The Collective at the V&A

The Future Starts Here

A large-scale cross-sectional illustration of a co-living building, exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum as part of The Future Starts Here.

Information Design | Illustration | Exhibition

Miniature paper cutout art of multi-story indoor scenes depicting people in various everyday activities in a monochrome palette.

Developed in collaboration with an architect, the illustration translates ideas around shared living and community-focused design into a single layered composition, connecting private and communal spaces within one urban building. Five characters move through the building across a single day, cooking, working, exercising, and gathering, each occupying their own space while remaining visible to the others across the cross-section. The illustration follows their overlapping routines to show how private life and shared life sit side by side within one structure.

Interior view of a modern building with green LED lighting, model cityscape displays, and a question sign asking if cities are for everyone.
A detailed model of a multi-story building showcasing various interior scenes with miniature people engaging in different activities, illuminated from within, resembling a miniature city or complex.
Architectural model of a modern building entrance with a large red sculpture and numerous miniature people figures.
Cross-section view of a multi-level cafe or community space with illustrated figures of people socializing, working, and playing.
Cross-section view of a multi-level cafe or community space with illustrated figures of people socializing, working, and playing.
Black and white illustration of six fashionable young people standing side by side. The first person is a man with glasses in a polka dot shirt and black pants. The second is a woman in a wide-brim hat and floral wide-leg pants. The third is a man with styled hair, glasses, and a black jacket, carrying a bag. The fourth is a woman with a headscarf and striped wide-leg pants, holding a rolled-up mat. The fifth is a woman with curly hair in a short-sleeved shirt and checkered pants, holding a book.

The drawings were developed into a detailed physical cross-section model, exhibited to the public at the V&A. One resident recurs across the sequence at three points in her day, cooking in her kitchen, drawing at her desk, and joining others in a communal space, tracing a single thread of individual life through the wider building.

A line drawing of multiple people in a multi-level home, engaging in various activities such as cooking, dining, reading, and socializing.
Three story dollhouse with miniature figures, rooms, and furniture, depicting various scenes within each floor.
Miniature art installation of people dancing and socializing in a room with hanging lights and shelves in the background.

The result is a visual narrative that makes complex spatial and social ideas legible to a broad audience: it shows how design can shape the way people live together.

A woman looking at a detailed architectural model of a large multi-story building displayed in a dark room.

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