OUGD603 / Intern Magazine / The North to South Pilgrimage Of The Young Creative.

The North to South Pilgrimage Of The Young Creative.

'At one point or another within creative education, the thought of living and working in London is to cross the mind of any student; regarded as the U.K’s creative hub, London’s allure to both students and professionals is understandable. Recently named the most influential city in the world and the creative capital of Europe, London boasts an industry that stands amongst the best. Worth £76.9 billion in 2014, the industry has been one of the fastest growing economies within the U.K for over sixteen years. A cocktail of the capital’s national and international transport links, the high concentration of creative institutions and championing of the alternative combine to create a city that harbours some of the world’s leading creative outlets.

Students, professionals and educators praise this high concentration of the creative industry surrounding London, both nationally and internationally, which subsequently creates a sufficient allure. Valerie Palmer, Senior Lecturer at UAL’s Central Saint Martins acknowledges this attraction “To be based in London certainly still has 'kudos' within the creative industries, as London is regarded as an international design hub… it's still such a crucial networking environment and a London 'experience' is always valuable.”

This creative affluence consequently generates inequality, with both proffesionals and students flocking to and staying in the capital, the rest of the U.K is left with a significantly weaker industry. Originating from inner London, the radiation of the creative industry becomes decreasingly weaker, 1 in 8 jobs sit within the creative industry in London compared to only 1 in 30 in Yorkshire and Humberside. In a cycle of deprivation, the weakening of creative opportunities in the North then amplifies the desire for the ‘pilgrimage’.Tasmin Curry, a producer working within television admits, “It was the lack of opportunities in Manchester that made me move to London, I would've stayed if there were more creative jobs.”

The journey from the North to the South in order to find opportunity can offer great reward, but at a price, accommodation, travel and living costs can quickly accumulate and even make the opportunity unfeasible for some. Northern-based student and photographer Sally was lucky enough to stay with close family in the capital while interning admitting “if this wasn't the case” she would have “struggled” and therefore questioned her partaking in the opportunity. Monthly travel costs can more than double in the transition from North to South; £123.70 for a months travel between zones 1 – 4 while only £56 for a months travel in the Northern city of Leeds. The cost of both short and long term accommodation inflates at a greater rate; long term rent costs are at a record average of £1,472 in Greater London compared to Yorkshire and Humberside’s £591 average. The cost of temporary accommodation, most likely to be used by interns originating outside of the South, varies even greater. Hostels, hotels, flat shares, spare rooms, short-term lets or even a combination of the routes can accumulate to a considerable amount. Varying from £16 per night in a 30 bed mixed dorm to over £150 per night in a comfortable flat sharing program, a balance of personal sacrifice, comfort and finance has to be found in order to justify the move.

Although some organisations do offer exspenses, these can often be insufficient enough to even cover travel, while the remaining financial cost is left for the intern to bear, as photography intern Sally discovered “the company paid for my travel during working hours, so basically gave me a topped up oyster card to use for jobs like returning clothing samples, travelling to photo shoots and running errands. It was beneficial as I guess every little helps, but on top of what I was paying to actually get into central London and back each day, it didn't make a huge difference”.

Conversely, individuals originally based in the South are placed at an advantage, extenuating beyond the financial, the social and domestic sacrifices they encounter can be considerably fewer. Without the need to relocate or making use of an existing network of family and friends who can offer free or reduced accommodation, the Southern person consequently has less to sacrifice. London based student and journalist Josephine acknowledges her location to be advantageous “Living only a quick 20 minute ride into London has been such a great advantage for me to get ahead in journalism”, embracing the practicality of location to “intern with magazines over in East London, attend regular events and lectures and have now taken up editorial assistant at a (London based) zine” whilst also studying in the City, make evident the advantages and the subsequent benefits of such experience in regard to make it as a professional.

Domestic and social factors such as the intensity of living and working in London also play their part in the inequality faced by individuals originating from outside of the South. Whether it be travelling through a myriad of foreign underground stations, adapting to a new pace of life and population or even leaving family, such circumstances can exaggerate the disadvantages of the Northern person; “travel and finding my way around was something I was initially apprehensive about” confesses Sally, whose apprehension is shared with advertising professional, Nicola Thompson “It's busy, it's hectic and it's an adventure” adding “for me the hardest part is being away from family”. It is these predicaments that have birthed methods of gaining industry experience without having to make the potentially arduous pilgrimage and subsequent relocation.

