Seminario | Data: 01.10 – 02.10 – 03.10.2018

Luogo: Dipartimento di Lettere e Filosofia, aula 118 – via Tommaso Gar, 14 Trento 

In a series of three lectures, Tom Bieling will attempt to clarify the concept of Design Research and discuss its relevance and theoretical/practical application. The core argument is that design research offers an entry to conceptualizing the artificial interfaces of design through which we meet the world, which may take many forms such has material objects, virtual spaces, hybrid systems, and social processes.

The first lecture (1.10) will present a framework for conceptualizing Design Research as mainly subdivided into Research about Design, Research for Design, and Research trough Design. Self-evidently, the design of products, technologies, services, systems, virtual worlds and tangible objects always implicitly transmits role models and values. Design and the images it disseminates, often unreflectively, are hence unavoidably political. Thus design is an effective force in shaping not only material culture, but also societal values and human behavior. Investigating on the three above mentioned levels of design research, shall help us to gain a deeper understanding concerning the potentials as well as the pitfalls of design as a ‘critical practice’.

The second lecture (2. 10.) will discuss, how digital technology affects the ontology, the aesthetics as well as the (constantly new emerging) fields practice in Design. For instance we will discuss the notion of embodied interaction, as an approach for investigating new forms of interactions between humans and the digital world. Emphasizing the interconnectedness of body and mind, and not least exploring ways of making digital content tangible.

The third lecture (3.10.) will discover how Design (Research) impacts other scientific disciplines, and – even more important – the social field in general. While historically designers have attempted to induce social change by designing objects, today (social) design understands itself as a change agent in a much more direct relation to the social. In that the focus of this lecture will be on questions regarding social transformation, urban communities, participation and engagement, as well as social, cultural, ecological and economical sustainability.

Seminario | Data: 13.06.2018

Luogo: Dipartimento di Lettere e Filosofia Aula 229 – via Tomaso Gar, 14 Trento

Il seminario, proposto dal Design Research Lab dell’Università di Trento, indaga le possibilità di ricerca che si aprono a un’estetica sviluppata in chiave interdisciplinare attraverso teoria critica, visual studies, filosofia delle immagini, teorie della percezione e, non in ultimo, teoria della complessità e design. Il Seminario è in collaborazione con la rivista I Castelli di Yale (http://cyonline.unife.it/).

Seminario | Data: 30.05.2018

Luogo: Dipartimento di Lettere e Filosofia Aula 229 – via Tommaso Gar, 14 Trento

Il seminario, organizzato dal Design Research Lab di Trento con la presenza, tra gli altri, del prof. Tom Bieling del Design Research Lab di Berlino, si propone di indagare scientificamente le interpretazioni e controversie che definiscono il concetto “design” all’interno dei differenti contesti storici e culturali e, più specificatamente, in una prospettiva evoluzionistica.

A questo proposito saranno prese in considerazione discipline e campi di studio quali la filosofia, la biosemiotica, la cultural theory e i media studies e scuole di pensiero quali il positivismo, il razionalismo, il costruttivismo e la nuova filosofia della scienza, al fine di comprendere e applicare la ricerca di design nelle sue molteplici forme.