Showcase 2025 Student Spotlight: Flo Lithgow
Student Spotlight featuring BA (Hons) Product Design student Flo Lithgow and her project 'Curious and Creative'.
By Jon Duckworth | Published on 29 May 2025
Categories: Student Showcase; School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment;
The Project
Curious and Creative is an astronomy-themed activity kit for children. Created as way to introduce children to astronomy for whom science museums and planetariums might be difficult to access, the kit is designed to be used in public or school settings as a science engagement event. Flo's main goal was to celebrate science communication and bring it to the wider community.
The large planet-shaped box is full of colourful materials intended to serve as a starting point for creative exploration. Themed on planets in our solar system and beyond, the 'Imagine a Planet' title prompts children to use tactile materials to design a new world, beyond our solar system. Tactile planet cards introduce the planets in our solar system, providing inspiration for the children’s creative works. Each card highlights a characteristic of a planet and asks a 'space question' to encourage speculation. (These space questions are drawn from collaboration with astronomy education officers, who regularly run planetarium shows and ask such questions to their audience). Participants can use the materials available in the box, along with a foldable placemat which has a circular window cut-out, allowing them to layer materials, and see what they look like as a planet. They can also use coloured wool and a 3D stencil to design their own gas planet. Their ideas can be recorded in the 'My Planet' activity book, which also contains a follow-on activity that asks kids to imagine alien life on their planet. The booklet was created to give kids something to take home and continue to enjoy. The booklet also encourages star-gazing, with a family-friendly guide, and some information about local astronomy opportunities.
Flo says: "I hope that this design project demonstrates the power that creativity has to 'activate' education, and I believe the concept could work with other astronomy themes, or other subjects altogether."
Cards contain prompts to encourage creative exploration.
The inspiration behind the project
For Flo, the idea to base her project around astronomy and science communication came from a visit to the Royal Observatory Greenwich where her cousin works as an education officer. "I was able to get a glimpse of what children experience when they are invited into their classrooms. What I saw was an exciting world of speculation and hands-on learning. I went to primary school in a small village, and I did not experience anything quite like this at that age. I wanted to bring this experience to more children, so I decided to explore this field further through my design degree. I am interested in designing unique experiences, particularly ones that revolve around community engagement and social impact. I wanted to see what I could produce as a creative person, if I put myself in the shoes of an astronomy educator, and to see if this might create a positive experience for my users."
Flo was inspired by the hands-on activities found at planetariums and science museums.
The project experience
Flo says: "It has certainly been one of the most challenging, and the most rewarding of the projects I have completed during my degree. One of my favourite aspects of the experience was consulting experts. Their encouragement and insights were invaluable and allowed what is a speculative project to be as realistic as possible. The self-directed nature of the project meant that I had to create my own opportunities and get my idea off the ground, and I am very pleased with what I have achieved in the time I had.
For the project, Flo consulted public library staff and astronomy experts whose insights proved invaluable. "Their contributions fed directly into the design concept, and gave me much more confidence in the approach I took to designing a creative astronomy activity. The constructive feedback of these professionals allowed me to tweak and improve the design before I took it to a group of primary school children for user testing. Children engaged brilliantly with the activity and took part in every aspect of it with enthusiasm."
Flo Lithgow - BA (Hons) Product Design
Being part of NTU
"It has been a joy to be part of a degree course that is so open," says Flo. "This has allowed me to delve into a niche of my own creation. Design allows you to pull from so many influences and disciplines, and the outcomes we produce are not just objects. My peers come from diverse backgrounds and collaborating with them has been fulfilling. There has been a huge sense of pride and commitment in this fourth year, particularly amongst those who have experienced a year in industry. Without instruction, I and the people around me have picked up new skills in order to improve our designed outcomes. I am personally very pleased with the recent improvement I have seen in my visual communication and graphic design skills. It has allowed me to produce work that is more impactful and engaging. I have also gained confidence in advocating for my own interests as a designer. This year has proved that going my own way with creativity is most fulfilling, and allows me to do my best work, even if this means I am going into uncharted territory which can be nerve wracking!"
Closing remarks
For anyone inspired to follow in Flo's footsteps by studying Product Design at NTU, she offers this advice: "I would like people to know that it’s not just about products! This course, and the design industry, goes far beyond designing objects alone. So keep an open mind and be prepared to apply your design thinking skills to diverse situations. That is why designers are important."