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Design Research DK: 08–09 Design in Transition

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Foreword: Poul Rind Christensen: Design in Transition — Current Design Research at DK: p. 4 Design in Transition — Two Thematic Contributions from DK: Research: Kirsten Nissen: Morphogenesis: An Approach to Textile Design p. 9 Anne Flemmert Jensen, Mette Mikkelsen & Poul Rind Christensen: etrans — Facilitating Cars for the Future — A research driven design project or a design driven research project? p. 21 Current Research — Highlights: Anne Flemmert Jensen: Design fuelling research and research fuelling design p. 41 Anne Katrine Gøtzsche Gelting: Conversations about teaching design at Kolding School of Design — Interviews about design methods and teaching at DK: p. 43 Anne Louise Bang: Emotional Values Related to Fabrics in Action p. 49 Birgit Lyngbye Pedersen: When the fashion industry got dressed up and ready to go — Design as a competitive parameter in the Danish fashion industry’s development from 1945 to today p. 53 Else Skjold: Man and his clothes p. 59 Eva Knutz: New Narrative Forms p. 62 Kirsten Bonde Sørensen: How can design and rhetoric contribute to business strategy and value innovation? — A strategic design project in Middelfart Sparekasse p. 65 Kirsten Nissen: Emerging Patterns p. 73 Lene Wul, Vibeke Riisberg & Caren Weisleder: User–driven innovation, ‘supportive design’, and the hospitals of the future — a new paradigm in the making? p. 76 Malene Leerberg: Drawing a Line: Collaborative sketching and the design process p. 84 Mette Harrestrup Lauritzen: Embodied Communication p. 89 Pia Pedersen: Visualization of Statistics p. 94 Poul Rind Christensen: Disruptive Design — Introduction to a research agenda p. 97 Sisse Tanderup: The Georg Jensen and Alessi Design — A comparative analysis focusing on the use of memory p. 103

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Thomas Markussen: Interaction design and cognitive semiotics p. 107 Tine Ebdrup: Aesthetic learning environments — Integration of aesthetics in learning environments based on user–involvement p. 110 Trine Brun Petersen: Design Governs Our Behaviour p. 113 Vibeke Riisberg & Joy Boutrup: Adjusting daylight and solar heating in office buildings — A practice based investigation of new decorative and functional solutions p. 119 Research Events & Collaboration: Malene Leerberg: Design Responsibility: Potentials and Pitfalls — The 8th NORDCODE Seminar hosted by Kolding School of Design p. 125 Members of International Advisory Board Kolding School of Design p. 127 Centre for Design, Culture & Management — A new Collaborative Venture by Kolding School of Design & University of Southern Denmark p. 129 Research in progress: LARM — Radio Culture and Auditory Resources Infrastructure — A collaborative research project p. 135 Poul Rind Christensen: Corporate Design and Cultural Diversity p. 137 Research Staff at DK: Current Researchers at Kolding School of Design p. 143

DK: Research Portal — READ p. 145

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Foreword Poul Rind Christensen: Design in Transition — Current Design Research at DK: And the first one now Will later be last For the times they are a–changin’ (Bob Dylan — 1963)

hopefully — interesting pieces of current research taking place. In 2009, we ended up with two re­ search projects funded by the national research foundations, namely ‘LARM’ and ‘Corporate Design and Cultural Diversity’. Although projects in the pipeline, they are both presented in DR 08/09, simply be­ cause they will impact our research in the years to come. In spring 2009, we hosted NORDCODE — a prestigious Nordic semi­ nar of which you will have a report in DR 08/09, simply because NORDCODE is a demonstration of the profound research network we have attained and also to witness the capacity we have obtained. For the old and well–established research institutions around, this might seem as a small step. For us it is a giant leap in the right direction. We want to pave more paths like this. In 2009, we also initiated a new re­ search centre in collaboration with our research colleagues at University of Southern Denmark. At Centre for Design, Culture and Management we bring to­ gether cross–faculty researchers from the humanities — arts, aesthetics, and design; from social sciences — management, marketing, and entrepreneurship; and re­ searchers from Kolding School of Design. This initiative is presented in DR 08/09. However, in order to present you with two key research areas both marking design in transitions, we begin by bring­ ing you an article by our textile researcher Kirsten Nissen. In her presentation, the new digital technology meets the loom and the material. So her research, based on artistic experiments, tells a story of transitions; a story of how changes in the big world transcend into the micro world at the loom. Indeed a fascinating story from the world of design research. We also bring quite another story of transitions, namely that of ‘etrans’. In 2009 we launched this huge research and

We live in a time of transitions. Technologies and knowledge reservoirs hitherto apart are brought into interac­ tion and ultimately integrated across technological, geographical, and cultural spheres. This constitutes times of crea­ tive destruction with a pace and a scope that seems to be accelerating and also less predictable. The world of design is not unaffected by these macro trends. Designers need to respond. Design and the community of designers are themselves important actors in this ongoing process of creative destruction. And at the same time, famil­ iar traditions, conventions, methods, and perspectives in the community of design­ ers and their educational institutions are abandoned and replaced, for the simple reason that domains of design also tend to cross–fertilise, integrate, and mutate. Now, more than ever, research in design is of key importance. There is a growing need to understand what is going on in the context of design and to understand and find new ways to respond to and align with these transitions. With these words of introduction, it is my pleasure to welcome readers of this issue of Design Research — DR 08/09 — presenting and highlighting current research themes and issues at Kolding School of Design in the years 2008 and 2009. For Kolding School of Design, these two years are also marked by transitions. During these two years, the number of doctoral students grew from 8 to 11. We employed 3 more senior researchers and expanded our publication activity substantially. In this volume of Design Research we present small bits and — 4


development project of transforming our habits and desires for transport in favour of electric cars with the aim of making the transition to electric vehicles attractive and conduct research on user and stake­ holder inclusion in the process from basic ideas to successful projects. It is a story of a three–year project in which research and experimental design processes enrich each other and hopefully lead to new insights as well as viable projects and thus also happy stakeholders and society at large. On the final pages of DR 08/09 you will find the list of contributing researchers. Thank you for your contributions. Last but not least, I want to acknowl­ edge the people behind the screen and thank our 5th year design students Marte Meling Enoksen and Karen Grønneberg for their fine work on the graphic design of this book, Lene Wul from the research office for her huge work with layout and coordination, and our translator Marianne Hilger for her great efforts in language revision and translation. I do hope you will enjoy reading Design Research — DR 08/09. I also hope you become impressed by our research achievements over the two short years; so impressed that you will look forward to reading DR 10/11. February, 2010 Poul Rind Christensen, Head of Research, Professor, Cross Faculty Department

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Design in Transition

Kirsten Nissen: Morphogenesis: An Approach to Textile Design p. 9

Anne Flemmert Jensen, Mette Mikkelsen & Poul Rind Christensen: etrans — Facilitating Cars for the Future p. 21

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Design in Transition Kirsten Nissen Morphogenesis: An Approach to Textile Design Over the past few decades, the loom has become a digital tool whereby comput­ ing enables control of the individual warp thread. In the same period, growing abil­ ity of the computer to simulate and visu­ alise complex systems has brought new acknowledgements to the field of mathe­ matical biology about morphogenesis; the physical process giving rise to the shape and growth of an organism. In the present research project, the biological process of shaping and patterning organic tissue is used as an inspiration for a dynamic proc­ ess of textile design. One aim of this practice–based, experi­ mental research project is to explore the interaction between the loom and the gen­ erative capacity of the computer by simu­ lating patterns of nature and adopting them into a textile design context. Overall, the objective of the research is to explore new conceptual approaches to textile de­ sign. The first part of the research project focuses on the weaving process interact­ ing with a simultaneously growing pat­ tern, carrying unpredictable variations. The experiments lead to the construc­ tion of pattern generators influenced by parameters, derived from real–time and real–world registrations, and feed–back systems. The second part of the research project focuses on using the experiments to develop approaches to the interaction between shape, decoration, and construc­ tion technique in textile design. The project deals with a number of scientific theories. The reason for in­ cluding these is to stress some affinities between phenomena in natural science and design practice seen from a textile designer’s point of view. The aim is not to pass on a natural science discourse but to contribute to a common platform for development within design research, and to challenge the field of textile design. The author of this paper has a back­ ground as a textile designer and textile

artist but is presently completing a Ph.D. study. An aim of the research project is to enrich design research with experiences from design practice. Therefore, as a basis for reflection, it is considered relevant to involve cases of works and experiments carried out before the commencement of the Ph.D. study. The Digital Jacquard Loom Over the past few decades, technological development has turned the loom into a digital tool for textile industry as well as textile designers.1 The digital Jacquard loom permits control of the individual warp thread through computer aid.2 Digitalisation facilitates quick changes in configuration of the loom; what before involved time–consuming processes of changing and adjusting physical parts on the loom can now be accomplished by activating a new data file. To the textile industry, the quick chang­ ing processes are beneficial as regards profits of time and labour saving proc­ esses and minimising sources of error. To textile design, quick changes facilitate the carrying out of test samples from which decisions can be made in the investigative and experimental phases of the design process. Also, the ability to handle large amounts of information is improved due to digital technology resulting in an in­ creased access to the use of photographic images, large–scale patterns, and non–re­ peating patterns in textile design and art. Compared to other textile techniques, weaving is often perceived as a slow process, limited in modes of expression. As mentioned, digitalisation speeds up some accustomed working procedures. Additionally — and of great importance to textile designers — the introduction of digital Jacquard enables quick changes between different warp densities and weave structures and allows new con­ figuration concepts of weaving. As such, 9


the digital individual warp thread control eliminates the strict division between the shaft loom, the draw loom, and the mechanical Jacquard loom. This facility is highly valued amongst textile artists. In 2006, twelve American textile studio art­ ists celebrated the accessibility of the new technology by arranging an exhibition entitled ‘Banishing Boundaries’ (George, 2006). Textile designers and textile industries benefit from this fairly new facility as well. One example is the Danish textile designer Grethe Sørensen, who in an exemplary way utilises the new techno­ logy in the development of ‘Interferens’, a series of upholstery fabrics produced by Kvadrat and launched in 2007 (Sørensen, 2005, Kvadrat, http://www.kvadrat.dk).

called Turing structures were deve­loped. These simulations require extensive calculations, wherefore modern compu­ ter technology is a prerequisite for these calculations. The Turing structures of nature can be simulated by the mathematical principle of cellular automata.4 The behaviour of a cellular automaton can readily be pre­ sented in a visual way on a squared paper or in a grid structure. The squares — or cells — are coloured either black or white. By means of a program, consisting of a simple rule or algorithm, it is specified what it should do at each step. Each row of cells corresponds to a step in the bot­ tom–up process. At every step, the definite rule determines the colour of a given cell, from the colour of that cell and its im­ mediate left and right neighbours on the previous step. Thus, the cells are treated as discrete elements in an iterative sys­ tem. As a result, local interactions lead to global dynamic, and patterns emerge.

Biological patterns In the cross field between theoretical biology and experimental mathematics, scientists strive to clarify the complex mechanisms of morphogenesis by means of mathematical models and computer simulations.3 An issue in this field is pat­ tern generation. Patterns can be detected anywhere in nature, e.g. as pattern on snail–shells, animal skins, and bird feathers. These bio­ logical patterns are generated in so called reaction–diffusion systems, which can be explained as a chemical communication between the cells of an organism. This communication involves two chemicals in­ fluencing each other. One of the chemicals activates an increase of the other, but only to a certain level; then the first chemical turns to act as an inhibitor. In this way, a kind of on/off switch is established, and in the case of some species, this manifests itself as a production of colours which result in patterns on the surface of the biological tissue. The first mathematical descriptions of these reaction–diffusion systems were made in 1952 by mathematician Alan Turing, who is considered a pioneer, contributing several essential insights into the development of the modern compu­ ter and, as a consequence, insights into biology as well (Turing, 1952). After his death, computer simulations of these so–

A patterned snail–shell, Voluta Vespertilio.

Working with traditional weaving technologies, drafting is a well known tool for planning the production of cloth and programming the loom. Drafts are nor­ mally drawn on squared paper, so–called point paper, where each square repre­ sents a binding point.5 A filled square is the signature for a lifted warp thread, and an empty, white square is the signature for a non–lifted warp thread. In this way, the draft demonstrates the binary logic of the weaving technique.6 Obviously, the black and white cells on the squared paper present a visual similarity between the cellular automata and the draft on the point paper. But the similarity goes even further in that the drafts as well can be said to consist of discrete cells, and the binding points can be seen as constitu­ tional elements of the bottom–up process of weaving. 10


Patterns of growth and interaction In his inspiring book, ‘The Algorithmic Beauty of Seashells’, Hans Meinhardt published his research on the morphogen­ esis of complex patterned mollusc shells. (Meinhardt, 1993). The mollusc shell, for instance a snail–shell, consists of calci­ fied material. The animals can increase the size of their shell only by accretion of new material at the margin, adding layer by layer of shell material at the growing edge. In mathematical terms, the shell grows in one dimension. To understand this, one must imagine the snail–shell un­ folded into a rectangle: the growth results in an increase in only the length of the rectangle. This notion can be compared with the production of a woven textile; in a similar way, there is only one–dimen­ sional increase in the cloth size during the weaving process. The similarity of concepts between the growth of the patterned snail–shell and the woven cloth formed the initial inspira­ tion for this research project. After some research, it became clear that the mor­ phogenesis of the snail–shell represents a dynamic process, in which construc­ tion, decoration, and shape are generated simultaneously, and where these three components interact. As such, the mor­ phogenesis of the snail shell addresses issues of relevance to textile design: the co–operation of the textile construction, the textile pattern, and the application of the textile into a three–dimensional form. Simulations of biological growth, in­ cluding variations of well–known pattern families such as stripes, waves, and dots, but also more complex morphologies, can be derived from the behaviour of cellular automata. This way, by ‘hacking’ pattern generators of nature and adopting them into a textile design context, it is possible to deal with the generation of textile pat­ terns in dynamic systems. The concept of growing patterns, in­ teracting with three–dimensional form and construction, addresses a different view on ornaments and decoration, in the sense that decoration is often regarded as a beautifying additive; a secondary

removable feature we possibly could do without.7 From the viewpoint of a designer, simulations of natural processes present a different approach to the form giving processes than working with representa­ tions. In design practice it is common to use representations of nature, like images derived from photos, drawings or paint­ ings, if necessary manipulated in a graph­ ic computer program. Simulation, on the other hand, is about constructing ‘a fictive nature’. It is a generative bottom–up proc­ ess in which chosen parameters constitute the rules of the transformations, and where the calculation process results in an image. In this way, simulation is not a reproduction process but rather a con­ struction process in which principles of nature are reutilised in articulating a new, virtual image.

A cellular automaton in one dimension, following the rule above.

