FIELD.IO
FIELD.IO
[Cover and Back cover] GF Smith, 10000 Digital Paintings, 2011
[Left Page] Deep Time, 2023
[Top Left] Adidas, Stan Smith MYLO™, 2020
[Top Right] Envision, Infinite Earth Song, 2022
[Bottom] IKEA Space 10, Everyday Experiments, 2021-2022
A CONVERSATION
WITH MAX PALMER, DESIGN LEAD, FIELD.IO, BERLIN.
For the world we’re living in now, brands need to be much more flexible and adaptable.
HOW WOULD YOU CHARACTERIZE THE WORK THAT FIELD DOES?
It’s really varied, but it seems to fall under the umbrella of ‘Experiential Design’. We are focused on creating real experiences that people can live through, whether it’s through new media art installations, interactive storytelling, gamified’ experiences, or finding ways to access these kinds of experiences through different brand touch points.
THE TECHNOLOGICAL-CREATIVE SPACE THAT FIELD.IO IS EXPLORING, IT’S BEEN CHANGING RAPIDLY OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, HASN’T IT?
It feels like, especially at the moment, there’s this huge technological-cultural shift under way,
with AI at the forefront. This is a unique moment to live through and be a part of. Everyone’s just trying to understand what it is, right? What exactly are we doing? Why are we doing it? There’s a lot of learning involved, and a lot of asking, ‘What is the future we want to aim towards?’
DO YOU FEEL LIKE ‘WE’ HAVE THE ABILITY TO DECIDE THE DIRECTION OF THIS SHIFT? DO WE HAVE REINS ON THE AI REVOLUTION?
Do we have reins on anything? Maybe we like to think that we do. We all play our own small parts and maybe, as a collective, we can begin to get reins on some things. But in reality, it’s hard to tell, because when we make our
decisions, we don’t know what the alternative would turn out like, so we don’t actually know what’s making a difference.
So, while I’d say we do have some control, do we want it completely? I think it’s also good to not try and control things too much. You have to let things take their course, let things unfold naturally and trust the process. The general application of thinking is really crucial for finding that right balance.
It’s like when you go to a concert, you’ve got to move with the crowd. There’s times where you want to push a little bit to get to the front, or you have to give way to let someone pass. Rarely do you want to stand rigidly on the spot and say ‘This is where I am. This is what I’m doing.’
CAN AI-ENHANCED TOOLS
HELP PEOPLE MAKE SENSE OF THE SOMETIMES BEWILDERING DIGITAL WORLD?
We talk about AI as if it’s one entity, but it’s such a broad spectrum of tools and applications. So, when we’re working with a client we need to find out what story they’re trying to tell, and how can we best accomplish that, using the tools we have available.
If it’s something technically dense like cyber security for IBM, we try to unpack this very complex subject matter, and then build that into
a narrative that’s accessible and engaging to experience. What you find is, if you look deep enough into anything, there’s always masses of interesting details to uncover.
We have to find the right tools to leverage those points. So it’s not just about jumping on AI because it’s the trendy thing. If there’s no place for AI, we don’t use it. But when it calls for it, we find it can unlock a lot more creative potential.
Not all of our work is super technical either. We deal with so many different projects. We’ve got work for Fairlight Cycles, for example, which is about the visceral experi -
ence of riding a bike. Alongside this you’ve got generative systems and spatial intelligence for high-end brands, but you’ve also got artsand culture-driven work and design research projects for day-to-day applications.
There’s an almost endless spectrum of things we’re dealing with and talking about. But it’s all coming from the same place – storytelling, creating these very experiential, human moments, all led by curiosity and exploration.
[Photos] IBM, Quantum Brand Visuals, 2023
Mindfully engaging in this divergent and convergent process in sequence helps keep things fresh and fun.
KAPSARC, Vision Wall (2016) - Generative artwork installation
Wonder is always there to be found.
FOR ALL THE CYCLISTS OUT THERE, WHAT DID YOU PUT TOGETHER FOR FAIRLIGHT?
This was actually the first project I worked on when I joined FIELD.IO in 2021, so of course it’s a favourite of mine! We were initially commissioned to create a decal pattern to go across the top tube of the upcoming Strael 3.0. We created this beautiful pattern that was driven by data on daylight hours on the four seasonal turning points, the equinoxes and the solstices. This yielded a graphic language that, in contrast to a lot of our work, was very flat and simple, made of little blocks and lines. The aim was to describe the bike as a technical instrument that unlocks a raw exposure to the natural elements.
