To celebrate the launch of Creative Social’s 3rd book, Creative Superpowers: Equip yourself for the Age of Creativity, we have pulled together a list of our Top 100 Creative Superheroes.
These are people that we believe are brilliant examples of makers, hackers, thieves and teachers and are helping to define the upcoming Age of Creativity. We have tried to make the list as diverse as possible (because diversity in itself breeds creativity) and is made up of architects, artists, authors, change-makers, creatives, designers, filmmakers, innovators, marketers, musicians and storytellers.
To create the list, we invited ten leading change-makers to each nominate ten people who are already helping to herald a new Age of Creativity.
We hope you find the list as inspiring as we find the people in it.
Grab a copy of the book on Amazon.
Alistair Barr, Founder, Barr Gazetas
Alistair’s architectural training has led him to champion urban and sustainability innovations. He is a judge for the Academy of Urbanism and Civic Trust and a mentor for the UK Green Building Council’s ‘Future Leader’ programme. His goal is to design spaces where people and the planet can thrive by social interaction.
Top 10:
Abigail Matthews - Structural engineer and founder of Momentum engineers
Bill Amberg - Leather designer and founder of B.A.S
David Rudlin - Chair of Academy of Urbanism and MD of URBED
Jas Atwal - Urban design consultant and founder of J.A.A.
Jason Bruges - Architect and designer for interventions, installations and public interaction concepts and founder of J.B.S
Jonathan Reid - Concrete guru, owner of Grey Matter Concrete
Kay Hughes – Architect and founder of Khaa
Rahesh Ram - Founder of Naau, an architecture practice inspired by art
Suzanne Brewer - Owner of SBA, designing modernist houses and offices in an uncompromising style
Vanessa Lee Butz - CEO of District Technologies, creating co working spaces for fast moving creative organisations
Daniele Fiandaca, Co-founder of Utopia & Creative Social
Co-founder of Utopia, a culture change consultancy that re-wires business for the Age of Creativity. Co-founder of Brand Social, Creative Social, Innovation Social and Token Man. Recently listed by Management Today as one of the Top 30 male Agents of Change in the UK.
Top 10:
Adah Parris – Futurist, The Friday Club & Life Hacker
Ali Hanan – Founder, Creative Equals & Culture Hacker
Annicken R Day – Founder, Corporate Spring & Culture Hacker
Sir David Brailsford – GM, Team Sky & Performance Hacker
Evan Roth – Artist & Hacker
Dr Kate Stone – Founder, Novalia & Paper Hacker
Mr Bingo – Artist & Growth Hacker
Ravi Deshpande - Founder and Chairman at Whyness Worldwide & Hacker
Sam Bompas – Co-founder, Bompas & Parr & Food Hacker
Tina Fiandaca – People & Culture Director, Mullenlowe & Culture Hacker
Hugh Garry, Director at Storythings
Hugh is an award-winning creative thinker, doer, curator and storyteller. Before becoming a director at Storythings, Hugh spent fifteen years at the BBC managing creative projects in digital and radio. He runs courses on where ideas come from and with Storythings founder Matt Locke curates a conference called The Story.
Top 10:
Daniel Meadows - documentarist
Gruff Rhys - musician, composer, producer, filmmaker and author
Jarvis Cocker - musician, actor and presenter
Juno Dawson - multi award winning author and journalist
Kate Clanchy - poet, author and journalist
Kenyatta Cheese - co-founder of Everybody at Once & Co-creator of Know your meme
Lynsey Hanley - Author and a visiting fellow in cultural studies at Liverpool John Moores University
Nelly Ben Hayoun - director and experience designer
Nikesh Shukla - author and columnist for Observer Magazine
Tanya Byrne - reader, writer and raconteur
Laura Jordan Bambach, CCO Mr President and Co-founder, SheSays
A former D&AD President, co-founder of SheSays and currently Creative Partner at Mr President, Laura Jordan Bambach is a creative force of nature. She is on a mission to use creativity to deliver a better and bolder world and is also one of the brains behind The Great British Diversity Experiment.
Top 10:
Alex Fefegha - designer, maker, breaker, coder, inventor and founder of Comuzi.
Amardeep Behl - Finding deeper meaning, and a contemporary Indian design language, through spacial exploration
Anika George - Campaigner on period poverty and founder of #FreePeriods
Daan Roosegaarde - Artist, innovator, founder of social design lab Studio Roosegaarde
Kate Crawford - researcher, academic and author. Founder of AI NOW Research Institute
Imogen Heap - singer, songwriter, record producer and audio engineer. Explorer and inventor of new technology and interfaces in music
Liv Little - founding editor-in-chief of gal-dem
Max Weisel - creative coder and inventor
Patricia Piccinini - Sculptor, filmmaker and digital artist
Tea Uglow - Creative Director, Google Labs, Sydney
Lizzie Shupak, Co-Founder Curve, Director Innovation Social
Lizzie is co-Founder of Curve, a creative leadership company and was previously Head of Innovation at global digital agency Digitas. Lizzie was awarded the IPA’s Women of Tomorrow award, and is a Director of Innovation Social, a Partner in Wok+Wine, and the Co-Founder of The Steep Sessions, a programme bringing traditional tea culture into the workplace.
