Studying Material Interactions to Facilitate a Sense of Being with the World: Bilge Aktas & Camilla Groth — Proceedings of Design Research Society 2020 Conference
Aktas, B., & Groth, C. (2020). . In Proceedings of DRS2020 (Vol. 4, pp. 1659-1676). Design Research Society.
Material interactions are fundamental to design and craft education; however, they might also provide opportunities to reflect on sustainable behaviour in general. In this paper, we present an interdisciplinary undergraduate course in which students interacted with clay and wool. By engaging novices in material-based craft processes, we examined renewed ways of experiencing the materials to reconsider our everyday material interactions and our dependency and responsibilities in regard to materials in general. Through this example, we discuss the potential of craft practice as an educational platform to discuss materiality and to facilitate a deeper and more holistic understanding of the consequences of our material behaviour beyond the creative practices. The students’ reflections over the five weeks touched upon their renewed appreciation of materials, and their changed interactions with materials – moving towards a dialogical stance rather than only using them as a means to an end.
Read more news
Finnish wood-based innovations on display in London
The exhibition showcases Finnish bioeconomy solutions for both industry and everyday consumer life. Origami-based FOLD materials offer more sustainable solutions not only for packaging but also for many other applications.
Energy poverty is not recognized in Finland
According to a recent study by Aalto University and the Finnish Environment Institute, about 7–15 percent of Finnish households are energy poor, which at most means around 300,000 homes.
The exhibition "Our land, for all" explores personal and national identity
The 20th anniversary exhibition of the Association of Finnish Fine Arts Foundations, opened at Kunsthalle Helsinki, asks: whose stories is Finland built from? The exhibition has been curated by PhD, docent Annamari Vänskä.