Cases In the following, two examples of textile designs will be presented in which the design is created by means of a pattern generator.8 Both are inspired by snail– shells, and both apply the concept of cel­ lular automata in one dimension. Also the quality of sensibility to initial conditions is employed. In both cases the objective is to make conditions concerning the weaving process interact, giving parameters for the design process, and with that influence the pattern. In the first very simple case, ‘Iteration 24 04 04’, the time and date for the performance of the project become the parameter. The second example, ‘Manual work’, is somewhat more complicated. Here, biometric measurements from the weaver’s body and conditions in the room during the weaving process influence the woven pattern. The selection of yarn material and weave structure is crucial for the proper­ 11


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ties of the woven cloth. The combination of these factors, together with the choice of density and the colour of yarn deter­ mines the touch, feel, and visual character of the cloth. The two woven examples, mentioned in this paper, were produced on the same warp, and the weft material and weaving technique chosen were the same. As regards ‘Manual work’, the concept involved biometrical measurements, and this motivated the desire for a clinical expression. To obtain a smooth surface with a minimum of tactile structure, a flat plaited, smooth, and flexible polyamide tape yarn was chosen. To convey a graphic impression, which should imply a refer­ ence to outprint from laboratory equip­ ment, only the colours white and black were selected.

dinarily well preserved pieces of Han tex­ tiles. These woven silks show a high qual­ ity of craftsmanship and technical ability which we today have not surpassed.9 Iteration 24 04 04 The algorithm of this pattern genera­ tor was inspired by the visual similarity between some of the illustrations in the book by Meinhardt and a very simple fractal structure called the Sierpinski tri­ angle. The pattern generator was created in the Microsoft Excel program, a spread­ sheet program, which facilitates ‘condi­ tional formatting’, which means, that the numerical value of every cell determines the colour of the cell and also the colour of the digit. In this way, the spreadsheet calculations result in an image, consisting of different coloured squares. This work­ ing practise was chosen because it was operational to a person not familiar with computer programming languages. The spreadsheet file had to pass three more programs to be woven. In the pro­ gram Paint the file was altered to a bitmap file, the weaving structures were applied in Weave for Windows, and finally the Loom Control program allowed the file to be woven on the TC–1 loom. The weaving process of this actual work was carried out on 24 April 2004, and initiated at 11 o’clock in the morning. Therefore, the initial data used for the pattern generator were 11 24 04 2004. The pattern generator calculates an algo­ rithm which forms the pattern. If the ini­ tial data had been different, the generator would have generated a different pattern. The experiment has as its results a non–repetitive pattern where variations are unpredictable and evoke a feeling of fictive nature.

‘Iteration 24 04 04’ Size: 56 x 36 cm.

Also the choice of the weave structure jin was substantiated in the desire to obtain a smooth, clinical surface (Becker, 1987). The structure can be classified as a ‘warp–faced compound tabby’, which enables alternation of two warps, in this case a black and a white. What is typi­ cal of the jin structure is that the warp completely covers the weft, and that the floats in the warp direction are very short, due to the great number of intersections. Because of this, the alternation of warps hardly affects the texture but certainly is very visual due to the change of colour. Consequently, this weaving texture is really sufficient in articulating graphic impressions on a smooth woven surface. The choice of the jin structure should also be seen as a homage to forefathers in the field of weaving. The jin structure was already used by weavers in the Chinese Han–dynasty about two thousand years ago. Archaeological findings from the latter part of 20th century reveal extraor­

Manual work Again, a pattern generator was designed as an Excel file. This time, the pattern was inspired by the rather complicated pattern on the shell of the snail Conus Textilia, a name it received probably because of the intricate pattern. This work should be seen as a visual registration of the manual weaving proc­ 16


pressure, and blood sugar content of the weaver’s body. The weaver was identical with the author of this article. A helper was attending the data from measure­ ments to loom. The weaving period was eight working days, eight hours a day, and resulted in eight lanes of fabrics of vary­ ing lengths. The emerging pattern was expectedly intricate, due to the algorithm inspired by Conus Textilia. As a matter of fact, the huge amount of measurements and feed– back loops in combination with the choice of algorithm for the pattern generator did not expose the small variations in biome­tric measurements significantly. Evaluating the result, a comparable pattern could have been obtained more easily without this massive overload of data. Looking back, this could have been unveiled by testing the pattern generator more closely in the initial phases of the project.

ess as it is carried out. It is produced on the TC–1 loom. This loom has a digital thread controller which creates the shed by lifting the warp threads individually. In addition to the digital control of the warp, the loom functions as an ordinary hand loom. The weaver throws the shuttle and beats the weft, controls the tightness, density and edges. A hand weaver’s skills are required to make the fabric even and perfect.

Detail, ‘Manual Work’

‘Manual work’ documents the situation of a hand weaver’s production situation. The aim was to make registrations from the actual situation influence the generat­ ing pattern. Thus, measurements taken from the weaver’s body were used as input in an iterative feed–back process. The registration of biometric measure­ ments ran in a semi–scientific set–up with the purpose of delivering parameters for a generative formation process. The set–up was as follows: During the weaving process, measurements and conditions concerning the manufacturing process were registered and used as initial data in the digital pattern generator. The digital information was passed to the dig­ ital loom. New measurements were made three to four times each hour, and the new set of data was added to the generating pattern. In this way, a feed–back system was established. Thus, the weaver’s reactions to seeing the unknown, patterned material gradual­ ly growing on the loom influence the next items of input to the pattern generator. Ideally, the set–up should have been intravenous and online but in practice this was not possible. The digital equip­ ment allowed registration of time and date, sound, light, and temperature of the room, and pulse, temperature, blood

‘Manual work’. Size 138 x 315 cm.

ReflEctions The biometric set–up in ‘Manual Work’ was of course an attempt to capture the ‘here and now’ feeling into the temporal process of weaving. Presumably, the val­ ues of the biometric measurements were not important themselves, because the pulse, blood pressure, blood sugar con­ tent, and body temperature did not vary much due to the static character of the repetitive weaving process. But involving biometric measurements inevitably impli­ cates uniqueness, Ramia Mazé explicates in her Ph.D. dissertation, referring par­ ticularly to this case10: ‘While the materials themselves do not change, how they are formed is unique to the place and time of a combined biometric and material performance. Biothing employs generative processes, such that every process of formation is unique.’ (Schultz, 2004). 17


The original idea behind ‘Iteration 24 04 04’ was to make small individual customised works for which the use of personal data would generate individual items in order to celebrate or remem­ ber personal red–letter days, such as a customer’s birthday or a wedding day. Customisation is a relevant issue to bring up in connection with the digital looms, because the digital technology is suitable for facilitating quick changeover process­ es to a new design. But the development of this concept implies new strategies for trade and communication with costumers, as stated in an article by Desirée Koslin: ‘In the opinion of Jun’ichi Arai, it is now only the mass–production textile distribution system which lags hopelessly behind. He therefore looks back to a future in which high–index looms, producing immediate scan–output textiles will be low–priced and commonly available to artisans, allowing costumer participation in the artistic decision–making process, a pluralistic retake on past period’s custom designs.’ (Koslin 2002)

a promising status for further investiga­ tions about the concept of pattern which is often considered an additive. The referred to experiments involve parameters derived from the design situ­ ation into the design process and address principles relevant to further research towards the concept of customisation. The principles can also be used in the creation of commission works made for special localities or situations. Here, for example, activities in the room, such as inflow of light, can supply the parameters for the design of textile objects. Also the interaction of responsive materials and movements can be included in this type of process. The use of morphogenesis as a textile design approach calls for further research in the application of knowledge from the field of natural science about the two–di­ mensional growth of patterns on organic tissue towards pattern designs for three– dimensional textile objects. Acknowledgements Thanks to staff and colleagues at Kolding School of Design for support. Photo cred­ its: Ole Akhøj for Figures 3, 4, and 5. The present paper is a modified draft of the paper “Pattern Generation in Dynamic Systems: An Approach to Textile Design”, published in Proceedings of Ambience’08, and presented in an oral version at the Ambience’08 conference in Borås, Sweden.

ConclusionS The digital Jacquard loom is a reality, and the technology is expected to induce the development of further applications in the near future. This prompts pos­ sibilities for new concepts within textile design, whether it unfolds as craft or industry. This research project addresses an approach to textile design in which computer practise enriches the ‘patterns of thinking’. The preliminary results of the research project seem relevant to the development of textile design practice of the near future. The combination of the concepts of weaving and digital simulation of emer­ gent patterns shows relevance towards a search for textiles carrying a special feel­ ing of nature in the design. The use of discrete elements in bot­ tom–up processes leads to cooperation of the internal elements of the design object such as construction, decoration, and shape. Letting the decorative elements have the status of internal and influential parts of the design product establishes

Kirsten Nissen, Ph.D. student, Department of Product Design

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1 The first electronic jacquard equipment was made available to industry in 1979 (Schlein & Ziek, 2006). The thread controller TC–1 for studio hand weavers has been avail­ able since 1995 (Digital weaving Norway, http://www.tronrud. no, Schlein & Ziek, 2006). 2 Technically, the TC–1 works with electro­ magnets and therefore represents an invention which is an alterna­ tive to the jacquard machine. In this paper the term ‘digital jacquard’ is used as a generic term covering digital jacquard ma­ chines as well as TC–1 technology. 3 Among others Erik Mosekilde and James D. Murray. 4 The principle of cellular automata, exe­ cuted in a very complex form, was developed in the 1940s by John von Neumann. The sim­ ple one–dimensional version of cellular automata referred to in this paper has been in­ tensely investigated by Steven Wolfram since 1980 (Wolfram, 1984). 5 Weaving is a textile construction technique defined as the inter­ lacing of two sets of threads, crossing each other at right angles. The points of inter­ lacing between warp and weft threads are designated as binding points. 6 The binary logic of the loom, utilised in the use of punch cards in the jacquard machine, is often linked together

with the concept of the modern computer, and the discussion has often been blurry. See Davies (Davies & Davies, 2005) for a clarification. 7 James Trilling: ‘If you want to know whether a particular feature of an object is ornament, try imagin­ ing it away. If the object remains structurally in­ tact, and recognizable, and still can perform its function, the feature is decoration, and may well be ornament. If not, it is design.’ (Trilling, 2003). 8 The publication (Koumis, 2005) con­ tains both works. 9 Examples of textiles from Chinese Han–dy­ nasty are published in (Becker, 1987; Vainker, 2004). 10 Author’s work ‘Manual Work’ is in Mazé’s dissertation referred to under the title of ‘The Work of the Hand’, which is the direct translation from the Danish title ‘Håndens arbejde’. The work was initially exhibited on Biennalen 2004, Trapholt, Denmark, carrying the Danish title (Danske Kunsthåndværkere, 2004). In connection with the Biennale, the Danish magazine Kunstuff printed an article of the work in Danish and English (Schultz, 2004). Here the translation ‘The work of the Hand’ occurred for the first time.

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REFERENCES Becker, J. (1987). Pattern and Loom. Copenhagen: Rhodos International Publishers.

Turing, A. (1952). The Chemical Basis of Morphogenesis. In: Copeland, B.J (ed.). The Essential Turing. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

Danske Kunsthåndværkere. (2004). Biennalen 2004. Biennalen 2004.

Vainker, S. (2004). Chinese Silk: A Cultural History. London: The British Museum Press.

Davies, M. & Davies, V. (2005). Mistaken Ancestry: The Jacquard and the Computer. Textile, The Journal of Cloth & Culture, 3(1), 76–87.

Wolfram, S. (2002). A New Kind of Science. Champaign, IL: Wolfram Media Inc. Links Digital Weaving Norway. (2010). Tronrud Engineering (producer). Localised March 9th 2010 on World Wide Web: http:// www.tronrud.no/index.php?id=58&L=1

George, P. (2006). Banishing Boundaries — Weaving Digitally. Catalogue for exhibition at Grand Rapids Art Museum GRAM. Koslin, D. (2002). Between the Empirical and the Rational: Looms through Time and Space. In: Schosser, M. & Boydell, C. (ed.). Disentangling Textiles (pp. 195– 206). London: Middelsex University Press.

Grethe Sørensen website. (2010). Localised March 11th 2010 on World Wide Web: http://www.grethesorensen.dk Kvadrat (2010). Kvadrat (producer). Localised March 9th 2010 on http://www.kvadrat.dk

Koumis, M. (ed.). (2005). Art Textiles of the World Scandinavia, volume 2. Brighton: Telos Art Publishing. Mazé, R. (2007). Occupying Time: Design, technology and the form of interaction. PhD dissertation. Stockholm: Axl books. Meinhardt, H. (1993). The Algorithmic Beauty of Sea Shells. Berlin: Springer. Schlein, A. & Ziek, B. (2006). The woven Pixel: Designing for Jacquard and Dobby Looms Using Photoshop. Greenville, SC: Bridgewater Press. Schultz, M. (2004). Håndens arbejde i en teknologisk tid. Kunstuff, Dansk Kunsthåndværk og Design, 3, 12–15. Sørensen, G. (2005). Interferens. Catalogue for exhibition at Sønderjyllands Kunstmuseum, Tønder. Vamdrup: Grethe Sørensen. Trilling, J. (2003). Ornament: A Modern Perspective. Seattle & London: The University of Washington Press. 20


Design in Transition Anne Flemmert Jensen, Mette Mikkelsen & Poul Rind Christensen: etrans — Facilitating Cars for the Future A research driven design project or a design driven research project?

and emotional, cognitive, symbolic, and lifestyle aspects of transportation are not at all included in the debate. But the fossil car has had more than one hundred years to become deeply ingrained in the daily habits and routines of Danish car users. Therefore, functional factors are far from sufficient when it comes to convincing us to adopt more sustainable ways of acting and moving around in our daily lives. etrans is a user–driven innovation project. Its aim is to contribute to the popularisation of electric cars and other sustainable transport solutions in Denmark. The project focuses on research as well as development based design work, acknowledging the fact that it is in the tension field between the two domains that interesting and groundbreaking in­ novations emerge. The empirical research methods applied range from anthropolog­ ical user studies to visual anthropology, participatory design, and other qualitative methods of analysis. To a certain degree, quantitative user studies, trend analyses, etc. are also included in the research and analysis work. The project consists of a team of researchers and designers work­ ing together with partners and other collaborating companies on systemati­ cally translating user insights into specific design solutions which can alter our way of thinking and using transport.

