Burberry : Professor Sharon Baurley appointed Chair of the Burberry Material Futures Group

The Burberry Foundation and Royal College of Art today announce the appointment of Professor Sharon Baurley as Professor of Design and Materials and Chair of the Burberry Material Futures Research Group.

The Group is the first explicit 'STEAM' research initiative at an art and design university, and was announced in 2017 following an award of £3 million from the Burberry Foundation. The Group will apply radical thinking to invent new sustainable materials, transform consumer experience and advance manufacturing to benefit the whole industry and wider community.

Informed by her industry-focused experience, ranging from smart materials to the impact of new technologies on the future of manufacturing, Professor Baurley will define the research agenda of the Group. She will also lead the commercial and practical application of the outcomes through collaboration with industry partners.

Professor Baurley has been a Research Professor at the RCA since 2016, where she also completed her PhD in Textile Design. Her work consulting with industry includes Courtaulds Textiles, Marks & Spencer, Unilever, Design Intelligence and Mantero.

Professor Baurley said: 'It's very exciting to have the opportunity to build the Burberry Material Futures Research Group into an internationally leading centre in research and innovation in design and materials that contributes to building a future of sustainable design and production. I look forward to bringing my professorial leadership skills that can synthesise across Design and STEM to advance the RCA's STEAM agenda by developing researchers and students to occupy this unique cognitive space.'

Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Naren Barfield said: 'With a track record in research that covers the full range across design, materials, engineering electronics and computer science, Professor Baurley is the ideal person to provide intellectual and academic leadership to the Burberry Material Futures Research Group.

'I am delighted to welcome Sharon to lead this new and exciting initiative, as the RCA delivers its vision to undertake research and develop new programmes at the interface of design, science, technology and engineering. Professor Baurley's deep understanding of the UK and global research landscape, and exemplary record, will be invaluable in leading a team of researchers and doctoral students to address the challenges of material futures in the twenty-first century, and will provide inspiration to new researchers, students and our research partners.'

Leanne Wood, Burberry's Chief People, Strategy & Corporate Affairs Officer, and trustee of the Burberry Foundation, said: 'We are delighted that Professor Sharon Baurley has been appointed Chair of the Burberry Material Futures Research Group. The Group was created to find ways to build a more sustainable future and we are excited to see the advances in material science that will be achieved under her leadership.'

The Burberry Material Futures Research Group will act as a 'virtual' centre until it officially opens its doors in 2020 at the new RCA campus and will pave the way for the establishment of the future RCA Materials Science Research Centre.

Notes to Editors

The Royal College of Art

Engaging in teaching and research, the Royal College of Art was recently named the world's leading university of art and design in the prestigious QS World University Subject Rankings 2018 for the fourth consecutive year. It offers the degrees of MA, MRes, MPhil and PhD across the disciplines of applied art, architecture, fine art, design, communications and humanities.

It offers 28 highly specialised programmes in Art & Design to over 2,000 Master's and Doctoral students and more than 800 professionals interacting with them - including researchers, professors, art and design practitioners, along with advisers and distinguished visitors.

Burberry

Burberry is a global fashion house built on a history of material innovation. In 1879 Thomas Burberry invented Gabardine, a water-repellent, hard wearing but breathable fabric, which was then applied to garments for polar explorers, such as Roald Amundsen and Ernest Shackleton, as well as aviation garments and the eponymous trench coat worn by British officers during the First World War.

The Burberry Foundation

The Burberry Foundation was set up in 2008 by Burberry Group plc as an independent charity (UK registered charity number 1154468) for general charitable purposes and grant-making.

The Burberry Foundation and the Royal College of Art

The Burberry Foundation awarded a £3 million grant to the RCA to create the Burberry Material Futures Research Group. Grounded in design and the creative arts but integrated with science, the Group will generate cutting-edge research of the sustainable future of materials, consumer experience and manufacturing for the whole industry and to the benefit of the wider community. The Group will act as a 'virtual' centre until it officially opens its doors in 2020 at the new RCA campus and will pave the way for the establishment of the future RCA Materials Science Research Centre.

This grant from the Burberry Foundation also includes £750,000 to support the existing Burberry Design Scholarship scheme at the RCA which was created in 2011 to nurture and support creative talent. This additional funding from the Burberry Foundation will expand the scheme which is already supported by funds from Burberry Group plc and will see the scholarship support around an additional 30 UK/EU students in total.

Professor Sharon Baurley

Professor Baurley was Head of Industrial Design at Zürcher Hochschule der Künste / Zürich University of the Arts (ZHdK), Head of Design Products at the RCA, Head of Design in the School of Engineering & Design at Brunel University, and was Reader at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design (UAL). Her industry consultations include Courtaulds Textiles, Marks & Spencer, Unilever, Design Intelligence o. She has also collaborated on research with Fairphone, Vodafone, HP Labs and Horizon, a Digital Economy Research Hub funded by the RCUK Digital Economy programme. Professor Baurley completed her PhD in Textile Design at the RCA, during which she developed three-dimensional textile materials for clothing through transferring processes from engineering to design. She carried out post-doctoral research at John Moores University, Liverpool and has been Research Professor at the RCA since 2016.