Key Points
- Public installation replaces an underpass barrier with ten concrete forms cast from tree moulds.
- Charcoal made from salvaged park wood is ground into the cement, creating a direct material link to place.
- Process is documented and shown outside gallery settings to reach broader audiences.
- Delivered through collaboration with community organisers, council and craft experts.
- Positions art as environmental commentary without didactic slogans—inviting curiosity over instruction.
Full interview with Marc Cowan
Can you share your design methodologies employed at Marc Cowan Studio?
I am often drawn to consider the wider societal impact or meaning within the work. Part of this methodology is in documenting the process to demystify the nature of art-making.
Alongside this, I prefer to present my work outside of a traditional gallery setting to reach audiences that might otherwise feel disconnected from the arts, with a belief that we are all intrinsically creative when we feel safe enough to do so.
Can you share an example of a project where Marc Cowan Studio's collaborative and experimental approach to process, materials, and storytelling truly pushed the boundaries of traditional artistic practices?
The project Carbon Copy is perhaps the work I feel gave me the best sense of balance between experimentation and storytelling in a context that reaches a wide audience. The premise of creating moulds from trees in a nearby park was to create a sort of sculptural signpost to the park in an unloved underpass that needed something to replace an old metal barrier.
Using charcoal produced from salvaged wood I had collected from the park, I then ground it down and mixed it with cement to incorporate a material link between the park and the ten concrete forms. A part of this story could be translated as a comment on how our ever-expanding urban landscape has an impact on the natural environment.
In terms of collaboration, as with all projects, there were many people involved in achieving the end result. Anthea Masey of Loughborough Junction Action Group and Southwark Council funded and drew up the parameters of the project. Ian Baldwin, the collier who introduced me to the process of charcoal-making over a satisfying couple of days in Suffolk. And then friends and companies who helped or advised on the project, specifically Staffan Gnosspelius, without which I wouldn’t have had the capacity (physical or mental) to complete them all.
Over the last 15 years of your career, how have you observed the relationship between design, fine art, and campaigns evolve in terms of their potential for social and cultural transformation?
There's a lot in that question. More than I feel qualified to answer, but there’s been a positive push in the overlap of design and campaigns if you look at the Extinction Rebellion movement for example. I think this has paved the way for a much more digestible and thought-out way of communicating important issues.
Having said that, as with any approach, I feel there’s a risk of them becoming normalised and somewhat generic once they’ve been around for a while. To keep up with an onslaught of media and visuals around us, the campaigns (and design) sector needs to keep looking beyond the status quo to find ways to grab people’s attention.
Personally, I see this as looking beyond the 2D format which is where the influence of fine art can offer insightful influence. A dinner party serving insects on plates made from mycelium as an alternative take to a ‘There is no Planet B’ placard for example. As with everything though, I don’t think there is any one or correct answer.
What advice would you give to emerging artists and designers who are passionate about using their creative practice as a catalyst for positive social impact?
Find other people to practically or psychologically support your ideas to allow you to maintain momentum. Don’t wait to be given the opportunity or funds to start something. It’s easier to get interested once you have something to show.
But don’t be afraid to ask for it either! Seek out avenues that might be relevant to your ideas or cause to get the ball rolling without being too prescriptive about where that comes from.