INTRODUCTION Kolding School of Design has given prio­ rity to what we label ‘Development Driven Research’. What we mean to say — and exemplify in this contribution — is that a main stream trajectory in research is to view design and development as some­ thing which should be sourced and driven by research results. In contrast to this linear science push perspective, we view the nexus of research and design activi­ ties as much more interactive, in the sense that new knowledge flows from develop­ ment activities to research as well as the other way. In our case, we are of course preoccupied by the experimentally based knowledge flows from design activities, as well as the flow of applied knowledge from enterprises and the analytical flows from research activities. But we also emphasise how design may facilitate re­ search through design thinking. With this article we intend to illustrate how design based development activities and research based analyses go hand in hand and enrich each other. This is done based on the development and research project currently undertaken by Kolding School of Design in conjunction with a number of business stakeholders. The project is called “etrans”. BACKGROUND The quest for lowering the CO2 emis­ sions in Denmark has naturally involved a debate of establishing sustainable transportation. Arguments of what, where, and how are most often concerned with what kind of technology, type of economy, including taxation measures, we must establish in order to change the infrastructure in a positive way. At this point, the debate follows a traditional old–school track of business development. User perspectives are not at all present,

AN ANTHROPOLOGICAL FIELD STUDY — ABOUT THE METHOD For the past decades, anthropological methods have been applied more and more frequently in the area of consumer culture research (Amould & Wallendorf, 1994; Belk & Wallendorf, 1988; Belk 1955). Anthropology is also increasingly used as a qualitative method that opens the way for the development and innova­ tion work of businesses and organisa­ 21


Figure 1 — The distribution of respondents across different parameters Source: Ulk, Rikke (2009), “Data Report: Anthropological Field Study in Connection with the etrans Project”, etrans, Kolding School of Design

Car users distributed by Public sector Domestic Business/trade

34,5% 38,0% 27,5%

Geography — users distributed across City 34,0% Suburbs 34,0% Country area 32,0%

Driving experience — Electric car New user Experienced user Lead/Extreme user

26,5% 47,0% 26,5%

Driving experience — Petrol car New user Experienced user Lead/Extreme user

9,5% 61,5% 29,0%

Sex — Electric car Male Female

68,0% 32,0%

Sex — Petrol car Male Female

55,0% 45,0%

Age 20–35 36–50 51–80

38,0% 32,0% 30,0%

22


tions in the acknowledgement that the traditional market analysis has failed to provide the answers needed in a diverse, fluent, fragmented, and constantly chang­ ing market (Pant & Alberti, 1997). A successful launch and diffusion of the electric vehicle on the Danish auto­ mobile market is dependent on a more in–depth understanding of how the car is included in the everyday lives of Danish car users. Therefore, etrans conducted an anthropol­ogical field study among 50 car users in Denmark. The field work was conducted in spring of 2009 and followed by a first round of analysis and business application during a 6–day workshop in June 2009. The data has been coded and analysed further during fall and winter of 2009. The distribution of respondents is il­ lustrated in Figure 1. As it appears, there is a relatively even distribution regarding age, gender, geography, and sector. Do note, however, that it is biased towards users of electric vehicles, representing a total of 20 respondents compared to users of fossil vehicles, representing a total of 30 respondents. This bias is intentional, and due to the fact that we wanted to put extra emphasis on exploring the values, attitudes, and everyday lives of lead users and extreme users in our data. Each of the 50 field visits lasted at least five hours. They were conducted in the period April 7 to May 29 2009. During the visits we tried to blend in with the normal everyday activities of the respondents. This included spending time with them at work, at home, and during transportation. A wide variety of methods and tech­ niques have been utilised in this study, including: — Participant observation — Semi–structured interviews — Visual anthropology — Guided tours — Shadowing clips — User journals — Prioritisation games — Pictorial card games.

FROM USER INSIGHTS TO MARKET POTENTIALS — DESIGN BASED RESEARCH AND RESEARCH BASED DESIGN Before commencing the anthropological study, it was already articulated, planned, and described, that the insights from the field had to be registered in a form suit­ able for implementing in a large multidis­ ciplinary team. The following objectives were introduced beforehand: — Our objective was to incorporate the insights from the anthropological study in an organic, multidisciplinary process in which different professional fields could enrich each other. Therefore, business people, designers, technicians, stakehold­ ers from the political arena, and research­ ers were invited to participate on equal terms in developing business ideas and perform analyses of car users based on the anthropological insights. — Our objective was for the design process and the individual designs to be research based while having the design process drive the empirical analysis of the data material. — Our objective was for the process to be divided into phases. This would en­ sure that everyone was introduced to the insights from the user–study on equal terms and was able to become familiar with them. We anticipated that in groups of mixed competences we would obtain a wider and more nuanced understand­ ing of how the car applies in the every­ day lives of different users; what are the convictions and values of different users towards transport, energy, sustainability, and consumption in general? — In the second phase of the process we expected to be able to maintain the groups of mixed competences and have them continue to enrich each other. However, some groups concentrated on analysing the data material with the aim of classifying the consumers into types, while others worked with the data mate­ rial aiming to develop design principles and specific business ideas.

23


THE DESIGN PROCESS AND DESIGN OUTCOME OF THE WORKSHOP

The anthropologists had prepared eight specially processed user portraits cover­ ing differences in gender, age, types of car, motivation, and profile. They were presented with images, video clips, state­ ments, and user journals describing the users’ everyday lives, transport patterns, values, attitudes, and behaviour in con­ nection with themes such as sustainability and transport. The multidisciplinary teams were each given a user profile in the form of material from the field study. Using a large chart as guiding tool, the groups now started ­delving into the material, and together we had to navigate through to the core points that are central to the user type, the person’s driving patterns, and stake­ holders. We tried to visualise the user and the user’s reality through selected key quotations about attitudes and perception of the self personally and in relation to society at large. Based on the fieldwork material, the knowledge we obtained was organised to reflect three different perspectives: the personal/individual perspective, the local environmental/social perspective, and the infrastructure/ societal perspective. The subsequent “user journey” brought us closer to the meaning of the car in a person’s life, and we got a clearer assess­ ment of the barriers, motivation factors, or concrete events that could encourage or discourage the user to drive an electric car. This recognition was processed into opportunities for the development of concepts. Each group made a halfway concluding presentation. We gained an appreciation of the breadth of the problem area with regard to electric cars, but it also became clear how powerful user insights are in this connection. The data material was used copiously in the presentations, with the individual groups returning to the fieldwork material and quoting the user to account for the choices the group had made. It seemed many had the feeling that a new perspective had been acquired, but that the insights did not indicate any par­ ticular direction to go in. It became clear

With the anthropological data at hand, we conducted the planned workshop in June 2009; a six–day session with approximate­ ly 30 people from the stakeholder compa­ nies as well as people with other profes­ sional interests in the project. The main purpose was of course to understand and become inspired by the user voices that had been collected by one group of profes­ sionals — namely the anthropologists. The challenge was that we wanted to dis­ close these professional observations in a large group session with the emphasis on multidisciplinary co–operation, i.e. bring­ ing together people from vastly differing backgrounds. At this point we took the position of Richard Buchanan who claims that knowl­ edge from different fields of research stands fragmented and specialised but can be united and translated by the use of design methods. For that reason we asked designers trained in conducting innovation work­ shops to facilitate the process in which we worked with user journeys, triggers, touch–points, etc. The large group of 30 individuals was divided into smaller, operational teams, each group comprising: — An anthropologist — to ensure that the knowledge from the prior process and methodology in the field work could be identified and brought in where relevant. — A representative of the business com­ munity, from car dealers to computer specialists, to ensure business skills. — A person with a specialised technical know–how. — A designer. Some groups were also joined by researchers with widely differing specialisations. 24


25


26


Photos: Conducting the multidisciplinary workshop.

27


Figure 2 — Seven Types of Consumers Emotions and dreams

Design lover Environ– mentalist

“The sacred”

Status seeker

City bohemian

Pragmatist

Technology enthusiast

Rationalist

Facts and function

28

“The profane”


what an extensive job it will be to make electric cars a commercial and environ­ mental success, but we also gained an appreciation of the many opportunities there are for making a difference. At this point of the workshop, the groups were reorganised in order to use the dynamic set up of the workshop to inspire research. Having worked multi­ disciplinary for three days, the research­ ers were asked to form a group in which together — on a scientific basis — they could transform the user voices into research based market opportunities. The starting point of this work was the insights that everybody had obtained by working together — and of course the full base of knowledge of the anthropologi­ cal data. We will return to this knowledge transition. The remaining participants formed multidisciplinary groups mixing business people with technicians, anthropologists, and designers. At this point the design­ ers of the groups played a key role using their tools of visualising. The task was to work on concept ideations. The facilitator presented some rules and explained the pro­cess to the ones who were not famil­ iar with professional idea generation. Examples were given of how to generate ideas based on existing ideas, how to con­ vey visually, keep the focus, and only work on one idea at a time and go for quantity. Methods within prototyping were intro­ duced as a way of quickly articulating ideas physically. We used the making of physical objects, role play, or scenarios to construct examples to clarify the funda­ mental principles of an idea. The workshop did not conclude with filtration in relation to specific companies, but each group described its innovative insights. The result: “85 good ideas” in a booklet of ideas. These ideas are suit­ able for concept development closer to a market.

attitudes. Our challenge was to convert the generated individual insights into broader market opportunities. Thus, our question was: How do we go from insights into the lifestyles and personalities of a number of unique consumers to a consoli­ dated prospect outlining potential mar­ kets and relevant overall market insights? During the workshop we dived into the data material and — in a workshop atmos­ phere — started creating different catego­ ries based on how motorists talk about their values and attitudes when it comes to cars, transportation, energy, sustain­ ability, and green and ‘grey’ consumption in general. These insights and categories were then coupled with insights concern­ ing the actual products and services that the consumers surrounded themselves with, as well as the patterns of their every­ day lives and lifestyles. The categorisations showed that car consumers do not just consume cars; in addition to being a functional instrument bringing people from one place to another thus solving a logistic problem, the car has a significant symbolic meaning to each and every consumer. What is more, it is this symbolism which is the key driver of car consumption (see also Kurani, Turrentine & Heffner 2006 on how the symbolism of advanced vehicles affects consumers’ decisions to purchase electric vehicles). In general, car consumers can be placed in a matrix along two dimensions (see Figure 2): One dimension reflects the fact that some consumers most often refer to function and fact when they talk about cars and transportation, while others more frequently refer to feelings and dreams. The second dimension reflects the fact that some car consumers refer more to environmental concerns and ethics — and thus to the sphere of the ‘sacred’ (Belk, Wallendorf & Sherry, 1989), while others refer to everyday life, fashion, and personal interests — and thus to the sphere of the ‘profane’ (Belk, Wallendorf, and Sherry, 1989). A closer analysis and further categorisa­ tion showed that these motorists can be divided into seven consumer typologies,

FROM UNIQUE INDIVIDUALS TO CONSUMER TYPOLOGIES Anthropology is characterised by the working with unique individuals and try­ ing to understand their deeper values and 29


Figure 3 — E–car user types positioned along the diffusion of innovations curve ‘Status Seeker’ highlighted Ref.: Report One, etrans, 2009, page 28

Adoption curve Rationalist Design lover

Pragmatist

City bohemian Status seeker

Environ– mentalist Technology enthusiast Innovators

Early Adopters

Early Majority

30

Late Majority

Laggards

Late Laggards


depending on the symbolism related to the car, transportation, and consumption in general: The consumer typologies are: 1. The Status Seeker — for whom the car is a status symbol 2. The Pragmatist — for whom the car is a marriage of convenience 3. The Rationalist — for whom the car is a work tool 4. The Design Lover — for whom the car is an aesthetic project 5. The City Bohemian — for whom the car is a trendy rebellion project 6. The Environmentalist — for whom the car is an ethical project 7. The Technology Enthusiast — for whom the car is a hobby.

— Laggards k approx. 16% of the relevant market. Empirical evidence produced over the years shows that although the basic pro­ portions of the diffusion model are still valid in some cases, huge varieties can be observed among new products and ser­ vices introduced to the market. For some products and services lead–times are very short, while for others they are extremely long and not easy to anticipate. Also, the geographical pattern of diffusion may vary tremendously. In some cases, new products diffuse in a neighbourhood like fashion — as waves from the situ of intro­ duction. In other cases, diffusion follows an urban hierarchy pattern from largest to smallest urban areas. Some products may have a very short introductory period before they hit the mass market; others have a long lead–time. Many products and services are currently designed to be “niche–oriented” and thus never hit a mass market — except by “accident” as in the case of e.g. Facebook. Nonetheless, in our opinion, the curve is suitable for describing the attempt to introduce a brand–new technological platform to the car market. Firstly, be­ cause the intention of the electric car is precisely to break into the mass market, and secondly, because the car market is an extremely conservative market in which producers, dealers, legislators — and many consumers — think and act more traditionally than they do in other product and service areas. A consumer’s willing­ ness and ability to adopt an innovation de­ pends on his or her attentiveness, interest, evaluation, and opportunity to try out the innovation. Depending on the product cat­ egory, the same consumer may be found at different points on the adoption curve. For example, the same consumer could be designated an ‘Early Adopter’ in the fash­ ion or food category, but a ‘Laggard’ when it comes to cars or new technology. In order to illustrate the interpretations and analyses performed, one of the user typology analysis is presented and posi­ tioned on the adoption curve presented in Figure 3.

Figure 2 visualises the seven consumer typologies along the two basic dimen­ sions — emotions and dreams in contrast to the fact and function oriented con­ sumer typologies. The other dimension shows a divide between those users who are attracted by the prospect for society — the sacred users — and those who are attracted by ‘what is in it for me’, i.e. the profane users. Position on the adoption curve The micro founded analyses of the market for e–car carried out through the anthro­ pological field study was combined with a macro founded analysis of the electric car market. The analysis was inspired by Rogers’ (1962) diffusion of innovations model which shows the diffusion of in­ novations among different categories of consumers over time. This model, in turn, is related to Vernon’s (1966) product life– cycle model. Rogers claims that all new innovations and ideas are adopted by con­ sumers according to a particular pattern: — Innovators k approx. 2.5% of the rel­ evant market — Early Adopters k approx. 13.5% of the relevant market — Early Majority k approx. 34% of the relevant market — Late Majority k approx. 34% of the relevant market 31


A ‘Status Seeker’ is only prepared to buy an electric car if it no longer constitutes a social risk. According to ‘Status Seekers’ the electric cars on today’s market (in­ cluding those due to be launched on the market in 2010 and 2011) are too small, too plastic–looking, too feminine, and too organic in their styling. At the same time, the ‘Status Seeker’s’ mental image of — and emotional relationship with — the car is especially influenced by aspects such as engine noise, speed and accelera­ tion, horse power and chrome, as well as enjoyment of the aesthetics of the engine compartment. With the exception of its acceleration capacity, the electric car cannot match a fuel car on these counts. Thus, buying an electric car in the early stages of the adoption cycle would be per­ ceived as a fundamental loss of everything that a ‘Status Seeker’ associates with the enjoyment of driving. To present a realistic alternative, the electric car would have to come to a stage where it is perceived as adding value — not removing value — for a ‘Status Seeker’. The implication is that the market for e–cars needs to offer a new kind of material pleasure matching or exceeding the material pleasure associated with fuel cars. Also, it would have to be provided by recognised, well–established brands such as Mercedes, BMW, Audi, etc. In spite of what EV (electric vehicle) enthusiasts say, it will take a few years before any such solutions are launched on the mass market. Therefore, a ‘Status Seeker’ has to be defined as a ‘Laggard’ when it comes to adopting the electric car. Based on similar analyses, the total range of user types is displayed along the adoption curve below.

voice, the aesthetic voice, etc.) depending on context and time. Thus, present perspectives on the con­ temporary consumer as a schizophrenic chaos pilot dominated by many differ­ ent — and indeed sometimes contradicto­ ry — voices (Halkier 1999; Schultze 1997; Gergen, 2006) is also evident in the present data material. Our analyses show that consumers do indeed float between a sense of duty and moral on the one hand, and a wide variety of everyday earthly interests and desires on the other — and what is more important: This schizophrenia is not only evident in their actual consumer choices, but also in their personal and social reper­ toires — or the way they write themselves into the world through narratives. To be successful on today’s consumer market, businesses have to meet the chal­ lenge of trying to combine different voices of the market place in new and intriguing ways (Sørensen & Jensen 2010). During the 6–day workshop we worked at creating this picture of consumers po­ tentially being driven by many different voices, and we worked at combining dif­ ferent voices in the prototypes and busi­ ness ideas that came out of the workshop. CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES We have found that the research based analyses can be used as a platform for knowledge extension. We introduce this platform leaning on design oriented techniques which handle the relationship between problem and solution “in the open”. But this way of working is not at all a bed of roses. It is filled with paradoxes. The open mind–set meets resistance and impatience from our stakeholders from business life, who want to come to conclusions at an earlier stage. Another obvious challenge is that we observe that the process is influenced by the mental relative strength between the people present in a room. The very inclusive nature of the process, however, has had the positive side effect that our stakeholders take ownership of the innovation process. We and they meet

ONE CONSUMER — MANY VOICES The consumer typology described above may give the impression that the market for car consumption can be segmented into clear–cut and well–defined consumer categories. This, however, is not the case! Our analyses clearly show that the same consumer can be driven by different voi­ ces (i.e. the moralist voice, the pragmatic 32


on an established platform where user voices are the basis for all development, but where the innovation process is deep­ ly dependent on the skilled and personal contribution from all participants. The challenges just mentioned, do not make this circular process any easier than working with a traditional, linear business model — on the contrary. The end result, though, is so much more interesting, and it is our hope and distinct belief that the business innovations that emerge prove to be much more successful. In that sense, this user–driven innova­ tion project is also driven by belief: We firmly believe that integrating the voices of users will result in solutions that are more meaningful to users.

