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KONSTFACK Department of Design, Craft and Art Course code: IDKS03 Level: First Cycle
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Summer Xskool
Xskool sommarskola
7.5 credits
Responsible teacher: Ramia Mazé, [email protected]
Participating teachers: John Thackara (Doors of Perception), Michael Toivio, Aija Freimane (Art Academy of Latvia); Cheryl Akner-‐Koler, Magnus Lindfors and Thomas Forsberg from Konstfack.
General
Farmers’ markets as hubs of knowledge exchange? Food waste as social enterprise? Blue-‐green systems as social assets? Food is the theme of the 2014 Summer Xskool – through food, we will explore sustainability issues and solutions concerning transport, resources, waste, production and consumption. It takes 10 calories of fossil-‐fuel energy to produce 1 calorie of modern supermarket food. About 30-‐50% of food produced in Western countries is wasted. 23% of household carbon footprint comes from our food choices. In the Summer Xskool, we get hands-‐on in with sustainable development and design. We explore how design can help people interact with living and edible systems in ways that help both of them thrive. We will craft and test small actions that effect larger social-‐, economic-‐ and eco-‐systems. And we will do this by learning, designing and collaborating in the unique nature reserve of the Stockholm archipelago! The aim of the course is to introduce an approach to design for sustainable development that departs from local context and issues. This is achieved together with leading international thinkers in the field and to collaboratively create interfaces and/or platforms that propose design for sustainable futures as a significant force for change; transition as well as transformation. This course is also open to students from outside Konstfack. After satisfactory completion of the course, students from outside Konstfack can request a certificate of course attendance. Summer Xskool is a partnership between Konstfack University College of Arts, Crafts and Design (www.konstfack.se) and John Thackara's Doors of Perception (www.doorsofperception.com).
Learning outcomes
Upon completing the course, the student must: -‐ demonstrate familiarity with methods and processes for dealing with complex phenomena, issues and situations in order to design for a more sustainable society -‐ demonstrate an ability to clearly present and discuss their activities and artistic issues in dialogue with different groups, orally, in writing or in some other way ; and -‐ demonstrate ability to reflect on how the work can be continued in the longer term.
Course Requirements
-‐ A volume of work equal to 10 weeks of part-‐time studies. -‐ The volume of work in the Workshop Week is full-‐time. -‐ Work conducted both at a distance and, during the Workshop Week, in person. -‐ Work must be conducted to reach the learning outcomes and grade criteria listed.
Course structure and teaching methods:
The course is situated locally in Sweden during 1 workshop week, when students and teachers from Sweden and internationally share their experiences, learn and apply their knowledge to the site. Besides this workshop week, the course is 'distance' work through email and the course webpage.
The course involves three stages (prior, during and after arrival at the workshop week):
Stage 1, Preparatory Work , Assignment 1 – Week 26-‐32 (Jun 22 -‐ Aug 7)
Preparatory work can be done individually or in groups. It consists of general and contextual collection and creation of information, introductory readings and lectures. Participants will identify relevant sustainability issues, approaches, actors, socio and ecological relationships. They will demonstrate these in a way that can be shared and communicated. The work is done at a distance, course materials are provided digitally and assignments are submitted digitally.
Stage 2, Workshop Week, Assignment 2 – Week 33, Aug 10-‐16 (dates to be confirmed)
Students and teachers meet for a 1 week workshop at a site in Sweden. Participants investigate sustainability on site through local studies, stakeholder meetings, lectures and tutorials. During this phase, participants explore how practices from other cultures, and other times, have the potential to be adapted locally. Through performative, prototyping and design methods in workshop activities, participants develop proposals that are tutored and presented during the week. Participants also propose activities during the week for ongoing communication, critique and knowledge exchange.
Stage 3, Refinement and Reflection, Assignment 3 – Week 34-‐35 (Aug 17-‐28)
This work is done at a distance, assignments are submitted digitally for examination. Participants review and reflect on proposals developed in the workshop week, refining these according to their own perspective, skills and long-‐term interests.
Examination Examination is of student’s completed assignments. The student’s development is assessed in an ongoing basis through tutoring, presentations, individual and groupwork during the Workshop Week.
Latest date to submit final assignment for grading is the last date of the course: Aug 28.
