Academic & Research
Bureau of Silly Ideas is where art and academia collide. We partner with universities, technologists, and institutions to design research-led public realm work—gathering meaningful data through artistic interventions, then translating complex findings into engaging experiences that people actually want to be part of.
We’re interested in what happens when research leaves the seminar room and enters the street. Our projects are designed to make evidence and ideas accessible without oversimplifying them—creating moments that invite curiosity, conversation, and participation from people who might never read a report or attend a lecture.
Our team blends artistic practice with academic thinking to design frameworks that support rigorous inquiry in public spaces. Depending on the project, this can include:
- co-design and consultation with local communities
- participatory public engagement that generates qualitative and quantitative insight
- ethical approaches to data gathering and interpretation
- clear outputs that help partners communicate findings to funders, policymakers, and the public
We work with a wide range of collaborators—technologists, heritage organisations, universities, and institutions—and we love research briefs that need imagination as well as rigour.
Contact: Email our Artistic Director, Roger Hartley, at roger@clubsilly.com.
Recent partners include: Bloomsbury Festival (Artists Meet Academics), Goldsmiths, University of London, University College London.