In those parts of design research which aim to gain an improved understanding of design processes and aim to develop new theories that open up for new con­ cepts and practices in design, develop­ ment–driven research similar to that of the Carnegy School seems much more prosperous for breaking new ground for theoretical knowledge and also ensuring relevance to users outside the narrow circles of the research community. The etrans project is a fine example of this. However, the relationship between research and design methods is not a straightforward ‘either or’ relation­ ship which this paper also attempts to illustrate. What questions did the design project present to research so far? — To what extend are users driving inno­ vation (and designs)? — Who are the interpreters of user based information? What drives interpreter per­ spectives, and how do they gain position as dominant interpreters? What is the role of the design team at different stages of the design and development project? — How can design processes be or­ ganised in projects with a multitude of stakeholders? — How can specific technologies be searched and developed in support of proposed design solutions? — How can initial user studies and mo­dels be transformed into innovation proc­ esses and sessions with stakeholders and outsiders? — How to avoid the risk of design solu­ tions following established business trajectories at the expense of new market creations? During the workshop, we tested a meth­ odology in which many different specialist profiles contributed to expounding user insight in a pre–designed process. Based on feedback from participants, our project team has come to the conclusion that de­ sign can facilitate the process of obtaining user insight, and that design can facilitate a unique meeting place for stakeholders of user–driven innovation to meet and develop meaningful innovations.

CONCLUSION A research driven design project or a design driven research project? Most researchers have adopted Popper’s (2002) view that good studies are theory– driven and proceed from the development of falsifiable hypothesis to empirical test of their validity. In this deductive per­ spective, empirical studies are ultimately ‘reduced’ to test materials driving theory development forward. Development activi­ties are seen as an outcome of research. However, for example the Carnegy School (Simon, 1978; Nelson & Winter, 1982) advocates an inductive process beginning with observations of empirical regularities followed by the development and testing of appreciative theory. In this inductive view, research, development, and design activities are much more inter­ twined in mutual knowledge generating circles. In etrans we insist on developing with rather than developing for (Pralahad & Ramaswamy, 2004). As illustrated in figure 4, the multidisciplinary teams of the workshop consisted of designers and researchers as well as business people, and the outcome was a product of mutual negotiation, inspiration, and knowledge generation rather than of a linear business model approach. 33


Figure 4 — The design process as a mutual meaning making process

Process Form Design

Negotiation Inspiration

Negotiation Inspiration

User insights

Business Business strategy Business models

Research

Negotiation Inspiration

Theory Empirical analysis

34


How did research help solve problems in the design project so far? — Methodologies for anthropological field studies were developed. — Models facilitating a shift from the individual/particular to the population/ general level of analyses. — Awareness of the issue of interpreta­ tions and negotiations for design user centred solutions. — The ambiguity attached to the role of the design team. — Implementation issues, including iner­ tia, in the travel from initial design. In addition, design–driven research has a much stronger potential for en­ gaging a broad range of stakeholders as well as ‘ordinary’ people in research, for the simple reason that stakeholders and ordinary people take much more interest in developmental aspects in etrans than in abstract research questions. But the participation in development processes is an eye–opener to the need for new know­ ledge and concepts; and this knowledge is very likely to be gained through research methods.

car consumers. Design as well as commu­ nication is important here. But new urban consumer groups can also participate in creating a trickle–up and trickle–across effect. — A sufficiently wide selection of different types of vehicles and transport solutions must be launched in order to accommo­ date the enormous diversity of the con­ sumer market. — An infrastructure that fully supports the everyday use of the EV; including intelligent charging, rescuing services, insurance, and repairs. — The overall economy in terms of both purchase and maintenance must be improved considerably in order to fuel adoption. When it comes to aspects of techno­logy and design, electric cars need to offer solutions, which users regard as more in­ novative than existing fuel cars and thus represent added value. Finally, the user survey shows that user attitudes need to be worked on persis­ tently in order to persuade the ordinary consumer that it makes sense to switch to an electric car. This implies arrang­ ing events where consumers are able to test–drive the car, building communities where consumers can enter into a dia­ logue together and participate in forming attitudes and circulating anecdotes, and last but not least more traditional media coverage and communication. The introduction of the electric car can become a market success, notably because it is capable of helping solve a number of environmental and energy–re­ lated problems. The more these macro problems turn into reality, the shorter the lead–times in diffusion. But these visions, based on overall society preferences and collective attributes, need to be trans­ formed into individualised preferences addressing potential consumers.

How did research and design inspire businesses? As mentioned, 85 business ideas were developed during the workshop, and a number of the business partners have already incorporated the ideas into their own innovation work. The 7 consumer voices presented above have been sup­ plied with 6 design principles each allow­ ing business to target products, service, and communication at different consumer voices. Last but not least, businesses have gained insight into the value of subscrib­ ing to user insights and strategic design processes as the guide to innovation. When we look across our research re­ sults and development work, we find that some absolutely basic conditions need to be addressed in order to create a sustain­ able market for electric cars. These are: — The EV needs more X–factor, meaning that the image of the electric vehicle must be sufficiently transformed to meet the contemporary life themes, values, and projects of a larger proportion of Danish

Anne Flemmert Jensen, Associate Professor, Cross Faculty Department Mette Mikkelsen, Head of the etrans Programme Poul Rind Christensen, Head of Research, Professor, Cross Faculty Department 35


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Belk, R.W., Sherry Jr., J.F. & Wallendorf, M. (1988). A Naturalistic Inquiry into Buyer and Seller Behavior at a Swap Meet. Journal of Consumer Research, 14 (March), 449 –70.

Popper, K. R. (2002). Conjectures and Refutations: The Growth of Scientific Knowledge (5th edition). New York: Routledge.

Belk, R.W., Wallendorf, M. & Sherry Jr., J.F. (1989). The Sacred and the Profane in Consumer Behavior: Theodicy on the Odyssey. Journal of Consumer Research, 16 (June), 1–39.

Prahalad, C.K & Ramaswamy, V. (2004). The Future of Competition. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business School Press.

Buchanan, R. (1992). Wicked Problems in Design Thinking. Design Issues, 8(2), 5 –21.

Rogers, E. M. (1962). Diffusion of Innovations. Glencoe: Free Press.

Cannon, James, (ed.). (2006). Driving Climate Change, Cutting Carbon from Transportation. Burlington, MA: Elsevier Press.

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Jensen, A.F. & Mikkelsen, M. (2009). A Design Manual for the Electric Car Market, Kolding: Kolding School of Design.

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Ulk, Rikke (2009). Datarapport: Antropologisk feltstudie i forbindelse med projekt etrans. Kolding: etrans, Kolding School of Design. Verganti, R. (2008). Design, Meanings, and Radical Innovation: A Metamodel and a Research Agenda. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 25, 436 –456. Vernon, R. (1966). International Investment and International Trade in the Product Cycle. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 80, 190–207.

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Current Research

Seven Types of Consumers

Anne Flemmert Jensen: Design fuelling research and research fuelling design p. 41

Anne Katrine Gøtzsche Gelting: Conversations about teaching design at Kolding School of Design p. 43

Anne Louise Bang: Emotional Values Related to Fabrics in Action p. 49

Birgit Lyngbye Petersen: When the fashion industry got dressed up and ready to go p. 53

Else Skjold: Man and his clothes p. 59

Eva Knutz: New Narrative Forms p. 62

Kirsten Bonde Sørensen: How can design and rhetoric contribute to business strategy and value innovation? p. 65

Kirsten Nissen: Emerging Patterns p. 73

Lene Wul, Vibeke Riisberg, Caren Weisleder: User–driven innovation, ‘supportive design’, and the hospitals of the future p. 76

38


Balance

Malene Leerberg: Drawing a Line: Collaborative sketching and the design process p. 84

Mette Harrestrup Lauritzen: Embodied communication p. 89

Pia Pedersen: Visualization of Statistics p. 94

Poul Rind Christensen: Disruptive Design p. 97

Sisse Tanderup: The Georg Jensen and Alessi Design p. 103

Thomas Markussen: Interaction design and cognitive semiotics p. 107

Tine Ebdrup: Aesthetic learning environments p. 110

Trine Brun Petersen: Design Governs our Behaviour p. 113

Vibeke Riisberg & Joy Boutrup: Adjusting daylight and solar heating in office buildings p. 119

39


Seven Types of Consumers Emotions and dreams

Design lover Environ– mentalist

“The sacred”

Status seeker

City bohemian

Pragmatist

Technology enthusiast

Rationalist

Facts and function

40

“The profane”


Current Research

Anne Flemmert Jensen, Associate Professor, Cross Faculty Department

Anne Flemmert Jensen: Design fuelling research and research fuelling design

References: Jensen, A.F. & Mikkelsen, M. (2009). The status seeker, the pragmatist, the rationalist, the design lover, the city bohemian, the environmentalist, the technology enthusiast: A design manual for the electric car market. Kolding: etrans, Kolding School of Design.

As head of research and analysis in the etrans project, I am responsible for plan­ ning and managing the implementation of the research strategy and analysis. etrans is a user–driven innovation project aiming to create the market and user insights as well as the development and design work needed in order to turn the electric ve­ hicle and other sustainable transport solu­ tions into a market success in Denmark. The aim is twofold: We both aim to create new research perspectives on the inclu­ sion of users and stakeholders in complex design projects, and we aim to create a methodological foundation for fuelling design processes that ensure new, cutting edge innovations that can bring Denmark in front when it comes to the new green tech industry. I have a background as a consumer researcher with a special focus on the diffusion of innovations, cultural change, families, children, and youth cultures. In addition, the empirical research that I have conducted in etrans has given me special insights into the epistemology and methodology of user–driven inno­ vation, as well as knowledge about the values, beliefs, attitudes, and everyday lives of Danish consumers; especially when it comes to transport and mobil­ ity, sustainability, the balance between ‘green’ and ‘grey’ consumption, and brand attitudes. That background, coupled with my experience of working for private and public companies as a consumer behav­ iour expert, will hopefully provide new perspectives on how to research, interpret and fuel outcomes of experimental design processes that take vantage point in user studies and insights. An impression of the interaction be­ tween experimental design processes and user research is provided in the the­ matic article included elsewhere in this publication.

Sørensen, E. & Jensen, A. J. (2010). Talk about cars and sustainability: Interpretative repertoires in the discourse of Danish automobile consumers. Submitted to be presented at the European Conference of the Association for Consumer Research, London, UK, June 30 – July 3 2010. Ulk, R. (2009). Datarapport: Antropologisk feltstudie i forbindelse med projekt etrans. Kolding: etrans, Kolding School of Design.

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Current Research

In the interviews the teachers reflected upon past teaching experience. Ten interviews were made primarily with final year students from both depart­ ments. Two students from each studied subject were asked to tell about their graduation project, working methods, and their experience with the instruction at the school. These interviews were both retrospective and prospective because the students talked about their past educa­ tional experience at the school as well as the graduation project they were working on at the time of the interview. Design method is a very broad topic because, in principle, it deals with almost everything the students are taught, which will, in fact, constitute the “tool box” of the newly trained designer. The interviews are therefore rela­ tively open or “exploratory” as different persons are exposed to roughly similar questions or considerations but in an arbitrary order, with the aim of uncover­ ing differences and similarities between special professional subjects and attitudes towards design method and teaching.

Anne Katrine Gøtzsche Gelting: Conversations about teaching design at Kolding School of Design Interviews about design methods and teaching at DK:

WHY? Kolding School of Design has undergone a metamorphosis during its 40 years of existence. It has evolved from being the arts and crafts appendix to a technical school into a design school in its own right trying to balance the arts and crafts tradition against new academic insights. The school’s present curriculum is a mix of different perspectives and disciplines which have mainly developed in the minds of the teachers and through their interaction with students. The teachers continually develop the curriculum as they learn from and through their experi­ ence with teaching.1 The aim of my investigation is to sustain and document the gained experience and make the great amount of special tacit knowledge — “knowledge–in–action” (Schön, 1983) — about teaching design methods more explicit, clear, and shared. On this basis, the school will — hopeful­ ly — to a higher degree be able to safe­ guard the qualities of the ongoing teach­ ing in spite of a varying staff of teachers and changing social and political interests in relation to the school. Further devel­ opment can then be shared and dissemi­ nated on a clearer and more well–defined foundation.