Top 10:
Catalina Cernica - Head of LeoLab
Kate Day - Head of Editorial, Politico
Lorenzo Wood - CIO, Publicis.Sapient
Michelle Comins - Founder, Comins Tea
Nikhil Shah - CEO, Mixcloud
Patrick Clayton-Malone - Co-Founder, Canteen, Merchants Tavern, Spiritland
Pete Trainor - Co-Founder, Us Ai
Rubens Filho - Founder, Abracademy
Sammi Adhami - Co-Founder, Fiit.tv
Victoria Stoyanova - Founder, Hito Labs
Mark Chalmers, Founder Chalming Co and The Garage Amsterdam
Founder The Garage Amsterdam the influential private art gallery celebrating dynamic and exciting artist talent. Founder Chalming Co the new global brand agency driving growth through culture. Mark is a former Executive Creative Director and Chief Commercial Officer at VICE.
Top 10:
Ben Eine - Type craft and the eternal power of words
Lee Baker - Composer and curator Skip Gallery
Ludo Vernhet - Art disrupts retail in Greed Strategy
MadSaki - Japanese disruptor
Mike Lee - Modern joy with oil
Mr Bingo - I do therefore I am
Nina Chanel Abney - American born culture collider
Oli Epp - Gen Z adventures
Super Future Kid - Acid candy adolescence
Virgil Abloh - Fashioning the Arts
Mark Earls, Founder, Herd Consulting
Mark is a pioneering and award-winning writer and consultant on marketing, communications and behaviour change. He has written a number of highly influential books including Welcome to the Creative Age, HERD, I’ll Have What She’s Having and Copy, Copy, Copy.
Top 10:
Bowie - Copycat
Zaha Hadid - Copycat
Madonna - Copycat
Grayson Perry - Copycat
Paul Smith - Copycat
J Smith Esquire - Copycat
Faris and Rosie Yakob - Copycats
Lady Gaga - Copycat
You and Me - Copycats
Everyone that has ever lived
Nadya Powell, Co-founder, Utopia
Nadya is co-founder of Utopia, a culture change consultancy that rewires business for the Age of Creativity. She is also co-founder of Innovation Social and The Great British Diversity Experiment. She sits on the Executive Committee of BIMA, on the Advisory Council of the London Philharmonic Orchestra and is a mum to two opinionated daughters.
Top 10:
Awate - rapper/campaigner
Charlie Craggs - founder of Nail Transphobia
Dan Newy Parry - founder of Dubzoo
Hussain Manawer - spoken word poet
Jenn Nkiru - film director
Liam Hackett - Founder of Ditch the label, activist and entrepreneur
Liv Little - Founder of gal-dem
Scarlett Montanaro and Charlotte Cramer – co-founders, Crack and Cider
Sophia Thakur - performer/speaker
Stephanie Alys, Co-Founder of Mystery Vibe
Nishma Robb, Ads & Industry Marketing Director, Google UK & Ireland
Nishma is Marketing Director for Google and YouTube’s advertising products in the UK and the ex-Chair of Women@Google. She is a spirited marketing leader, a champion for diversity in business, and a regular keynote speaker. Nishma is also a Non-Exec Board Director and Fellow of The Marketing Society and was recently listed as Ad Age's Woman to Watch in Europe 2018.
Top 10:
Anna Hill - CMO Disney UK&I
Annabel Kilner - Chief Customer Director, MADE.COM
Craig Inglis - Customer Director, John Lewis
Eve Williams - CMO, ASOS
Graham Bednash - Consumer Marketing Director, Google UK
Kenyatte Nelson, Chief Customer Officer, Missguided
Mitch Oliver - Global Corporate and Brand Purpose Director, Mars
Paul Graham - CMO, Versace
Sheena Sauvaire - Global Marketing & Comms Director, Top Shop
Saskia Meyer - Marketing Director, Fever Tree
Scott Morrison, Founder and Bringer of the Boom!
Scott Morrison is an ex ad man (he ran Nike) and client (he ran Diesel and Levis) turned entrepreneur. He is currently the founder and bringer of the Boom!, helping businesses unblock old thinking, unlock new ideas and unleash their people to make their business go Boom!
Top 10:
Daisy Mae Morrison - My Mum (Mama Boom!)
David Pearl - Founder, Street Wisdom
David Erixon - Head of Digital & Customer Innovation at Ulster Bank & Founder, Hyper Island
Gemma Greaves - CEO, Marketing Society
Marc Lewis - Dean at School of Communication Arts 2.0
Peter Kent - Headmaster Lawrence Sheriff School and Inspirational Teacher
Rankin - Photographer
Sam Conniff Allende - Author of Be more Pirate
Simona Barbieri Bunting - Founder at Hub Dots
Vanessa Kingori - Publisher, British Vogue
If you want to find out more about how you can become a Creative Superhero by honing your own Creative Superpowers, do buy Creative Social’s new book, Creative Superpowers: Equip yourself for the Age of Creativity. More information HERE.