Week 2

My city

Milton Keynes has a revolutionary grid system, set up with “V” vertical and “H” horizontal roads. This means there are a lot of roundabouts and junctions, with surrounding green space and Redways. It’s built this way to divert traffic and enables safety for pedestrians.

Milton Keynes is truly unique by design. It’s the only UK city has been specifically designed for business growth from its very inception. One of the UK’s fastest growing cities that offers people a great place to live, work and visit, and is home to over 14,000 businesses.

  • UK Autodrive
  • Starship
Pioneering technology: UK Autodrive is the first driverless taxi in Milton Keynes transporting people from the railway station to city centre. Starship robots transport food from the local Co-Op to residents in Milton Keynes.

The history…

The transition of Milton Keynes in 64 years (above).

Historically, the timeline for Graphic Design evolution:
1965-1970 – Psychedelia
1975-1985 – Punk
1972-1995 – Postmodernism
1990-2020 – Digital Revolution

Four key evolutionary design steps in Milton Keynes history:
1) 1967 – Iconic grid design which has been revolutionary to reduce congestion
2) 1979 – Shopping centre that was the first shopping mall in UK
3) 1985 – The Point that was the first multiplex cinema in UK
4) 1999 – MK theatre and gallery opened

These four I have chosen translate as MK being “innovative” and ahead of its time.

Milton Keynes is a new city, therefore there is not much history. Initially, I found this hard to explore. I have looked at the timeline above and tried to find anything design/art related in this time, but have found very little aside from sculptures. The predominant result in all of my internet searches and articles, is architecture. It seems Milton Keynes has a reputation as being a “concrete city” and therefore has excelled in the design elements in architecture. Prestigious company head offices are based here, including large automotive businesses. It is a city which hosts a large number of jobs for residents, and is a short commute to London.

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