WHAT? All the teachers and students interviewed have willingly unfolded their ideas and their experiences to me. What seems evi­ dent so far is that each of the interviewed persons talk within the frame of specific design conditions which influence his/her method and process of work. Fashion designers move between two–dimensional surfaces of materials and the three–dimensional shapes of man­ nequins and bodies. They have to combine a mathematical/geometric control with an artistic flair and consciousness to cre­ ate shape. Fashion designers also have to work within rather narrow time–frames. Many fashion designers develop four collections every year. Textile designers are, in the tradi­ tional sense, designers of two–dimension­ al products and are in some ways related to illustration designers and graphic art­ ists. However, at the core of their activity is a preoccupation with a combination of

HOW? My project is based on a series of inter­ views with teachers and students. To date, I have carried out 17 inter­ views out of which three were with teachers at the Department of Product Design (Fashion, Textile, and Industrial Design) and three with teachers at the Department of Communication Design (Graphic, Illustration, and Interactive Design). One interview was made with a teacher working within cross–topical teaching. 43


tactile values and forming patterns that are to be integrated into three–dimen­ sional interior design, furniture design, or fashion design. Industrial designers are not, in principle, limited in their choice of types of products to work on, and they must be able to take into consideration an enor­ mous multitude of different types of pro­ ducts, materials, and technologies. They also have to walk a tightrope spanning the best utilisation of available technologies while considering the problems and — the often tacit — needs, emotions, and values of end–users. Graphic designers function as a kind of “channel” for conducting the flow of two–dimensional visual information between sender and receiver. Their work consists in creating a graphic “language” instrumental in facilitating this flow of communication, but also creating their own individual expression of the message to be forwarded. Illustrators develop their ideas and expressions through a prolonged proc­ ess, during which — for every new line drawn on paper or unfolded digitally — they have to struggle to keep the personal “touch” or “vibe” in the work. Also, they must develop and be true to a stringent visual concept of how to build up the “story”. Interactive DESIGN, seen as a pro­ fession, constitute an enormous “space of possibilities”, within which students can occupy themselves with a multitude of different projects, media, and ways of presenting problems. At the same time, and unlike the other lines of study at the school, Interactive Design is of a more immaterial character because it does not relate to any specific product but may be lodged in different objects and kinds of visual information.

ongoing dialogue between student and instructor, the school constitutes a place where the student is not just receiving tuition. The student develops a personal “design–language” and his/her own design method. This is the result of the interaction with others students, supervi­ sors, and teachers forming a “community of learning” of their own. A major overall task for the staff then is to facilitate these “learning communities” in the domains of design at the school.2: Framing: An important part of project instruction is how to “frame” the project and create focus points for the student.3 Little by little the students learn how to establish boundaries around their own projects. Several teachers emphasise the framing as one of the most important skills taught at the school. The written theoretical projects: Is a relatively new part of the study. Initially, there was a little scepti­ cism and worry that the theoretical paper in connection with the fifth year project examination might take too much time from the practical project. However, it­ turned out that the written projects have made the students more precise and fo­ cused and given direction to the students’ further activities with the practical design project! The written assignment creates a theoretic framework that enables the student to reflect upon some of the tacit aspects of the design process. The problem: There are differences between the problems facing the students. Within all lines of study there are students who want to work at what could be called “designerly problems”: To study specific techniques, to make experiments with materials or with aesthetic expressions or to explore aspects of the design process. Other students are attracted by “problem­ atic problems”: Design solutions which may supply a want, a need or solve a prob­ lem encountered by others. Both kinds of problems are relevant, but the question is, what can be achieved during the relatively short study period? Breadth and depth: Several teach­ ers describe a curriculum with many projects and courses and, further, new

Some notions which repeatedly turned up during several of the interviews: Project guidance: A respectful and open dialogue between teacher and stu­ dent about the design projects and proc­ esses is of enormous importance. Through 44


1 David A. Kolb has written about Experimental Learning since 1984 (Kolb, 1984). Insights about education and learning at the Design School in Kolding could be gained from his theoretical approach.

demands for sustainable thinking, so­ cial responsibility, and for additional academic skills, writing, and theoretic knowledge. The fundamental question which presents itself is how to prioritise between the breadth and depth of the teaching focus: Should students strive to obtain a broad designer professional­ ism which enables them to tackle many different kinds of projects within a given line of profession — or should they be equipped with deep professional knowl­ edge within a narrow or specific field of their profession? There is no simple general answer to this dilemma. In part it is the students’ individual choice. However, it does pose a major challenge of how to develop and fa­ cilitate learning environments supporting different types of “learning communities”. So far, I have transcribed six out of 17 interviews. It is my hope that the different “designerly thinking” modes existing be­ tween the different design specialisations at Kolding School of Design will become even clearer when I get more of them down on paper. Different theoretical frameworks might be interesting in trying to put the inter­ view project into perspective: Nigel Cross. “Designerly thinking” and Donald Schön “The reflective Practitioner”. Also Etienne Wengers writings about “Communities of practice” and David A. Kolbs thoughts on “Experiential Learning” or ELT. The final report on the project will be handed in by the end of June 2010.

2 The work of Etienne Wenger (Wenger, 1998) in describing “com­ munities of practice”

seems interesting and appropriate in putting the educa­ tional interaction between students and teachers into perspective. 3 Nigel Cross (Cross, 2006 has, amongst others, described problem framing as an important part of the design process in “Designerly Ways of Knowing”.

References: Cross, N. (2006). Designerly Ways of Knowing. London: Springer. Kolb, D.A. (1984). The experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. NJ: Prentice–Hall. Schön, D. (1983). The Reflective Practioner: How Professionals Think in Action. London: Basic Books. Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of Practice; learning, Meaning, and Identity. NY: Cambridge University Press.

Anne Katrine Gøtzsche Gelting, Associate Professor, Cross Faculty Department

45


Anne Grarup: Project: A Doll's House

Niels Grubak Iversen: Project: TURBINE, Lighting design for the 21. Century

46


Magnhild E. Disington: Project: Deviated Evolution

Rikke Otte Pedersen: Project: STILL HERE — music–video for the artist 'Oh Land'

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Current Research

As stated by Hatch (2006), there is no reliable method for the quantitative evaluation of ‘hand’ in textile science even though it is “often the fundamental aspect that determines the success or failure of a textile product”. ‘Hand’ is a professional term for the tactile sensation of textiles. There are several words attached to ‘hand’ and “these words do not have the same meanings to everyone who uses them” (Hatch, 2006, p. 53). Nevertheless, words are considered an important research tool for a subjective evaluation of fabric aesthetics in textile science (Brand, 1964, p. 791). In textile design, research words are also considered a means for a distinct communication about visual and tactile sensation of fabrics (Homlong, 2006; Moody et al., 2001). In both examples are used variations of the repertory grid tech­ nique to elicit words about fabric sensa­ tion. The repertory grid technique — an interview technique originated in psychol­ ogy — considers the client an expert in his/her own life (Fransella et al., 2004; Kelly, 1955). In the present research project, an exploratory approach is proposed as a way for the designer to empathise with various stakeholders. During this actual research project, various experiments applying elements from the repertory grid technique into cultural probes (Gaver et al., 1999; Mattelmäki, 2006) and design games (Brandt, 2006) have been conduct­ ed. Especially, the triadic difference which is an element from the repertory grid technique: “Presenting three elements at a time asking ‘How are two alike in some way, but different from the third?’” (Fransella et al., 2004, p. 7) has been in­ vestigated as a tool for dialogue. Applied to approaches built over a game structure the triadic difference seems to enable the ‘non textile design experts’, who are con­ sidered to be experts in their own every­ day life, to engage actively in a dialogue. The triadic difference seems to be useful in enabling people to express subjective and individual experiences of fabrics. Embedded in a game structure with rules and requisites it enables a dialogue about

Anne Louise Bang: Emotional Values Related to Fabrics in Action This industrial Ph.D. project is conducted in collaboration with Gabriel A/S — a Danish company within the textile indus­ try. The company develops and manufac­ tures fabrics for upholstery solutions and related services. The research project is based on industrial textile design practice as it is conducted at Gabriel’s design unit. Furthermore, the Ph.D. student herself holds a degree as textile designer. The overall purpose is to investigate, explore, and concretise emotional values in textile design. The objectives are: to enable vari­ ous colleagues, stakeholders, and end–­ users to contribute actively to the design process, and to enable the designers to facilitate dialogues and exploratory ap­ proaches as part of the design process. How can the embedded practice of textile design meet and benefit from the inclusion of other peoples’ personal and individual knowledge and sense of textiles through dialogue based and exploratory approaches? The project investigates how the industrial textile design proc­ ess can employ an exploratory approach when handling emotional values such as sensuous qualities and aesthetic appeal which are hard to quantify and are in fact immeasurable. Textile designers are skilled practi­ tioners in designing fabric structure and fabric aesthetics and are also concerned with the ways in which the fabrics apply to product and context. They are familiar with project management and coordina­ tion. In industrial design and manufactur­ ing they collaborate and communicate with various other professionals such as engineers, technicians, logistics staff, marketing staff, sales people, and man­ agement in order to facilitate the design and development process from research to production. Furthermore, they occa­ sionally collaborate with customers, sup­ pliers, and end–users. 49


implicit knowledge of fabric sensation (Bang, 2009; Bang & Nissen, 2009).

Mattelmäki T. (2006). Design Probes. Ph.D. Helsinki: University of Industrial Arts.

Anne Louise Bang, Industrial Ph.D. student, Department of Product Design

Moody W.; Morgan R.; Dillon P.; Baber C. & Wing A. (2001). Factors Underlying Fabric Perception. In: 1st Eurohaptics Conference Proceedings. Birmingham, 2001.

References: Bang A. (2009). Triads as a Means for Dialogue about Emotional Values in Textile Design. In: Malins, J. (ed.). Design Connexity: Proceedings of the Eighth European Academy of Design International Conference. Aberdeen, UK: Gray’s School of Art, The Robert Gordon University, 1–3 April. (pp 44–49) Bang A. & Nissen K. (2009). Facilitating Teamwork in the Design Process: Repertory Grid as an Approach to Exploratory Inquiry. In: Nordic Design Research Conference: Engaging Artifacts. Oslo, 30 August – 1 September 2009. Brand R. (1964). Measurement of Fabric Aesthetics: Analysis of Aesthetic Components. Textile Research Journal, 34, 791–804. Brandt E. (2006). Designing Exploratory Design Games — a framework for participation in participatory design. In: PDC, 9th Participatory Design Conference: Expanding Boundaries in Design. Trento, 1–5 August 2006. New York, NY: ACM. (pp. 121–131) Fransella F.; Bell R. & Bannister D. (2004). A Manual for Repertory Grid Technique. (2nd ed). Chichester: John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Gaver B.; Dunne T. & Pacenti E. (1999). Cultural Probes. Interactions, 6(1), 21–29. Hatch K. (2006). Textile Science. Revised ed. Tuscon: University of Arizona. Homlong S. (2006). The language of textiles — Description and judgement on textile pattern composition. Ph.D. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis.

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Current Research

Breakthrough to the fashion industry In the period before and after the Second World it was risk–free to manu­ facture enormous quantities of clothes. Underwear, shirts, dresses, and other arti­ cles of clothing were produced to be piled up, ordered by number, tied up with string to be shelved until an opportunity for sale presented itself. The goods did not go out of date or fashion overnight or from one year to the next. But producers were forced to modern­ ise, rationalise, and to specialise when the industry experi­ enced a crisis during the liberalisation of Danish foreign trade in 1950s opening up for greater com­ petition. Both the individual companies and the industry as a whole had to move their focus from the production to the sale of goods. Consumers were given a more central position, and slowly the Danish clothing industry became a fashion industry. In the transforma­ tion to postwar mar­ ket orientated pro­ duction companies, fashion, and labels were intertwined with a contextual change in the same period. Denmark was changing on the political, economic, social, and cultural fronts too. The political agenda of the postwar period was marked by the devel­ opment of the welfare state (Christiansen & Petersen, 2003). Concurrently, Denmark underwent the process of establishing itself as a design nation. In this period, Danish industry managed to start a significant export of furniture and textiles, and the brand “Danish Design”

Birgit Lyngbye Pedersen: When the fashion industry got dressed up and ready to go — Design as a competitive parameter in the Danish fashion industry’s development from 1945 to today

My dissertation looks into what has lifted the Danish fashion industry to the posi­ tion it finds itself in today. The question is what design and designers have meant for the development of the Danish fash­ ion industry, and why design plays a greater and greater role for companies in the fight for market shares. Until now, the dominant histori­ cal reading main­ tains that success is first and foremost a result of the qualities and particularities of Danish design. Nonetheless, the idea of design as an economical activity as opposed to a ques­ tion of consciously creating form is a ne­ glected aspect of this history. This disserta­ tion concentrates on the network of actors that throughout this period have created an understanding of Danish fashion and framed the way the consumer has given fashion meaning (Blaszscyk, 2000; McCracken, 1986). In the dissertation, fashion is understood as clothing that is primarily created with a focus on its decorative and expressive qualities in close relation to the market’s short–term demands.1 The dissertation questions how the industry has marketed itself from 1945 to the present through a conscious use of design and designers across changing cultures of consumption. 53


became a reality (Hansen, 2006a; Hansen, 2006b). Nonetheless, the term design was not formally established in the cloth­ ing industry before the late 1950s and 60s. At this time Copenhagen started to position itself as a rival to the Jutland town of Herning (and the clothing in­ dustry centered around the traditions of Hammerum Herred) with the intention of establishing itself as the leading fashion centre in the country (Pedersen, 2010). Led by a new profession with names such as Margit Brandt, Sysser Ginsborg, Søs Drasbæk and Jørgen Nørgaard, innova­ tive designers profiled themselves with fashion design aimed at the new youth culture — teenagers. At the same time, the new design oriented companies launched shops, and design was equally marketed in retail. This launched a new epoch in the history of Danish fashion design with its conscious designer and design strategy. In 1955 the trade association Beklædningsindustriens Sammenslutning (the Clothing Industry Association) initiated the marketing of the clothing industry counting one magazine, national and international advertising, exposi­ tions, press releases, fashion councils, films, lectures, etc. The magazine Klæder skaber Folk (Apparel makes the Man) was the first initiative followed by an exposition with the same title in Forum the subsequent year. Over the course of the following years, the association became an organisational centre of a network including Dansk Textil Union (the Danish Textile Association) and Textilfabrikantforeningen (the Textile Manufacturer Association) which helped put Danish fashion in high regard among national and international consumers and thereby increase spending power. However, even in the early post–war years, manufacturers from Jutland, clustered (Porter, 1990) around the town of Herning, had taken advantage of their communal network. The trade fair of Jydsk Textilfabrikantsforening (the Textile Manufacturer Association), Dansk Textil Messe (the Danish Textile Fair), which substituted Jydsk Textil Messe (the Jutland Textile Fair), had been

a recurring event since 1947. In 1958, Dansk Herremoderåd (the Danish Men’s Fashion Council) was founded by an association of Beklædningsindustriens Sammenslutning (the Clothing Industry Association), and the year after, in 1959, it was the women’s turn with the found­ ing of Dansk Damemoderåd (the Danish Women’s Fashion Council). The purpose of all of the initiatives was to attract atten­ tion to the Danish clothing industry and create an increased consumption. Design and designers became a competitive re­ source to be utilised consciously to market the companies, supported by the trade organisations. Consumers desire for change and renewal The clothing industry’s change towards mass production of fashion was accom­ panied by the consumer’s growing desire to be “fashionable”. This started with a demand for a better and greater range of goods, and to a greater extent mass produced fashion became associated with identity. Through fashion, individual differences and connection with oth­ ers was articulated. The consequence of clothing becoming closely identified with identity gave the fashion industry a base from which to potentially market itself to its consumers. Increasingly, the fashion industry has needed to be at the fore­ front of what consumers wanted in terms of change and renewal as well as their tastes and preferences. The ability of the industry to manoeuvre was driven by the foibles of a changing market, and, primar­ ily for fashion, was connected with the new teenager youth culture. Concurrent to this, fashion became part of a system of marketing strategies that needed to be ap­ plied as the competition became greater and products had to find their place on the market. The international market had gradually opened up and the era of Paris as the capital of fashion was challenged by other cities such as New York, London, and later Milan, that had managed to position themselves as alternative capi­ tals on the international fashion map.2 Throughout this period, the turnover of 54


the industry increased and the individual companies were constantly pressured to create new and varied models in order to maintain production and demand. Today, sixty years after the fashion industry’s breakthrough, it is a pre–requisite of any new company to find its place on the international scene in order to be able to survive.

fashion on the front pages of newspapers, on a number television channels, electronically, and in a growing range of fashion magazines. Many designers have found their way to different media and they are often portrayed as heroes. Today, the state, the public, and the industry itself consider fashion to be one of the most important design areas in Denmark. And this is reflected in the individual companies’ annual accounts. The fifth fashion cluster in the world? In Denmark, political attention has been specially focused on Copenhagen as the fifth fashion cluster on the international scene (Økonomi– og Erhvervsstyrelsen, 2005). For this reason, the Government announced Copenhagen challenger of the existing ranking of fashion capitals across the globe in the Ministry for Economic and Business Affairs in the FORA re­ port User–oriented Innovation in Danish Fashion, the Fifth Global Fashion Cluster? The report dealt with how the fashion in­ dustry should make a positive example of the transformation of how to be subject to international marketing conditions and, as a result of its concluding points, the Danish Fashion Institute (DAFI) was es­ tablished in 2005 and the fashion consor­ tium MOKO followed in 2006. Both insti­ tutions were charged with supporting the fashion industry with networking and a knowledge centre, respectively. In the late summer of 2008, the Minister of Economic and Business Affairs, Bendt Bendtsen, selected the fashion industry as the first of four industrial areas that can make up a common platform for what he himself described as “Fashion Denmark”. The in­ dustry as a whole was to be strengthened in order to meet the challenges of global competition and contribute to making Denmark the world’s fifth fashion cluster. But despite the fact that the fashion indus­ try has managed to increase its share of the export market considerably, it is not all the main players that have had equal success in making an international brand of their own.

