In the Studio with Zoë Barrett and Patrick Eley

delving into WAYFINDING for BBC World Service

Client: BBC World Service / BBC Sounds

Brief: An edition of The Documentary: In the Studio exploring the world of wayfinding design

Tandem process: Tandem discovered Zoë Barrett and Patrick Eley at the design house DNCO in London. We  booked comedian and writer Tony Hawks to present the programme and conduct a series of interviews with Zoë and Patrick at various locations. We edited the show and added music and final links with Tony. The finished programme was mixed and delivered for global broadcast on BBC platforms.

Project

Wayfinding experts Zoë Barrett and Patrick Eley have a unique way of thinking about space. They know just how to guide people from A to B with ease, no matter how higgledy-piggledy the building or complex the environment. They consider every detail of their work carefully, with aspects such as shape, colour, typeface, graphic design, materials and iconography forming an integral part of their strategically placed signage and maps. Their job is to make sense of confusion with beautiful, simple, modern designs and attractive invitations to ‘walk this way’.

Tandem wanted to represent some of the projects Zoë and Patrick are currently undertaking - an aural work-in-progress snapshot. Comedian and writer Tony Hawks (author of Round Ireland with a Fridge) met them first at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London where they had previously mapped out, developed and produced the signage for visitors to follow. He then found them at their design studios under the shadow of The Shard near London Bridge. There we recorded several interviews over the course of a few weeks, during which wayfinding designs for a museum in Paisley in Scotland took shape. 

The result is an introduction to a world not many people either know or think about, but which we have all experienced. An example of an audio programme that can change the way we think about some aspects of everyday life. 

The programme was broadcast on BBC World Service and remains as a podcast on BBC Sounds and the BBC World Service website.