Design Education Talks Ep. 67 – Tony Edisson

Lefteris Heretakis

“If students come in, not really motivated, if they’re a bit blase, if they’re not hungry for education, maybe if they don’t see a purpose in what they’re doing. They’ll achieve mediocre results, and they may not enjoy it as much as they would. And certainly the impact upon graduation, their impact in the workplace, isn’t going to be as impactful as it could, could and shouldn’t be. So yeah, it’s all well and good teaching skills. But I think changing mindsets, in higher education, developing confidence, self esteem, is really important as well. Because without that there’ll be a fear about experimenting, a theory about failing, which is essential especially in our our domains.” 

The Second Mountain: John McFaul’s Search for Purpose in Design – Design Education Talks

Get in touch!Today on Design Education Talks, we’re joined by John McFaul , Executive Creative Director, Brand Consultant, Educator, and one of those rare, restless creatives who has never quite fitted into the neat boxes the world tries to offer. From the Wirral to New York, from art school misfit to brand visionary, John's career is a vivid testament to curiosity, risk-taking, and cultural immersion.He began his journey believing he was a failure for choosing Art & Design over Oxford or Cambridge , until his foundation year transformed everything. Since then, John’s path has included studying at Kingston, a brief stint at Central Saint Martins, and pioneering the early fusion of illustration, digital tools and boundary-breaking design. He co-founded Black Convoy, then launched McFaulStudio, working with clients like Nike, Levi’s, New Balance, Brand Jordan, and more , often blending art, fashion, photography, and culture into truly genre-defying work.After closing McFaul-Day in 2024, having led a decade-long partnership with New Balance and other major lifestyle brands, John now finds himself at a turning point , what he calls the “Second Mountain.” Diagnosed with ADHD and fuelled by a desire to create work with more purpose and community impact, he is exploring new models of creative leadership and education.In the classroom, John is known for bringing raw honesty, boundless cultural insight, and a powerful message: that creativity is messy, emotional, and deeply human. He speaks openly about failure, process, and the dangers of marketised education, and he champions a design education rooted in risk, curiosity, and authenticity.Whether consulting global brands or inspiring the next generation, John McFaul remains a passionate advocate for creative freedom, experimentation, and meaningful cultural engagement.Welcome, John.this is hilarious!Support the showSince its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschoolFollow us on twitter at @newartschoolRead our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/and https://heretakis.medium.com/Equipment used to produce the podcast:Rodcaster pro IIRode NT1 5th generationElgato Low profile Microphone ArmMonster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cableThe rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting
  1. The Second Mountain: John McFaul’s Search for Purpose in Design
  2. From MIT to IDEO: Sheng-Hung Lee on the Future of Design and Education
  3. Zines, Books, and Beyond: The Practice of Jac Batey
  4. Costume as Sculpture: The Worlds of Gwen van den Eijnde
  5. Design Education Talks: Brian Grimwood – The Illustrator Who Rewrote the Rules

Professor Antony Eddison PFHEA. With a professional lifetime of teaching, management & leadership in Further and Higher Education in the UK and internationally, Tony is Advisor and External Examiner at several universities for innovative post-graduate programmes, as a practitioner he has worked in Architecture, Design and related Creative Industries and as an artist has most recently exhibited his work at The Royal British Society of Sculptors, London.
As a Senior Associate with QAA Tony works periodically on UK and international Further and Higher Education projects. His consultancy and research focus on developing new ways of unlocking creativity and innovation in business and education inspired by the innovative application of Design Thinking, FABLAB Maker-Spaces and LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY®. His research publications focus upon archaeology, cultural-heritage and the use of VR in engineering, health and well-being and hazardous situation simulation.

Tony is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy UK and from time to time is engaged as a consultant on a variety of business & international higher education related assignments and mentors those working towards levels of Fellowship recognition with AdvanceHE. 
Tony also heads up a small enterprise which designs and hosts innovative virtual and augmented reality online tours and experiences of castles, stately homes, and other buildings with a focus on communicating our cultural heritage to a global audience.

To end on something quirky, Tony is a keen cook, has been a voice-coach to a well-known celebrity chef and was fortunate enough to conduct the last recorded interview with the first chef to take cooking out of the kitchen, Keith Floyd. Tony can be contacted at ant_je10@yahoo.co.uk

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Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
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Published by Lefteris Heretakis

Navigating you through the disruption in #art, #design and #designeducation.

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