The impact of building a creative community - Simon Wright and Richard Wiggins (All Flows)

"It wasn't until I returned that I began to understand the city a little bit more and see it in a slightly different way." - Simon Wright 

This episode features Simon Wright and Richard Wiggins, the founders of All Flows, a creative festival in Milton Keynes. They discuss their journey from hosting Milton Keynes Geek Night to launching All Flows festival, their creative agency Ville, and their dedication to championing Milton Keynes' unique design heritage. 

Despite being a relatively young city, Milton Keynes has a rich history of using arts to build community, with radical approaches to urban design that attracted influential architects and designers. Simon and Richard share their passion for creating intimate, inspirational events that connect international creatives with local talent, highlighting their commitment to quality programming and community building over commercial success.

Takeaways

• Milton Keynes, despite being only 56 years old, has a rich design heritage that included contributions from figures like Buckminster Fuller.
• All Flows began as a passion project between two friends who wanted to create the kind of creative event they'd want to attend.
• The founders intentionally keep All Flows intimate to foster meaningful connections between speakers and attendees.
• Both Simon and Richard are driven more by passion than commercial interests, prioritizing quality and inspiration over profit.
• Their curation process involves researching speakers extensively and creating a balanced program that mixes established names with emerging talents.
• Student involvement through scholarships and volunteering is a key part of their mission to inspire the next generation of local creatives.
• The venue challenges in Milton Keynes have shaped the festival's character rather than deterring its growth.
• The festival has gained international recognition, with attendees traveling from as far as Michigan and New Zealand.
• All Flows is now included in Milton Keynes' five-year cultural and tech strategy, signifying its importance to the city.
• The founders see All Flows as continuing Milton Keynes' legacy of using arts and creativity to build community and create a sense of place.

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