Grade criteria
-‐ Relevance to the field of sustainable design. The student must demonstrate reflection on the subject, their position and choices, aesthetics and ethics. This criteria primarily concerns Assignment 1 and 3. -‐ Academic and artistic approach. The student must demonstrate a creative and critical approach, self-‐management in distance work and ability to collaborate in groupwork. This criteria mostly regards Assignment 2. -‐ Communicability. The work must be communicated in a clear way, external sources must be referenced, and assignments must be understandable in English. This criteria mostly regards Assignment 3. Students are awarded a pass (G) or fail (U) grade.
Course materials and other teaching aids
The course involves distance work. All course materials will be made available by teachers through the course website ; students are responsible for informing themselves through the course website and for submitting assignments through the course website.
Course communications are circulated via students’ personal email addresses ; students are responsible to ensure teachers have their current email address and for checking their email. A comprehensive ”Handbook” is digitally distributed in advance about the Workshop week, including travel and accomodation information and advice, what to bring, food and meal preparation.
Schedule
A detailed schedule will be provided well in advance of the course start. Stage 1, Preparatory Work , Assignment 1 – Week 26-‐32 – The work is done at a distance, information including course materials will be provided digitally before the start of the course and assignments are submitted digitally. Stage 2, Workshop Week, Assignment 2 – Week 33 (to be confirmed) – will be on site in Sweden, comprehensive information about travel, accomodation, food, detailed schedule of course activities etc., will be provided by digitally and in a ”Handbook”. Stage 3, Refinement and Reflection, Assignment 3 – Week 34-‐35 – The work is done at a distance, information including course materials will be provided digitally before the start of the course and assignments are submitted digitally.
Teacher biographies
Ramia Mazé is Adjunct Professor in Design at Konstfack and expert in participatory and critical approaches to design. She is also part of the MSc program Sustainable Urban Planning and Design at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. Currently she investigates design roles in sustainable and social development in the US, Europe and Africa. For over 10 years, she has led design research in the areas of sustainable development, design activism, smart materials, and interactive spaces, and has published and exhibited extensively.
John Thackara is a world-‐known expert on design, sustainable development and social innovation and the director of the organization Doors of Perception. He does live and online talks, and produces events, for cities, institutions and organisations around the world. The outcomes of each collaboration are, typically: a shared perception of new opportunities; a good idea of how to exploit them; and new connections between people to make those actions happen. More info: www.doorsofperception.com
Cheryl Akner-‐Koler is a sculptor, design educator and Professor in Theoretical and Applied Aesthetics at Konstfack since 2001. She teaches a sculptural gestalt approach that involves embodied studies, aesthetic abstractions and product semiotic, and she supervises research projects concerning haptic experience and digital technology. Currently Akner-‐Koler holds a guest professorship at Campus Gryhyttan, School of hospitality, culinary arts and meal science at Örebro University.
Aija Freimane is assistant professor in the Design Department, Art Academy of Latvia. Her research and professional interest are systemic and holistic approach of design for sustainable social wellbeing for more than 7 years. Beside design, her background is in art, international economic affairs, creative industries policy making and management. She has a rich experience in research, policy making and EU project management. She has developed and led professional development design programs for arts and design teachers in Latvia.
Thomas Forsberg is a recent graduate from Konstfack with a BFA in Industrial Design. He was an active participant at Summer Xskool 2013 and a teaching assistant at Summer Xskool in 2014
Magnus Lindförs is Senior Lecturer in industrial design at Konstfack since 2013. He was educated at Konstfack and has worked as a design consultant both in his own company and as an employee at �ÅF. Magnus has had assignments in a variety of industries with a particular focus on ergonomics, electronics and medical technology. Since 2003 he worked at Elekta Instrument -‐ a medical technology company with headquarters in Stockholm -‐ where he was promoted to global design manager since 2008.
Michael Toivio is lecturer in applied ethics at Dalarna University since 2002, with focus on professional ethics, design ethics and CSR. He has been senior lecturer at Beckmans College of Design between 1994-‐2008. Currently also working as project leader and development manager for Futureperfect’s cooperation with XSkool. Member of board at Swedwatch 2010-‐2012. He is also founder of Roomi an organic and climate compensated locally produced non-‐alcoholic beverage, and CEO of Toivio & Trum AB.
More about Summer Xskool
Xskools by Konstfack http://www.konstfack.se
Summer Xskool Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/XSkool
Reviews of Summer Xskool 2014 http://designobserver.com/feature/summer-‐xskool-‐in-‐sweden/38360/ http://www.doorsofperception.com/transition-‐and-‐resilience/what-‐does-‐this-‐soil-‐taste-‐like-‐how-‐does-‐this-‐forest-‐think/
Pictures from Summer Xskool 2014 Workshop Week
