What if you could take what’s important to your company values, and create a space that is truly reflective of who you are? A space that invites the work of contemporary artists to make it something truly special, and provide a stable income for the artists who create that work.

In this episode we talk all about ArtThou, but also more broadly the role of tech in art, the proliferation of nocode tools that can help artists, and helping startups understand why art fits into their organisation.

Hugo Barclay is the founder of ArtThou, a platform where collectors and corporates access some of the most sought-after contemporary artists.

Hugo started his career in direct sales almost a decade ago, and carved a niche at the cross-section of B2B SaaS technology and the arts. Previously a sales leader for VC funded; Artsy, Global Data Plc and an artist agent for a London based creative agency.

He has lived and worked in four continents, currently based between Edinburgh and London where he leads ArtThou’s remote-first team, challenging the status quo of the traditional gallery model.

Hugo is an active member of the tech community in Edinburgh, a Creative Informatics programme alumni, an amateur triathlete and ambassador for Sundried sports apparel. 

From collapsing advertising models to siloed audiences, the publishing industry has been flailing since long before Covid-19 came along. That’s why Jennifer Crichton, founder of new women’s platform The Flock, is so intent of finding a new business model for magazines that works for journalists and audiences - in particular for smart, ethically-minded women over 35, who are so underserved by the industry.

In this first episode of the Creative Bridge podcast, we chat to Jennifer about the ups and downs of her journalism career in the UK and the UAE, and what it was like starting up a new magazine at the beginning of the pandemic.

Jennifer Crichton is a journalist, editor and the founder of The Flock, an advertising-free digital magazine for women founded in June 2020. The platform recently won the Start Up prize at the Creative Edinburgh Awards 2020, and was longlisted for this month’s UN Women Awards.