We extrapolated this idea into a sort of brand toolkit for ongoing releases over the past year. The pattern would act as an entry point into an expressive brand language for all kinds of digital and physical applications: online teasers, design notes, merchandise etc. For the Secan 3.0, the new gravel model, we dove deep into how these little blocks and lines, when static and in motion, could convey vibration and transitions between surfaces. This resulted in the pattern feeling like a reactive organism that lives beyond – way beyond – the bike’s top tube.
YOU’RE BRINGING BROADER EXPERIENCE TO BEAR ON PARTICULAR THINGS, BRINGING THEM INTO CONTEXT?
Yes, and we’re very inspired by nature. Even in something as technical as cyber security, you can find connections to the core fundamentals of the living experience.
As human beings, even when exploring a modern, complex world, the ability to understand is rooted by our natural ability to process information through our senses. So it always feels like there’s a natural
solution to these problems when we’re presented with them. We can find a way to connect the subject, whatever it is, to the core of living.
A lot of the time, I think that’s why the work is so successful. Because, not just aesthetically, but conceptually, it resonates with people. You can say, “Wow, I didn’t know you could make something like an IT infrastructure look and behave like a beautiful sea anemone.”
It’s about finding ways to visually represent the subject in a more naturally engaging way. Things like that make these topics more accessible.
SO AS PEOPLE EXPLORE THE EXPERIENCE, THEY ABSORB THE MESSAGES VERY
NATURALLY?
Yes, exactly. The work provides this emotional entry point into a topic. No matter how small any given topic seems at first, it can be expanded out into something interesting. You just have to find that entry point.
We’ve all had moments where you’re talking to someone and they tell you about something they deeply care about and for the first time you realize it’s this whole expansive world. Finding that organic entry in our projects, it’s not a formula, it just happens naturally. And I think
[Top left] Fairlight Cycles, Instruments of Discovery, 2021-2025
[Top right] IBM, Observability Solutions (2025) - Visual metaphors, application service nodes
[Bottom] Fairlight Cycles, Instruments of Discovery 2021-2025 - Strael 4.0 and Secan 3.0 top tubes
having the space for that to happen is definitely down to the team. We have a really great team.
FIELD.IO IS BASED IN LONDON AND BERLIN, RIGHT?
Yes, that’s right. What started as 2 people in London in 2009 has grown quite a lot, particularly over the past year. There are about 40 of us in London, Berlin and scattered remotely in Europe: Amsterdam, Vienna, Barcelona, Copenhagen, the list is growing…
It’s a really diverse team too, in terms of cultural and educational backgrounds. There are generalist graphic designers, UI/UX designers, motion designers, 3D artists, frontend developers, back-end engineers. Then there are producers, directors and strategists...
Because of that diversity, we can really craft something from start to finish. From ideation and creative vision, all the way up to integration and final delivery. It’s a very special thing. And it’s aided by such a strong studio culture that is hungry for knowledge. We share research and findings in all different fields beyond just art and design, and again that more holistic coverage just makes for stronger work.
That is at the core of everything we do, trying to find and inspire wonder.
It could be that the role of the artist is shifting away from being the end-to-end craftsman, and instead they’re becoming like a tinkerer or curator.
[Right
Page] Fairlight Cycles, Instruments of Discovery, 2021-2025
YOUR WORK FOR GF SMITH IS AN INTERESTING ONE, COMBINING GENERATIVE ART WITH SUCH A TRADITIONAL MATERIALS BRAND. HOW DO YOU THINK OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GENERATIVE MACHINE LEARNING AND ART?
This was a very early project, but it was spawned from the same drive that took FIELD.IO off in the first place – curiosity and exploration at the intersection between art and technology.
Generative art itself is such an interesting thing, though. With or
without AI, it still ultimately takes a creative mind to set parameters and limitations. The generative aspect just means that more and faster outputs are possible from one pair of hands. The same pair of hands that sets it so the outputs are cohesive.
