Rebecca Clulow
Macclesfield, England
Project Question
How can design help to uncover and reveal the hidden history of my locality?
Aim and Objective
1. Collaborate with local museums to ensure history is accessible outside of exhibition spaces and museum storage.
2. Digitise local historical offerings through an online interactive archive.
3. Create a fun and vibrant community that is passionate about the sharing of local history.
4. Increase knowledge of local history, highlighting both the positive and the negative sides of the story.
5. Ensure sufficient recording of our current era to prevent gaps in our future recorded history.
Final Outcome
Captured in Time is a not-for-profit organisation focused on the exploration and preservation of local culture and history. We offer a digital archive of Macclesfield’s history, making unseen documents stored in the Macclesfield Museum’s storeroom, as well as donations from the public, available online for members of the public to enjoy. We are keen explorers of Macclesfield’s heritage and are passionate about digitising our found local knowledge to allow easy accessibility and searchability of moments both past and present for future generations to enjoy.
With a primary aim of eliminating further gaps in our recorded historical story, community projects and collaborations with local volunteers, museums, and key stakeholders are the driving force of our success.
Our website houses the outcomes and research documents used for each community project, as well as hosting the interactive photograph map which showcases archived photos of Macclesfield in their relevant locations using Google Earth technology.
How has your practice developed while studying the MA in Graphic Design with a global cohort?
Before starting the course I had exclusively designed for pharmaceutical companies which meant I had not yet found the design path that I am most passionate about.
Whilst studying with Falmouth Flexible I have discovered a huge interest in local histories and have loved learning about many local historical stories I was unaware of before starting the course. I love to use design to help educate people and have found a gap in the design market in my hometown which means I have made many invaluable contacts that will help with paid collaborations in my future practice.
I have a much deeper understanding of design fundamentals since studying the course and have gained a global insight on local cultures from my fellow students. Mostly, I have gained confidence in my own skills and feel the course has opened up doors to new opportunities that were not there before the course.