A practice-driven initiative investigating mobile design pedagogy through real-world community engagement. Our bicycle-mounted printing facility operates as both educational laboratory and public service, bringing collaborative design practice directly to community spaces.
The mobile facility challenges traditional studio boundaries by establishing temporary design spaces within existing community environments. This approach interrogates how physical location influences creative processes and community participation in design outcomes.
Through direct-to-mesh screen printing techniques, the studio enables real-time collaborative design production. Community members become co-creators rather than passive recipients, fundamentally altering traditional designer-client relationships.
International partnerships facilitate collaborative design sessions across geographical boundaries. These connections create opportunities for examining cultural translation, miscommunication, and meaning-making through global creative networks.
Students experience design education through direct community engagement rather than simulated briefs. This approach develops professional competencies whilst contributing meaningful outcomes to community partners, bridging academic learning with social responsibility.
At City North Cross-Cultural Festival (3–5 October 2025), Pavement Print Studio engaged over 150 participants in collaborative screen printing exploring cross-cultural communication through symbols and visual language. Our installation featured multiple print workstations including our bike trailer studio, Handerude mesh printing technology, and laser cutting capabilities. Participants created individual symbol prints that were overprinted with others' work, generating unexpected visual collisions and new meanings. The project produced a monumental 3m × 10m wall installation of hundreds of prints whilst each participant took home their collaborative artwork, demonstrating broad appeal across diverse audiences from children and community members to RMIT leadership and City Council representatives.
Follow our journey and see the latest collaborative prints from @pavementprintstudio
Participants develop practical competencies in mobile design practice, community engagement, and cross-cultural collaboration whilst contributing to meaningful community outcomes through hands-on learning experiences.
Students master direct-to-mesh screen printing techniques and mobile studio logistics. These skills translate directly to contemporary design practice requirements for flexible, responsive production methods.
Direct interaction with diverse community members develops communication skills, cultural sensitivity, and collaborative design methodologies. Students learn to facilitate rather than dictate creative processes.
Operating within real community contexts provides authentic professional experience including project management, client liaison, technical problem-solving, and public presentation of design work.
Seeking international connections to expose students to global design perspectives, cross-cultural communication strategies, and international professional networks within contemporary design practice.
The studio operates through strategic partnerships with industry leaders who provide technical expertise, materials, and professional guidance, ensuring authentic professional learning experiences for participating students.
Pavement Print Studio receives support from RMIT College of Vocation Education - Creative Industries. The collaboration leverages expertise across creative disciplines - including Graphic Design - to develop innovative approaches to design education and community engagement.
Pavement Print Studio is made possible through the generous voluntary contributions and expertise of dedicated individuals who have supported this initiative from conception to realisation.