On the other end, there’s this necessary step of intervention where we moderate and curate those outputs. Generative output isn’t necessarily right the first time. Just by the nature of it, it’s unpredictable. But there’s something about that controlled randomness which is really special. It can feel more experimental and playful. And when there is machine learning involved, you and the machine are learning together. That’s some powerful collaboration.
We can debate whether the machine could ever be the artist. It’s an interesting philosophical question, but there’s no clear answer. It could be that the role of the artist is shifting away from being the end-to-end craftsman, and instead they’re becoming like a tinkerer or curator.
The outcome is still artful, regardless. For example, anyone can access MidJourney and make an image. But you can tell when someone is good at it. Some people on our team are getting better and better all the time. At the end of the day, you learn and understand it as a tool, like anything else.
When you’re faced with the fact that AI is shaping the landscape, the question becomes, how do we adapt? How do you shift your role slightly so you can still be the one in the driver’s seat? I think getting to that point is really dependent on developing and
You’re not just creating randomly, you’re creating with a purpose.
sharing the right knowledge, that is just absolutely crucial.
THE INCREASED VOLUME OF WORK THAT AN AI CAN HANDLE, PLUS THE RANDOMNESS, DOES THAT GIVE YOU ACCESS TO MORE OF THAT CREATIVE FAVORITE, THE HAPPY ACCIDENT?
Our need to control can be a bit of a downfall. I think it can very much limit the best work. Take a generative system, or a generative tool, which just pumps out a bunch of beautiful images of the
sky, for example. If you’re thinking, “I want a sunset.” If you’re fixated on that vision, you’re going to miss the other stuff that’s coming out. A sunrise, maybe. Embracing those surprises, and often mistakes or accidents, is crucial to a solid process.
[Left] GF Smith, 10000 Digital Paintings, 2011
Too much control and you also stop yourself from having fun. And that’s what it’s really about, isn’t it? When we’re busy with deadlines, there’s this constant cycle of input and output, we can lose sight of why we’re doing all this, why you became a designer.
This sense of playfulness is so important. We’re building an experience so that someone can come to a space, walk through a room, touch some things, and have a really nice moment. That’s excellent. But for me, just as important is the experience of the people making the thing.
So, it’s essential to consider, who are we putting on a team? What minds are we bringing together? How are they going to bounce ideas off each other in a way that feels beneficial to the project and each individual workflow? Will they feel
good about what they’re doing? Not only is this going to make the best work, but it’s going to leave the team feeling more fulfilled and happy.
DOES THAT ENTHUSIASM SOMEHOW FEED THROUGH TO THE FINAL OUTPUT?
I noticed that if the team’s feeling good and we’re having fun, it feels like the work is getting better.
On the other hand, if you’re up against it, things aren’t aligning, and you’re not too happy, the work’s not as good. At that point, you can focus all your energy on trying to make the thing better. But then sometimes it makes more sense to just take a step back and ask, ‘how are we feeling?’
In the middle of projects, when we reach a milestone or something, we often pause and have a bit of
a retro session, just to check in. ‘What’s been working so far? What hasn’t been working? What can we do better moving forward?’ Classic retro questions.
Having daily check-ins is crucial as well. To come together in the morning to keep track of where everyone is up to, sure, but you also have these nice moments to catch up about food, weather and exercise. The process would be a lot less enjoyable if this didn’t happen. What you may perceive as ‘irrelevant’ is actually more relevant than pushing too hard to ‘get the job done’. What may subtract time may actually add to overall quality. [Top] Scalable Storytelling, 2024 [Right] KAPSARC, Vision Wall, 2016
HOW DOES ‘INNOVATION’ FIT INTO ALL OF THIS?
In terms of being innovative, it’s really about taking risks, and trusting the process that comes as a result of that risk. If I have an idea, but I need to see data to back it up before I commit, maybe it’s not truly innovative, because the data suggests that thing already exists.
The reality of trying to be innovative, is that it’s like sailing on uncharted waters. It can be really treacherous. Maybe you don’t know where you’re going all of the time, but you’ve got a gut feeling and you’re trusting it to take you wherever you need to be. You’re
looking beyond what already exists towards what’s possible. What do we have that we can combine? What can we add that’s new? What can we subtract to spark the next step?
Innovation hangs on that feeling of having fun and being inspired. That’s how the best stuff happens. Using this playful approach, letting loose and just seeing what comes up, just like a child... You obviously have to stay mindful of timelines and results though, so maybe on the next beat we put our adult hats back on and set some challenging limitations.
