Talking to Robert Bell in 2004 for his book Let There Be Light, managing director Wayne Howell says: " I take the company name quite seriously. Lateral thinking is the most important part of a design . . . (in addition) you make it as future proof and reusable as you can."
By focusing on the two halves of the company - product development and project design & installation - Howell has developed a product range which can be taken both as total solutions or as components for incorporation into individual designs.
Feedback has always been of prime importance to Artistic Licence's work. "It's not just RDM and Art-Net that offers two-way communication," states Howell. It is the attendance at tradeshows and the feedback derived from clients, the involvement in industry trends and the direct work on installations and projects which keep the refresh rate of product development high at Artistic Licence, says the company.
Recently Nich Smith approached Artistic Licence when lighting the John Murray Archive in Edinburgh. Using Candle-Power LED dimmers for the showcase lighting, Smith specified the Candle-Power dimmers for their ability to control both 1W and 3W LED fixtures in the same enclosure.
"It was particularly satisfying to provide these dimmers," says Howell, "since we had just launched the product when the project came up. The timing was ideal and provided the first sale for us."
The celebrations for Artistic Licence's 20th anniversary are to be followed by the launch of Artistic Licence Asia. Headed by Simon Fraser, the new company will build upon the earlier success of the existing sales office, taking Artistic Licence project and product solutions to a wider audience in the Middle East & Asian architectural markets.
The company has evolved from a long business relationship with Fraser of Ptarmigan Consulting. "We took a couple of years to assess the market potential and to work out how we could work together," says Howell. "We have now decided it is time to make it official and are very excited to be launching the company in Asia this month. Simon and I have a very similar, no nonsense, approach to business and the Hong Kong operation will be run in along similar lines to Artistic Licence in the UK."
(Jim Evans)
