1998
David Constantine
David Constantine is a founding director of the Motivation Charitable Trust, an organisation devoted to improving the quality of life for disabled people. Motivation was founded in 1991 after Constantine and a fellow student from the Royal College of Art won a competition to design a wheelchair for disabled people in developing countries. It was robust, affordable and was made using material that could be locally sourced; principles that continue to define the charity’s approach.
Constantine’s choices for the sixth Conran Foundation Collection revealed a discerning interest in technology and its potential to improve human relations, from a Psion 5 Personal Organiser, the newly released Apple iMac and the Olympus Camedia c-1400 L, an early example of digital camera technology. Another distinctive theme of Constantine’s selection was a belief that design had an important role to play in improving the quality of life for disabled people. One of his selections was a wine bottle label embossed with Braille, which he describes as a “wonderful piece of inclusive design”.
The following items from the collection have been donated to the Design Museum By the Conran Foundation
Olympus Camedia c-1400 L (1997) - Olympus, Japan
Olympus LT Zoom 105 (1996) - Olympus, Japan
Cigala wine bottle with braille label (1996) - Michel Chapoutier - M. Chapoutier, France
Ericsson SH888 mobile phone - Ericsson
Rolleiflex 8000E - Rolleiflex, Germany
Psion 5 - Martin Riddiford / Therefore Design - Psion, USA