Mindfully engaging in this divergent and convergent process in
sequence helps keep things fresh and fun. It keeps that inspiration flowing. We just need to break out, or we need to pull it back in. We’re not reaching these stagnant pockets, meanwhile making sure we catch the best bits and refine them in the right way towards our goal. If it’s innovation we’re after, maybe we don’t know what that goal really is, but that’s okay! It’s all part of the fun!
AND WHEN THERE ARE NO TOOLS, YOU MAKE YOUR OWN, AS YOU DID WITH YOUR SCALABLE STORYTELLING PROJECT?
This was a really interesting one. We developed this generative tool
Innovation hangs on that feeling of having fun and being inspired.
that could break down visual libraries and translate them into bespoke identity systems, and we did it fast!
The exercise was born of an observation I think many studios are making about the realm of design for brands. The world is moving too fast for brands to create static, ‘one and done’ guidelines for images that have any hope of longevity. Often, that means a lot of work essentially goes in the bin.
For the world we’re living in now, brands need to be much more flexible and adaptable. They need to evolve to a wide range of outputs and touch points over time with less rigidity, more fluidity. So the concept for this project was a brand tool that understands the language and the world of the brand, and creates visuals in line with that understanding.
So, here we are again, setting the parameters, defining the limitations, the inputs and the process,
and then making sure those things are aligned with the brand intentions. There’s less need to dive into how to use the logo and when or when not to use what color. And instead, the brand has a tool they can just play with, and create output that always feels relevant and practical for the problem they’re trying to solve.
This tool-oriented route enables evolution in the artworks, so they always feel fresh and culturally relevant. And the tool can always evolve too. You can push updates so it understands things a little differently, all the while staying anchored by the brand heritage, its original aesthetic, and the desires and the needs of the target audience.
You’re not just creating randomly, you’re creating with a purpose.
RISK AND INNOVATION GO HAND IN HAND. IS THAT HOW WE DISCOVER WONDERFUL THINGS?
Wonder is always there to be found. We can get so focused on a particular vision that we miss something simple that’s right next to us. Like looking out the window and just catching a glimpse of a bird in flight, or feeling the perfect combination of wind and sun when you’re out on a hike. These are the most beautiful moments. It’s tricky to put words on what that is exactly, but we all know it. That is at the core of everything we do, trying to find and inspire wonder.
A lot of the brands we work with, they notice that less and less wonder and joy is happening. Online, in social media feeds, there’s a constant barrage of noise and content. It’s just impossible to compete
against that. You know, you can spend so long on something and in the end, it will just disappear into that flood of ‘stuff.’ It’s so full, but it’s also kind of empty.
So a lot of this work in Experiential Design is trying to create very physical, individual
moments that resonate with people and inspire them.
In a world so stunned by this confusing noise, wonder is what clips through all that. Whether it’s for a brand or an exhibition space, we are striving to tap into that core human experience to create
a memorable moment, to create a lasting impression, to spark people to do something great, to keep that creative cycle moving.
Open up to curiosity, and you’ll find what you’re looking for.
[Left Page] Barbican, Together: the distance between (us), 2021 [Top] Jaguar Land Rover, What moves you?, 2022 [Right] Wired, System Aesthetics, 2018
You’re looking beyond what already exists towards what’s possible.
Design Friends would like to thank all their members and partners for their support.
COLOPHON
PUBLISHER Design Friends
COORDINATION Heike Fries
LAYOUT Zoë Mondloch
INTERVIEW Mark Penfold
PRINT Imprimerie Schlimé
PRINT RUN 250 (Limited edition)
ISBN 978-2-919829-09-5
PRICE 5 €
DESIGN FRIENDS
Association sans but lucratif (Luxembourg)
BOARDMEMBERS
Anabel Witry (President)
Guido Kröger (Treasurer)
Heike Fries (Secretary)
Vera Heliodoro, Reza Kianpour, Hyunggyu Kim (Members)
COUNSELORS
Zoë Mondloch, Hyder Razvi, Olga Silva, Silvano Vidale
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This catalogue is published for the lecture of FIELD.IO „Imagining the unseen – new metaphors for future technologies.” at Mudam Luxembourg on May 14, 2025 organised by Design Friends.
