NORDES PHD SUMMER SCHOOL 2010

(The doing of) Design Things
Pukeberg, Nybro, Sweden, 23.8 – 27.8, 2010

Design deals with things, but what does that suggest? In design practice the things we deal with may be objects, products, artifacts and services, but also assemblages, processes, projects and even parliaments. This diversity also goes for contemporary design thinking, focusing things such as design collaborations as well as prototypes and “matters of concern”. This diversity may be noticed in the etymology of the English word “thing” which reveals a journey from a meaning of an assembly, like the governing assemblies in ancient Nordic and Germanic societies, to a meaning of “an entity of matter”. In short: How are design things being done in contemporary design practice, thinking and theory.

The Nordic Design Research Conference (NORDES) summer school 2010 is addressing such design theory issues conceptually and exploratory in a five-day course for Ph.D students. Each day will have a specific design thing theme (see below), and each theme will be explored both in a reflective seminar and a performative workshop.

The five seminars will be based on themes and chapters in Design Things (A.Telier a.k.a. Thomas Binders, Giorgio di Michelis, Pelle Ehn, Giulio Iacucci, Per Linde and Ina Wagner, forthcoming). Philosophically this seminar material gives a design theoretical framing of design thinking and design practice in the pragmatic tradition of John Dewey, including the thinking by scholars such as Donald Schön, Victor Turner and Jean Lave. There will also be frequent design readings of the science and technology tradition as championed by Bruno Latour, Annemarie Mol, Susan Lee Star and others. (This material will on registration be distributed to all participants.)

The design thing themes for the seminars and workshops are:

Objects and assemblies, practice and reflection
How can we conceptualize what is being designed? How is accessible to designers what is being designed? How do designers mobilize, manage, and transform artifacts and their interpretations?

Parliaments and projects; controversies and publics
How are things made public? What could a “thing philosophy” and “object oriented politics” for design be?

Performance and place
How do designers express and experience design objects? How is design performed and staged? In which space does design take place?

Design and use; participation and infrastructuring
How does design relate to use? How can users participate in design? How can designers participate in use?

Cosmopolitics
Who will participate in the design of the future? Are there new roles for the professional designer to play in design taking place in the everyday and by participating in controversial public things? Are designer the enemies of design?

During the summer school the participants will also be paired in teams that prepare a synopsis for a joint presentation of a “design thing” of their own choice. The participants are encouraged to develop this synopsis into a text for publication after the summer school.

Date and Place

The Summer school will be held from 23.8 to 27.8.2010 at Pukeberg in Nybro, Sweden. Pukeberg is a center for design with a design school, glassworkshops, design archive and museum. www.pukeberg.se
The cost for the summer school is 1800 skr, that includes accommodation, all meals and workshops.
Travelling to Nybro has to be arranged indivually by the participants.
For more information about the program contact: Pelle [dot] Ehn [at] mah [dot] se

Registration

Registration for the summer school should be sent to Karin Blombergsson karin [at] md [dot] kth [dot] se. mark the mail “Nordes summer school 2010”

Upon registration participants must submit a position statement of 1-4 pages motivating reason for participation and reflecting upon their PhD thesis orientation in relation to the themes of the summer school. Admittance to the summer school will be based on evaluation of submitted motivations.
Deadline for registration is April 19, 2010, notification of acceptance by May 10.

The summer school is organized by NORDES (the Nordic Design Research Conference) and the Swedish Faculty for Design Research and Research Education.