The fashion industry today Currently, the three largest fashion com­ panies in Denmark — Bestseller A/S, BTX– Group, and IC Companys A/S — account for 75% of the total clothing export. Each of them has a large number of different brands under the same roof and can take advantage of a single division in the com­ pany that is able to develop knowledge of sales in the various export markets. In spite of this, it is mainly the smaller and medium sized companies that are gener­ ally the focus of media attention. Their branding is typically based on the names of one or two designers forming the com­ pany. In the last few years, a number of smaller companies have been established such as Baum und Pferdgarten, Henrik Vibskov, and Stine Goya. From the very inception of the firms they were all in­ ternationally exposed, and thus they had organised themselves according to the prevailing market conditions, including the out–sourcing of production as well as looking to sell their clothes both at home and abroad. Today, the Danish fashion industry is one of the country’s largest export sectors and it works in an unstable, changeable international market. The export of fashion is now large, and over the last years, the industry has been the focus of media attention abroad as well as in Denmark. There is great interest in Danish 55


At present, Danish fashion companies deliver between two to eight collections a year. The industry is constantly forced to look ahead. Lead times in product devel­ opment and production are short and concentrated. In the transformation from the kind of post–war production based on generic clothing to fashion items Picadilly and Pigalle were two of the new brand types that worked with creating new de­ sires and longings. At that time, the indus­ try’s collective association warned against the use of a large advertising campaign. The Association of Textile Manufacturers was of the opinion that “one asks for a bar of milk chocolate with nuts, it is much more seldom that one asks for chocolate from a particular factory and it is just the same in many cases in the textile industry” (Jydsk Textilfabrikantforening, 1955). Today, society is dominated by the brands of fashion, often even with a global reach. It is difficult to imagine consumers being as brand indifferent as in the 1950s.

References Blaszscyk, R.L. (2000). Imagine Consumers. Design and Innovation from Wedgewood to Corning. Baltimore: The John Hopkins University Press. Breward, C. (1995). The Culture of Fashion. Manchester and New York: Manchester University Press. Christiansen, N.F. & Petersen, K. (2003). Socialdemokratiet og den danske velfærdsstat. In Petersen, K. (ed.), 13 historier om den danske velfærdsstat (pp. 137–148). Odense: Syddansk Universitetsforlag. Hansen, P. H. (2006a). Da danske møbler blev moderne: Historien om dansk møbeldesigns storhed og fald. Odense & København: Syddansk Universitetsforlag & Aschehoug, 2006. Hansen, P. H. (2006b). Networks, Narratives and New Markets: The Rise and Decline of Danish Modern Furniture Design, 1930 — 1970. Business History Review, 80(3), 449–484.

Birgit Lyngbye Petersen, Ph.D. student, Department of Product Design, CBS and Centre for Textile Research

Jydsk Textilfabrikantforening. (1955). Dansk Textil Årbog.

1 Definition of the term fashion, see Breward (1995, p. 5).

McCracken, G. (1986). Culture and Consumption: A Theoretical account of the Structure and Movement of the Cultural Meaning of Consumer Goods. The Journal of Consumer Research, (13), 71–84.

2 For further read­ ing (Merlo & Polese, 2006).

Merlo, E. & Polese, F. (2006) Turning Fashion into Business: The Emergence of Milan as an International Fashion Hub. Business History Review, 80(3), 415 – 448. Pedersen, B.L. (2010). Klædt på til eksport. Fra Jydsk Textil Messe til Scandinavian Fashion Week 1947 – 1970, forthcoming in Melchior et al (eds.) Snit: En antologi om industrialismens tøj I Danmark. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum.

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Porter, M. E. (1990). The Competitive Advantage of Nations. London: The Macmillan Press. White, N. (2000). Reconstructing Italian Fashion: America and the Development of the Italian Fashion Industry. Oxford and New York: Berg. Økonomi– og Erhvervsstyrelsen. (2005). Brugerdreven innovation i dansk mode — den 5. globale modeklynge?. København: Økonomi og Erhvervsstyrelsen.

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by touch, smell, and hearing as part of our experience of clothing, just as well as see­ ing (Roach–Higgins, Eicher and Johnson (eds.), 1995; Johnson and Foster, 2007; Entwistle, 2000; Entwistle & Wilson, 2001; Craik, 1994).

Else Skjold: Man and his clothes Framework and Field of Study My Ph.D. project is based on a so–called ‘wardrobe study’ (Klepp 2001; Borregaard 2007; Woodward 2007), a methodology for studying individuals and their relation to their wardrobe. I study men at the ages of 30–45, i.e. so–called ‘free agents’, e.g. freelancers or consultants, working in the Creative Industry (Pratt, 2000, 2004; Kupferberg, 2006; Skov and Pedersen (eds.), 2008). This grouping has already been termed “Grups”1 because of the way they redefine how to perform adulthood. My assump­ tion is that these men in particular need to reconstruct and renegotiate the balance between formal wear, fashion clothing, and more classical or traditional dress codes (suits), since there is no defined dress code in the jobs they occupy.

Methodology and Fieldwork By constructing a methodology based on elements from anthropology, sociol­ ogy, and cultural studies (Amit, 2000; Burawoy, 1991; Spradley, 1979), I aim to understand how my informants relate to their clothing on a sensory–aesthetic level; how, exactly, their choices are influenced by cut, materials, and style, why a particular item in their wardrobe is defined as “just right” or “not really me”. To study these aspects, my fieldwork will consist of a qualitative, in–depth study of selected men based on the principles of a wardrobe study where the interrela­ tion between physical comfort, aesthetic choices, and identity strategies are in focus. Since methodology development and generating a hypothesis are the main focuses of my project, only approximately ten informants will be studied, and the field work will be conducted in an on–go­ ing process. Basing my methodology on visual anthropology in the shape of video–inter­ views (Pink, 2007; Holliday in: Entwistle and Wilson, 2001; Jordan & Henderson, 1995), I further implement methodologies that can help my informants talk about their choices, which I assume will often stem from sensations or “tacit knowledge” of which they might not be very aware (Spradley, 1979). With an emphasis on anthropology’s notion of empowerment (Burawoy, 1991), especially as defined by Spradley where the informant is seen as a “teacher” (Spradley, 1979), and then combining it with theories on user– centred innovation (von Hippel, 2005; Jeppesen & Molin, 2003), I find it possible to get a very close look at how and why my informants make the choices they do. To get them further talking and reflecting, I work with elements from design re­ search, especially cultural probes (Gaver,

Wardrobe Studies Wardrobe studies are a fairly new me­ thodology that represents a combination between text based, humanistic studies, and a consumer–ethnographic method­ ology. I regard this type of study as an opportunity and a framework for develop­ ment when it comes to studying our every­ day practice of dressing and grooming. By focusing on the day–to–day choices we make when we dress, it is possible to take a closer look at how we categorise, choose, and reject items in our wardrobe; how these choices are deeply rooted in the way we perceive ourselves and our bodies with their individual flaws and po­ tentials, and how we relate this to current styles and fashions. Wardrobe studies thus represent a more augmented view on fashion and dress than a textual reading. They stand as part of a current movement in fashion stud­ ies where the impetus is not only on a two–dimensional, but on a three–, four–, or even five–dimensional understanding which acknowledges the impact created 59


Dunne & Pacenti, 1999; Lundgaard & Larsen, 2007; Mattekmäki, 2006) and participatory design methods such as repertory grid (Bang, 2007; Fransella, Bell & Bannister, 2004; Homlong, 2006; Kelly, 1991; Moody, Dillon, Baber & Wing, 2001). By providing various tasks such as making wardrobe–diaries or classifying their wardrobe in categories defined by either me or them, I aim to make them understand and share with me why they have certain dislikes and preferences.

References: Amit, V. (Ed.). (2000). Constructing the Field. Ethnographic Fieldwork in the Contemporary World. London: Routledge, London. Bang, A. L. (2007). Fabrics in function — Emotional utility values. In: Nordic Design Research Conference: Design Inquiries. Stockholm, May 27–30. Borregaard, K. (2007). Uden publikum. En sociologisk undersøgelse af hjemmetøj. MA Thesis. Copenhagen: Institute of Sociology, Copenhagen University.

Further Perspectives By providing in–depth knowledge on the motives behind the sartorial choices of male consumers, I establish a proposal for how to implement user–centred innova­ tion in the fashion industry. Furthermore, I contribute with theo­ retical and methodological tools with relevance to the fashion design educa­ tion, which in many countries is currently undergoing an academisation process (Skjold, 2008).

Burawoy et al. (1991). Ethnography Unbound. Power and Resistance in the Modern Metropolis. Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press. Craik, J. (1994). The Faces of Fashion: Cultural Studies in Fashion. Guildford & King’s Lynn: Biddles Ltd. Eicher, J. B.; Roach–Higgins, M.E.; Johnson, K.K.P. (eds.). (1995) Dress and Identity. New York: Fairchild Publications.

Else Skjold, Ph.D. student, Department of Product Design and CBS 1 Term taken from an episode of Star Trek, in which occurs a planet of children who name the Star Trek crew ‘Grups’, a contraction of ‘grown–ups’. The term describes 30–45 year old people who redefine adulthood through life and con­ sumer habits. http:// nymag.com/news/ features/16529/

Entwistle, J. (2000). The Fashioned Body. Fashion, Dress and Modern Social Theory. Padstow Cornwall: T. J. International. Entwistle, J. & Wilson, E. (2001). Body Dressing. Oxford: Berg. Fransella, F.; Bell, R. ;Bannister, D. (2004). A Manual for Repertory Grid Technique (2nd Edition). Chichester: John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Gaver, B.; Dunne, T.; Pacenti, E. (1999). Cultural Probes. Interactions, 6 (1), 21–29. Hippel, E. V. (2005). Democratizing Innovation. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Homlong, S. (2006) The language of textiles — Description and judgement on textile pattern composition. PhD– dissertation. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. 60


Jeppesen, L. B. & Molin, M. J. (2003). Consumers as Co–developers: Learning and Innovation Outside the Firm. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management 15 (3).

Pratt, A. C. (2000). Baseline study of the cultural industries in an international context for Creative Compact. Draft 1.3. A report commissioned by Comedia. London: Department of Geography and Environment, London School of Economics and Political Science.

Johnson, D. C. & Foster, H. B. (eds.). (2007). Dress Sense. Emotional and Sensory Experiences of the Body and Clothes. Oxford: Berg.

Pratt, A. C. (2004). The Cultural Economy. A call for spatialized ‘production of culture’ perspectives. International Journal of Cultural Studies, 7(1), 117–128.

Jordan, B. & Henderson, A. (1995). Interaction Analysis: Foundations and Practice. The Journal of the Learning Sciences 4 (1), 39–103.

Skjold, E. (2008). Fashion Research at Design Schools. Kolding: Kolding School of Design.

Kelly, G. (1991). The Psychology of Personal Constructs. Volume One: Theory and Personality. (1st Edition). London and New York: Routledge.

Skov, L. & Pedersen, J.S. (red.). (2008). Når oplevelser møder økonomi — Kreative virksomheder, brancher og steder. Århus: Forlaget Klim.

Klepp, I. G. (2001). Hvorfor går klær ut av bruk? Avhending sett i forhold til kvinners klesvaner. Rapport no. 3–2001. Oslo: SIFO/Statens institut for forbruksforskning.

Spradley, J. P. (1979). The ethnographic interview. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Group/Thomson Learning.

Kupferberg, F. (2006). Kreative tider. At nytænke den pædagogiske sociologi. Copenhagen: Hans Reitzels Forlag. Lundgaard L. & Larsen, M. U. (2007). Applying probes as an inspirational research tool for fashion design. Student paper. In: Nordic Design Research Conference: Design Inquiries. Stockholm, May 27–30. Mattelmäki, T. (2007). Design Probes. Ph.D.–thesis. Helsinki: UIAH. Moody, W. et al. (2001). Factors Underlying Fabric Perception. Localised March 11th 2010 at World Wide Web: http://www.eurohaptics.vision.ee.ethz. ch/2001/moody.pdf Pink, S. (2007). Doing Visual Ethnography (second ed.) London: Sage Publications Ltd.

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those who play the game. Furthermore, I will seek answers to the following questions: Can digital narratives be used as a method to learn more about children’s experiences of being in a hospital? How can a hospital environment benefit from adopting gaming and digital narratives? My background as an artist and design­ er lies within the field of visual art, interactive design, and digital narra­ tives. Narratives are central to how we con­ struct meaning, individually and collaboratively, and exchang­ ing stories can be a method of knowledge sharing and learning within communities. Through nar­ ratives, individ­ uals can learn to relate to difficult situations or conditions like illness, acci­ dents, and pain. But can a com­ puter game be organised in such a way that it becomes a tool for children to test possibilities, manage resources, and report subjective feelings? During New Narrative Forms (2008/09), a computer game prototype for children was developed in cooperation with the Department of Paediatrics at Kolding Sygehus (Kolding Hospital), The Research Initiative for Health Service Research, and the Department of Communication Design at Kolding School of Design. Throughout 2010/2011, this game prototype (called E–game) will be further developed and tested.

Eva Knutz: New Narrative Forms For most children, hospitalisation is as­ sociated with such unpleasant emotions as insecurity, uncertainty, loss of control, fear, or pain. Children are often hospi­ talised acutely, and within a few hours they are surrounded by people they do not know, and rooms and objects that are strange to them, while they are being examined, treated, and tested. On top of that, they are ex­ posed to uncer­ tainties such as: What is wrong with me? Why are my parents worried? When can I go home? Yet, there is a serious lack of instruments for use in clinical settings to meas­ ure emotions and ­differentiate ­anxiety levels of young children. The methods most frequently used are based on questionnaires, interviews, or observa­ tion reports; methods that do not include active involvement of the child or consider using non–verbal ways of communicating with a small child. The purpose of my research is to inves­ tigate how narratives and game design can be used as tools to measure, expli­ cate, and reduce the unpleasant emo­ tions which children experience during hospitalisation. I will do this by organising the game play in ways aiming to change (in a pre­ defined way) the beliefs and behaviour of 62


Eva Knutz, Ph.D. student, Department of Communication Design References: Knutz, E. & Markussen, T. (2010). Measuring Emotions through Game Design. Submitted to the conference: Design & Emotion, Chicago, October 2010.

