Innovation in a creative production system: the case of design
Innovation in a creative production system: the case of design
This paper addresses the relatively neglected issue of variations in the degree of innovation and creativity within cultural production systems – paying particular attention to the design industries. It is argued that previous studies have paid too much attention to place-based creative buzz, thereby downplaying the business ecosystems and firm architectures that drive innovation. Design emerges from interactions between different sites that synthesize and recombine knowledge so as to produce emergent effects and new designs. These processes can best be encapsulated by the metaphor of the ‘creative broker’ and mean that individual agency cannot be reduced to networks or relations. Consequently, design centres tend to display significant differences from industrial districts. Unlike industrial districts, non-market relations are relatively unimportant compared with market relations, and there is little evidence of institutional thickness.
675-698
Sunley, Peter
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Pinch, Steven
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Reimer, Suzanne
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Macmillen, James
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September 2008
Sunley, Peter
a3efb579-965f-4f39-812e-9e07caf15afd
Pinch, Steven
39982453-bdf8-4686-8018-b5b8b2030c6a
Reimer, Suzanne
d6594766-1967-4439-a8bb-14e52a6e2f5f
Macmillen, James
13358f4e-d4a5-4aa9-954f-d533d46a8e86
Sunley, Peter, Pinch, Steven, Reimer, Suzanne and Macmillen, James
(2008)
Innovation in a creative production system: the case of design.
Journal of Economic Geography, 8 (5), .
(doi:10.1093/jeg/lbn028).
Abstract
This paper addresses the relatively neglected issue of variations in the degree of innovation and creativity within cultural production systems – paying particular attention to the design industries. It is argued that previous studies have paid too much attention to place-based creative buzz, thereby downplaying the business ecosystems and firm architectures that drive innovation. Design emerges from interactions between different sites that synthesize and recombine knowledge so as to produce emergent effects and new designs. These processes can best be encapsulated by the metaphor of the ‘creative broker’ and mean that individual agency cannot be reduced to networks or relations. Consequently, design centres tend to display significant differences from industrial districts. Unlike industrial districts, non-market relations are relatively unimportant compared with market relations, and there is little evidence of institutional thickness.
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e-pub ahead of print date: 25 July 2008
Published date: September 2008
Organisations:
Economy Culture & Space
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Local EPrints ID: 65972
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/65972
ISSN: 1468-2702
PURE UUID: e588cd49-1efb-487e-977d-0367b43733cb
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Date deposited: 16 Apr 2009
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 02:48
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Author:
James Macmillen
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