Advancements in technology and the changing of attitude has benefited the creative industry outside of the capital. “As global connectivity has increased, being physically located in London is not as crucial as it once was.” Valerie Palmer admits in agreement with creative design agency DesignByDuo “I don’t think London clients see location as a barrier – around 25% of our business is London based”. It is this growing attitude amongst the creative population that is facilitating a balance of the inequalities faced by the industry outside of London. Looking towards the future, the increase of design graduates - due to the recent uncapping of admission numbers - will subsequently grow competition for industry experience. This growing competitiveness within an industry can make experience more valuable in regards to standing out from the competition. However, in order to transcend this geographical inequality, the importance of industry experience is to be questioned. The desire for aspiring professionals to move to the capital is derived from its mass of opportunities for students, but what if this route of gaining industry experience is dismissed and alternative methods of breaking into the industry are embraced?  Are there alternate methods of developing skills, showcasing unique attributes and standing out amongst the masses that can be achieved without having to intern?

Although London is clearly the creative hub of the U.K, alternate cities have begun to emerge as creative hotspots under the presence of the Capitals hold. University cities such as Bristol, Brighton, Manchester, Leeds and Edinburgh amongst others have been able to keep hold of many creative graduates and an emerging scene has followed. Cheaper accommodation, studio rent and a generally lower cost of living have helped these cities attract the young creative population as London once did. Since 2011, the growth of jobs in the creative industries grew by 40% in the East Midlands and more than a quarter in the North East. Recent Postgraduate Harrison acknowledges his consideration of migrating to London in search of opportunity but has realized this pilgrimage isn’t necessary “Whether or not moving to London would benefit me as a professional is tough, ultimately you get out what you put in. At the moment I am working at a studio in Manchester with run by only one guy and I feel like this is benefiting me hugely as a professional.”

Reactions to the London ideal have also created innovative methods of becoming noticed without the traditional industry experience. The growth of social media platforms, independent publishers and ecommerce has seemingly reduced the distance between the North and South and towards achieving an ideal, in which geography no longer dictates success.

One of the methods in which the aspiring creative can now gain non-traditional industry experience is through calls for submissions; a pathway to publishing work in the real world and gaining industry recognition while showcasing the individual’s unique talents, skills and attributes. These open submissions can be for platforms such as magazines, online media, exhibitions or competitions, and facilitate a true meritocracy where the strongest work can be chosen regardless of location. Current undergraduate and illustrator Joe recently responded to a call for submissions for a well - renowned newspaper “The main benefit though is that I can add The Guardian to the list of people I’ve worked for. It might be just a couple more words on my website but it’s a big step in proving to potential clients that I know what I’m doing.” Here, the internet creates a realm in which young, aspiring designers can curate and publish work for free while connecting with fellow creatives across the globe - gaining recognition, popularity and an online presence.

Another alternative, independent publishing, has been used as a method of reacting against the mainstream cultures since the earliest punk zines. Now, independent publishing can be embraced to reject the pressure to partake in traditional work experience, with self-initiated work communicating a stronger representation of the individual's attributes, an aspect which is uncommon to the work of the traditional intern.

Charlotte and Bertie embraced this alternate route, setting up the magazine ‘Mushpit’ after both having negative experiences in the traditional internship route. With little experience in publishing, the two embraced independent publishing as alternate route into industry “We are experts in all sorts of weird stuff now like paperweight and different binding techniques. We are also frighteningly good at in design despite having taught ourselves. It gives you so much freedom, we love it. I wouldn't change anything, it's been really organic and we ‘know’ things we didn't just get taught them.” Now in it’s 7th Issue ‘Mushpit’ is confirmation that there are alternate routes for the aspiring creative.

In tandem, the rise of independent retailers, book fairs and other creative environments has created a commercial environment for this self-initiated work, developing a new pathway to commercial viability and equality.

One of the boldest ways in which the traditional methods of gaining industry experience can be challenged is creating a start-up business post graduation. If a young creative were to disregard working in an existing business, create their own job within the industry and learn about sustaining their own business, the need for traditional experience on a CV could become irrelevant. Instead of this acknowledgement of experience, a position within the industry relies on the competence and professionalism of the creative.

The embracing of these alternate methods and the emerging of new creative hotspots can help begin to restore the imbalance created by geographical and financial inequality. Alternatives to working in London need to exist for as long as there is an unequal distribution of opportunity; while traditional and alternative methods of gaining experience both have their advantages and disadvantages, it is unfair to say either route is more efficient than the other. We must shift the focus of assessment onto the individual, recognising that industry experience is an inadequate reflection of creatives. Rather, it is their unique attributes, efforts and talents that should be regarded as the most important aspect by any potential employer.