Screenshot (E–Game), Project: New Narrative Forms, 2008/09.

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fuzzy front end strategic design process

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co n (he cret e co re se solu mm rv tio ic str n ate unic e + gy atio ) n

str a co

nc

ep t+

as ide

de

sig

teg

y

nc

rite

ria

Figure 1 — The strategic design process (Bonde Sørensen, 2009)


Current Research

those values may be implemented with productive results” (Buchanan, 2001). The latter description is very character­ istic of this research. In the research, both design activities and rhetorical theory is applied in the organisation of conver­ sations and debates about the values and the development of values — value innovation — in the community around Middelfart Sparekasse. The project started out at the fuzzy front end by interviewing employees about the organisational values, reading presentations of the organisation, ori­ entating in the current banking business situation, participating in very different types of meetings and courses in and around the bank, etc. Then I did rhetorical analysis (Perelman & Olbrechts–Tyteca, 1969) of different types of material, the homepage, organisational values and other presentations in order to research value structures and the dominant logic of the organisation. Having researched the organisation and identified the dominant logic, I continued by researching the users.

Kirsten Bonde Sørensen: How can design and rhetoric contribute to business strategy and value innovation? — A strategic design project in Middelfart Sparekasse

1. A strategic design process In a traditional design practise, the design process usually starts out with a well–de­ fined problem. In ‘the expanded notion of design’, design and strategic design processes start out at ‘the fuzzy end’ (see fig. 1). That means in strategic design processes the designer or researcher listens to the problem stated by the client but does not necessarily take it at face value. Strategic design involves a holis­ tic approach that incorporates business aspects as well as softer, value–oriented aspects in and around the company. Only at a relatively late stage in the process is the problem identified, and the concept and possible solutions are defined. The overall definition of a strategic design process could be: “Strategic design is a type of activity, which focuses on the business aspects and strategic thinking, previous to the identification of challenges and opportunities, where the solution can take any shape or form, physical or immaterial” (Friis, 2006). According to the design researcher Buchanan (2001), design and designers can be mapped within four areas: The first and second areas focus on ‘images’ and ‘things’ and gave rise to graphic design and industrial design. The third area changed its focus to ‘action’ and gave rise to interaction design. Here, the designer emerged as a designer of processes and services. The fourth area is related to action, but focuses on the ‘environment and systems’. This is the area of ‘thought’ and concerned with the organising idea of principles that operate behind environ­ ment and systems, i.e. human systems. Designers in this field can be seen as facilitators of organisational processes. “They organise conversations and debates about the values of a community and how

2. Researching the users and potential users When designing for the different creative sessions, I designed a box containing dif­ ferent types of creative tasks, answering questions about money, economy, and values in general. I designed the box as ‘a private room’, leaving space for reflection, memories, and ideas when responding to the questions, the provocative statements, and the creative tasks. This ‘reflective room’ was designed with a happy artificial long green grass carpet at the bottom, topped by the material: pictures, pieces of paper, scissors, glue, and coloured pen­ cils. The box has an appealing and accom­ modating look, almost like a gift with long green ribbons attached to small notes, telling people what to do. The material represents ‘a converging perspectives approach’ (Sanders, 2000) that combines what people ‘say’, ‘do’, and ‘make’. By interviewing people, you receive information about what people 65


Figure 3A — Collage A illustrates the non–customer Anne–Marie's present situation and her relationship with economy and the banking situation

66


Figure 3B — Collage B illustrates Anne–Marie's ideal future situation

67


Figure 2 — Different levels of knowledge are accessed by different methods (Sleeswijk Visser et al., 2005)

what people:

techniques:

say think

interviews

do use

observations

observable

generative sessions

tacit

knowledge:

surface

explicit

know feel dream

latent

deep

Figure 4 — User–centred design versus design–driven innovation (Verganti, 2009) user–centered design

design driven innovation interpreter

firm

firm

user current context of use

person envisioned context of life

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are able to ‘say’ which is mainly explicit knowledge. Observation studies give insight into the physical context of people and how people ‘do’ things. Generative techniques use the creativity of people to become aware and express their own experiences. Creative tools or self docu­ mentation techniques (Gaver et al., 1999; Mattelmäki, 2006) help people reflect on their memories, feelings, motivations, create awareness about their experiences, express them in a visual form, (‘making’ them visual) — and use these represen­ tations as a basis for talking about their experiences (Sanders & Stappers, 2003; Visser et al., 2005). See fig. 2. Central to this way of ‘asking’ is the idea that the designer leads the participants through a ‘guided discovery’ process which is appealing to their creativity and inner feelings, and hereby sets a stage for them to express their thoughts and ideas. The generative tools belong to the field of co–creation and work as thinking tools non–designers can use to express their dreams (or fears) for the future. Generative design makes us see how things could be and empowers ordinary people to generate and promote alterna­ tives to the current situation. In this field you find researchers such as Sanders and Stappers (2000, 2003, 2008), Visser et al. (2005, 2009). Looking back at the completed creative sessions, the above mentioned descrip­ tions rather precisely outline the nature of the generative tools. The guided discovery appealed to the participants’ inner feel­ ings and tacit knowledge, as described by one of the participants, Anne–Marie: “… performing the tasks in the box was one long process, where I got deeper and deeper into the concept of ‘economy’: first filling out the postcards, choosing statements and so on. I think these tasks were necessary in order to make the final collages. In these collages I felt I was able to express my reflections and final statement; my frustration about my personal finances got released. Actually, I was surprised I got so emotionally upset, now I am more aware that I must do something about my economy.”

The process of performing the creative tasks made her reflect, and finally, she claimed to be more aware of her specific needs and wishes. When she explains her wishes for the future bank, she is capable of telling exactly what she wants and how she wants it. She expresses that she wants to be in control of her economy and how she is supposed to achieve this. This creative session resulted in a lot of information about her as a customer — and this is, so far, the focus of the tradi­ tional co–creation sessions and research. User input can be very valuable for improvements in products etc. However, the weakness in user–studies and user– driven innovation is the fact that we as human beings are ‘fixated’ into our views and perceptions. Applying a term from cognitive psychology, ‘fixations’ means having difficulties in thinking ‘outside the box’. Our ability to think outside the box and imagine novel possibilities is limited by our prior ‘everyday’ knowledge. When asking the participants about an ideal fu­ ture bank, they answered things like ‘open till 10 p.m.’ or ‘improved online access from home’ — that is, more of what they already know rather than radical ideas. As such, user–driven innovation will never lead to radical innovation but only incre­ mental innovation. However, the generative tools contain plenty of new and interesting perspec­ tives: the fact that this guided discovery is having a personal effect on Anne–Marie — and the majority of the 22 other partici­ pants, and the fact that people tend to be more aware of their financial situation and express that they might want to act or change their perspectives triggers my creativity and interest in developing these tools into something new. 3. Using creativity to enhance consumer awareness Money and economy are very central is­ sues in our lives. However, we are often not aware of our values and perceptions in relation to economic issues, but these are often handed down to us from our parents or other relatives. A lot of people tend to live by — or in opposition to — these 69


values and are profoundly influenced by old sayings such as ‘easy come, easy go’ or ‘a penny saved is a penny earned’. These underlying perceptions can be limiting and burdensome and may even prevent people from living out their dreams. That is why it is important to be aware of these underlying perceptions for your own sake but also in partnerships where different perceptions of money often tend to cause conflict or create discussions. In the strategic design process, Verganti’s (2009) illustration is relevant (fig. 4) as it illustrates how the ‘person’, and the envisioned societal issues (the external issues) together with the organi­ sational issues (the internal issues) are combined and interpreted in a kind of value innovation. Verganti defines design– driven innovation to be about developing the meaning of products or services; that means understanding, anticipating, and influencing the emergence of new product meaning. The way to do this goes through “a broader, in–depth exploration of the evolution of society, culture and technology” (Verganti, 2009, xi). In my interpretation of these overall societal issues, I have taken into consid­ eration the changes and challenges in general while maintaining a special focus on banking business. I envision impor­ tant and relevant issues to be: i) a grow­ ing need for transparency in the banking business, ii) an increasing desire among customers to become active, empowered people instead of passive consumers, iii) that people’s dominant and underlying perceptions of values — including econo­ my — in life limits them, iv) the growing interest in creativity and self–develop­ ment and, of course, v) the huge possibili­ ties in the generative tools, using creativ­ ity as a reflective instrument in everyday life etc. Here, Sanders is very spot–on as she predicts: “In the future, designers will be the creators of scaffolds upon which every­day people can express their creativity” (Sanders, 2006). In my interpretation of the internal resources in the organisation, Middelfart Sparekasse, I have focused on the unique­ ness of the bank; especially its powerful

foundation which stresses the importance of humanity and ethics in business, as well as trust and self–leadership in relation to its employees. I have ‘blended’ all the impressions that I have received and used my insight to create this novel service that fits the organisation and underlines the distinctiveness of the bank. The project simultaneously introduces a new type of consumer communication focusing on ‘rhetorical agency’ — that means leav­ ing space for people to act. This new type of communication is not about persua­ sion, but about offering people tools for self–reflection in order to obtain a higher awareness about own values and dreams. As such, the project is a way of introduc­ ing self–leadership to people, expand­ ing the organisation to include not only employees, but people as ‘members’ of an ideological business organisation — not a radical new bank, but a rare bank that of­ fers a radical new way of being ‘customer in a bank’. Kirsten Bonde Sørensen, Industrial Ph.D. student, Department of Communication Design

70


References: Buchanan, R. (2001). Design and the New Rhetoric: Productive Arts in the Philosophy of Culture. Philosophy and Rhetoric, 34,(3), 183–206.

Verganti, R. (2009). Design–Driven Innovation. Changing the Rules of Competition by Radically Innovating What Things Mean. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation.

Friis, S.K. (2006). Conscious Design Practice as a Strategic Tool. Ph.D. Thesis. Copenhagen: The Danish University of Education.

Visser, F.S., Stappers, P.J. & Van Der Lugt, R. (2005). Contextmapping: Experiences From Practice. CoDesign, 1(2), 119–149 .

Gaver, B., Dunne T. & Pacenti, E. (1999). Cultural Probes. Interactions, 6 (1), 21–29.

Visser, F.S., (2009) Bringing the everyday life of people into design. Ph.D. Thesis. Delft: TU Delft.

Mattelmäki, T. (2006). Design Probes. Doctoral Thesis. Helsinki: University of Art and Design. Perelman, Ch. & Olbrechts–Tyteca L. (1969). The New Rhetoric — A Treatise on Argumentation. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press. Sanders, E.B.N. & Stappers P. (2000). Generative tools for Co–Designing. In: Scrivener, Ball and Woodcock (Eds.) Collaborative Design: Proceedings of CoDesigning 2000. London: Springer–Verlag. Sanders, E.B.N. & Stappers P. (2004). Generative tools for context mapping: tuning the tools. In: McDonagh et al. (eds.). Design & Emotion (pp. 85–89). London: Taylor & Francis. Sanders, E. B. N.(2006a). Scaffolds for Building Everyday Creativity. In: Frascara, J. (Ed.) Design for Effective Communications: Creating Contexts for Clarity and Meaning. NY: Allworth Press. Sanders, E. B. N. (2006b). Design Research in 2006. Design Research Quarterly, 1(1), 1–8. Sanders, E. B. N. & Stappers, P. (2008). Co–creation and the new landscape of design. CoDesign, 4(1), 5–18.

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generation have been carried out on three levels: construction, decoration, and cloth. On the construction level, tradition­ al weave structures have been suspended, and the generated patterns are used di­ rectly as instruction for the intersection of threads. On the decoration level, the gen­ erated patterns are interpreted by means of traditional weave structures, such as terry and satin. Finally, on the third level, the size and shape of the cloth influences the generation of the pattern and, as such, interplay between decoration and shape of the specific cloth is established. Thus, letting the internal parts of a design object interact, such as construction technique, decoration, and form, the decorative ele­ ments constitute internal and influential parts of the object which form a promis­ ing position for further investigations about the concept of pattern.

Kirsten Nissen: Emerging Patterns The loom has developed into a digital de­ sign tool. Since the first digital Jacquard showed up three decades ago, computers have been a leaver for increased efficiency in textile design and textile industry. Digital Jacquard allows for quicker chang­ ing processes in textile production, but also quicker production of variations from which to make selections. In this way, the digital Jacquard supports efficiency in the creative phases of the textile design process. However, by looking at the digital Jacquard as a composite, holding the capacities of the loom as well as the computer, new potentials appear. The capacities of the computer have expanded rapidly, and have made it possible to deal with complex calculations beyond what mankind was able to before. Hereby, new knowledge about the behaviour of com­ plex, dynamics systems has been gained. An example is the awareness of emergent systems in which the interaction between small units generates collective phenom­ ena such as patterns. By means of the di­ gital Jacquard loom it is possible to work with these emergent phenomena in the design and production of woven textiles. This creates new possibilities; not only for designing new patterns, but also for the thinking and acting patterns in the design process, and for strategies concerning the choice of parameters to influence the pat­ tern generation (Nissen, 2008). Seeing pattern generation as emergent and context depending, this approach forms an alternative to the modernistic understanding of ornamentation, where the decorative element is considered an additive that by choice can be applied on a surface — or removed. A practical phase of this research project has been carried out on indus­ trial digital Jacquard looms during an exchange stay at the Textilhögskolan, the University College of Borås, Sweden. Here, experiments with emergent ­pattern

Kirsten Nissen, Ph.D. student, Department of Product Design References: Nissen, K. (2008). Pattern Generation in Dynamic Systems; An Approach to Textile Design. In: Ambience 08: Smart Textiles — Technology and Design, Borås: 2–3 June 2008 (pp. 131–138). Borås: The Swedish School of Textiles, University College of Borås.

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A research and innovation project This research project is part of a larger innovation project which is carried out in cooperation with DTU (Technical University of Denmark), The Danish Design School, and the two textile manufacturers: Kvadrat and Trevira– Neckelmann. The project runs from April 2008 until April 2011 and receives funding from Danish Enterprise and Construction Authority’s programme for user–driven innovation. The objective of the project is to create the foundation for a new innovation plat­ form for the Danish textile industry, its suppliers and customers, by developing a new understanding of how to utilise user– oriented knowledge in innovations and design processes. Consequently, the aim of the project is to generate knowledge and test methods which involve users in the development of new textile qualities and new product types. The project consists of two separate innovation programmes which share common areas of interest and knowledge. One programme has Kvadrat as its project partner; a company which manufactures interior textiles and has a large market within the hospital sector. In connection with the many new hospital develop­ ments and renovations planned for the coming years, the project investigates the presence and use of textiles within the hospital sector with a view to establishing innovation opportunities. The cases are based on selected Danish hospitals. The other innovation programme has the fibre and yarn manufacturer Trevira– Neckelmann as its project partner. This programme investigates how globalisa­ tion and the international market have caused the splitting of innovation and production. This situation requires a new and improved communication e.g. regard­ ing textile qualities. The company forms the case for this investigation. Kolding School of Design is actively involved in the innovation project within the hospital area. We focus primarily on interior textiles, but in mapping the overall conditions we also include tex­ tile categories such as linen, uniforms,

Lene Wul, Vibeke Riisberg, Caren Weisleder: User–driven innovation, ‘supportive design’, and the hospitals of the future — a new paradigm in the making?

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and patient clothing. Our objective is to uncover the systems which textiles enter into and create a common understanding among the market players of the possibili­ ties and obstacles of supporting a healing environment at the hospitals of the future. The regions make up the key organisa­ tional and political framework for deter­ mining the future hospital developments, and the textile system will be investigated within that same framework. Kolding School of Design has chosen to focus on the Region of Southern Denmark. In its vision plans for the coming hospital devel­ opment, it is stated that: “The Region of Southern Denmark wishes to create a coherent, patient–oriented, up– to–date, quality–conscious, efficient, and competitive health service.” (Report on hospitals in Southern Denmark 2009). The term quality is applied in the vision plans, among other things, in relation to treatment and patient security, but also regarding the lay–out of private wards which is to support the quality of the treatment by ensuring the autonomy and integrity of the patients. Quality is a word which must always be defined within a context. Thus, it is important to determine what the term entails and how it is applied in relation to the visions for achieving a healing envi­ ronment at the hospitals of the future. As a consequence, the project deals with the development of an “extended quality term” which includes functional as well as emotional needs. Furthermore, the purpose of the project is to spot innovation opportunities and in­ novation platforms for the textile industry within the hospital sector; consequently, we work on developing a theoretical frame which integrates product and service design with theories of ‘supportive design’.

in which the manufacturing of mate­ rial products plays a less significant role (Morelli, 2007). Within this paradigm, the objective is to create design solutions which include material (products) as well as immaterial elements (services). This solution is referred to as “Product Service Systems” (PSS), in which the design development and solution is character­ ised by the cooperation between different players, institutions, producers, service providers, and end–users in a co–produc­ tion process. (Morelli, 2007). It seems obvious to take a PSS view on the innova­ tion part of this project due to the fact that the hospital sector is a complex entity which interacts with many different play­ ers. However, the premise for a successful interaction of the system is that early on in the process, a mutual framework of un­ derstanding is established which supports co–creation and value creation. Sanders and Simon identify three types of value creation within co–creation: economic value, user–experience value, and social value. The objective of the two latter value parameters is to improve qual­ ity of life for the users. (Sanders & Simon, 2009). Thus ‘the commodity’ is not only products that sell but the service entails elements such as ‘change’, ‘ownership’, ‘learning’, ‘behavioural change’, and ‘joy’. Several of these terms are incorporated in the visions concerning the hospitals of the future. The question is if theories exist within the health sector which can handle and comply with such visions. The answer is far from obvious but as early as 1991, Roger S. Ulrich attempted to incorporate a number of mental needs in a theory regarding ‘supportive design’. The theory rose from the basic premise that ‘supportive design’ by necessity must relate to the stress factor, and as a conse­ quence, Ulrich set up three basic elements for ‘supportive design’: — Sense of control and access to privacy — Social support — Access to nature and other positive distractions. Ulrich argued that non–stressful or stress–reducing surroundings are neces­

The theoretical framework of the project: ‘product service systems’ and ‘supportive design’ Within strategic management there is talk of a paradigm shift to a business strategy 77


sary in order to stimulate a sense of well– being. To substantiate this assertion, he referred to a number of concrete studies which proved a connection between stress and the physical surroundings. The theory was intended as a guideline for architects and designers and was part of his efforts to develop ‘research–driven design’ as opposed to ‘intuition–driven design’. The reasoning behind his theory was and is that research–driven design has a greater impact on the decision–makers of the health sector. Ulrich pointed out the need for valid research and evidence to prove the connection between stress, physical surroundings, and well–being but it was not until 2003, when architect D. Kirk Hamilton introduced the term ‘evidence– based design’ that a new architectural and design paradigm really began to manifest itself. “Evidence–Based Design is the process of basing decisions about the built environment on credible research to achieve the best possible outcomes.” (Center for Health Design, 2008). In other words, ‘evidence–based design’ is a method for controlling, making, and motivating design choices. Ulrich has continually contributed with more studies which have served to pro­ mote the breakthrough of the paradigm, including a comprehensive account of research literature which demonstrates evidence between the physical environ­ ment and its significance to and influence on patients and staff. (Ulrich et al, 2004, 2008). However, the question remains if non– stressful surroundings alone are enough, or whether it is necessary to take it one step further and talk about health–stimulating surroundings which include ad­ ditional aspects in a more holistic view of human nature. Architect Alain Dilani, who has invented the term ‘psychosocially sup­ portive design’, takes exactly this view:1 “Psychosocially supportive design should challenge our mind in order to create pleasure, stimulation, creativity, satisfaction, enjoyment and admiration” (Dilani, 2005).

At present, however, the ‘evidence– based design’ paradigm is the more popular one among architects and deci­ sion–makers within the health sector; perhaps because it leans against, and obvious parallels can be drawn to, evi­ dence–based medicine. The result is a new and different focus on hospital construc­ tion, hospital surroundings, and hospital interior in which expressions such as ‘healing architecture’ and ‘hospital of the senses’ is used by an increasing amount of players. (Frandsen et al., 2009; Heslet & Dirckinck–Holmfeld, 2007). You could say that, so far, what charac­ terises ‘evidence–based design’ research in Denmark and internationally is that its primary focus has been on WHERE studies have already been conducted which prove the influence of architecture, surround­ ings, and the interior on staff’s and pa­ tients’ well–being. (Frandsen et al., 2009; Ulrich et al., 2004, 2008). On the other hand, it is indeed striking that, with a few exceptions, a large and unexplored area exists concerning the evidence of the aesthetic of everyday– life’s significance as psychosocially sup­ portive in hospital connections; (Fischl, 2006; Caspari et al., 2006), including the coupling of the functional, decorative, and emotional potential of textiles. In contrast, art and aesthetics have received quite a lot of attention; in Denmark es­ pecially via the book Sansernes Hospital (The Hospital of the Senses by Heslet & Dirckinck–Holmfeld, 2007). Actual evidence–based research on the role of textiles as ‘supportive design’ is not possible within the framework of this project. However, via this project we try to direct attention to the innovation oppor­ tunities entailed in thinking and develop­ ing textile products and services within the theoretical framework of a ‘supportive design’ paradigm. ‘Supportive design’ thinks design solu­ tions (products, services, management, organisation types, etc.), which in actual fact are supportive as well as health–stim­ ulating in relation to existing and future needs. By its nature, ‘supportive design’ is invented and shaped first, while the 78


evidence is only there to be documented once the solution is implemented. This means that ‘evidence–based design’ has a hard time dealing with radical innovations and may give itself up to promoting only incremental innovations. By combining a ‘supportive design’ approach with tests of new products and services, you might be able to achieve evidence in some areas before building the hospitals, and thus be able to achieve a more health–stimulating environment and a higher degree of user– satisfaction. One way of ensuring this iterative process is by user–involvement from the very pre–design phase.

The representation thus displays a net­ work of players, their relations, and interactions. This provides a systemic view of processes, (service) systems, and their context. These maps give a clearer view of knowledge gaps and innovation opportunities, including the development of product service concepts. The purpose is to show the connections and communication between players and the organisation of the system with a view to develop innovations that support user needs as well as the many complex func­ tional, logistic, and economic demands put forward by the hospital management within the hospital sector. The collected information has been validated and elaborated at two workshops attended by a number of different players. The two workshops have produced experiences regarding user–involvement and the facilitation of design dialogue. The first workshop was planned by our project partner DTU — we attended the workshop as observers. The other work­ shop was planned and hosted by Kolding School of Design. At both workshops spe­ cific games were used and developed for facilitating the dialogue among users and to create a common language (Sanders, 2000, 2008; Binder, 2008). The first workshop at Kolding Hospital had the participation of nurses and pa­ tients. The focus of the workshop was to validate and elaborate on some of the in­ sights gained in connection with the field studies. For the second workshop we gathered a number of key players who have either direct or indirect influence on decisions regarding the presence of textiles in the hospitals. Among others the partici­ pants included a buyer, a hygiene nurse, cleaning personnel, a laundry manager, a charge nurse, an architect, and repre­ sentatives of the Project organisation for hospital construction under the Region of Southern Denmark and project partners from Kvadrat. The main purpose of the workshop was to get the participants to point out the needs and requirements concerning tex­ tile products in the hospital sector — and

A user–driven approach — methods and reflections This project is fundamentally user–driv­ en. This means that we continually and systematically work to involve different user–groups by using various well–known methods. For the first part of the project we conducted a number of anthropol­ ogically inspired field studies at selected hospitals. Here we applied participatory observation, semi–structured interviews, and visual anthropology to collect ex­ periences and needs among direct and indirect users / decision–makers, includ­ ing patients, staff, buyers, and service and logistics departments at hospitals, Laundries, curtain suppliers, furniture manufacturers, and architects. These field studies have formed the basis for determining a number of textile categories which are primarily defined by their function and cycle of maintenance. The categories are: Upholstery, curtains, linen, patient clothing, and uniforms. In addition, the field study observa­ tions, the interviews with different play­ ers in and outside the hospital, along with the knowledge accumulated through liter­ ary studies have enabled the construction of a number of ‘actor–network maps’ of the systems, these maps are continually updated. The purpose of an ‘actor–network–map’ is the establishment of a graphic repre­ sentation which visualises the system connected to the use of textiles, textile production and maintenance processes. 79


to gain insight into how these needs are prioritised. At the workshop we attempted to create a common understanding of the context textiles enter into. A co–crea­ tion process made the groups specify and explain functional as well as emotional needs. This resulted in a common lan­ guage when speaking about textiles and textile categories. The results of the workshop are cur­ rently being processed.

functional requirements and needs re­ garding textiles than the emotional needs. Hardly any studies point to the possibility of textiles meeting functional as well as emotional needs. These findings are con­ firmed in the scholarly literature dealing with this field. (Iltanen, 2007; Caspari et al., 2006). Throughout the field studies it has proven difficult to engage in any dialogue about how the users perceive textiles in the room — and the emotional needs at­ tached to this issue. What we can note is the fundamental paradox that the pres­ ence of textiles is taken so much for grant­ ed that they become difficult to see — and even more difficult to talk about. What we have learned from the field studies is that we need to apply other methods if we want the users to communicate their needs and experiences with textiles. Funding from Danish Centre for Design Research has provided the means for a preliminary investigation of how a nar­ rative approach can develop improved theoretical and methodical tools for trans­ lating the accumulated knowledge on existing common usage and user–needs into user–driven design. The investigation will focus on design dialogue in a broad sense, in which the narrative element will be regarded as an aspect in several of the phases of the user–driven design process. That is, the dialogue with users regarding common usage and ‘evaluation’ of possi­ ble design solutions. The concern is not exclusively the need of the users but also the way in which these needs are communicated, interpret­ ed, and translated into health–stimulating design. To sum up, the project work emphasises the need for more research. However, this research cannot be carried out within the specific framework and resources of this project.

Project status The project has presented us with a number of significant challenges which in various ways have affected the first half of the project work. One of the challenges was the creation of new regions; another has been trying to manage the complexity which characterises the hospital service, and a list of unavoidable requirements which cannot be ignored but have to be rendered visible in order to be part of the considerations regarding new innova­ tions. Similarly, the ethical aspect has played a role in relation to the possibili­ ties for active user–involvement — espe­ cially for patients and relatives — in the design and innovation processes. The formalities and logistics of being allowed access to the hospitals and its users has also been a long–running process. It must be emphasised that despite the many laws, standards, and regula­ tions surrounding the hospital sector, these are interpreted differently within the individual regions. This means that generalisations across regions are not as obvious as we initially anticipated. This is especially the case concerning hospi­ tal extensions and developments. Here, it has also played a role that the regions are relatively recent, and that new play­ ers appear on the scene — as for instance innovation centres — who affect the construction process, the development of standards, the floor plan and lay–out of rooms in relation to the future hospital developments. The main conclusion to be drawn from our field studies is that the hygiene re­ quirements constitute the premise, and that the players are far more aware of the

Lene Wul, Research Secretary, Research Assistant, Cross Faculty Department Vibeke Riisberg, Associate Professor, Department of Product Design Caren Weisleder, Research Assistant, Cross Faculty Department 80


1 Dilani adds to sociologist Aron Antonovsky’s theory about health and illness which

he referred to as Salutogenesis (salut — Latin for well–being).

Iltanen, S. & Topo, P. (2007). Ethical implications of design practices: The case of industrially manufactured patient clothing in Finland. In: Nordic Design Research Conference: Design Inquiries. Stockholm, May 27–30.

References: Antonovsky, A. (1996). The salutogenic model as a theory to guide health promotion. Health Promotion International, 11(1), 11–18.

Morelli N. (2007). New Representation Techniques for designing in a Systemic Perspective. In: Nordic Design Research Conference: Design Inquiries. Stockholm, May 27–30.

Binder, T. & Brandt, E. (2008). The Design: Lab as platform in participatory design research CoDesign, 4(2), 115–129.

Sanders, L. & Simon, G. (2009). A Social Vision for Value Co–creation in Design. Open Source Business Resource, December 2009; Value Co–Creation. Localised March 4th 2010 at World Wide Web: http://www.maketools.com/pdfs/ Social_Vision_for_Value_CoCreation_in_ Design.pdf.

Caspari, S.; Erikson, K.; Nåden, D. (2006). The aesthetic dimension in hospitals — An investigation into strategic plans. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 43(7), 851–859.

Sanders, E. B. N. & Stappers P. J. (2000). Generative tools for Co–Designing. In: Scrivener, Ball and Woodcock (Eds.) Collaborative Design: Proceedings of CoDesigning 2000. London: Springer–Verlag.

Dilani A. (2005). Psychosocially Supportive Design — As a Theory and Model to Promote Health. Design & Health. International Academy for Design and Health, 2005, 13–22. Localised November 15th 2009 at World Wide Web: http://www.designandhealth.com/ uploaded/documents/Publications/ Papers/Alan–Dilani–WCDH–2005.pdf

Sanders E. B. N. & Stappers, P. J. (2008). Co–creation and the new landscape of designCoDesign, 4(1), 5–18.

Fischl G. (2006). Psychosocially supportive design in the indoor environment. PhD. Thesis. Luleå: Division of Engineering Psychology, Department of Human Work Sciences Luleå University of Technology.

Ulrich R. S. (1991). Effects of Interior Design on Wellness: Theory and recent scientific research. Journal of Healthcare Interior Design, 3, 97–109. Ulrich, R. S. et al. (2004). The Role of the Physical Environment in the Hospital of the 21st Century: A Once–in–a–Lifetime Opportunity. College of Architecture, Georgia Institute of Technology.

Frandsen, A. K. et al. (2009). Helende Arkitektur. Aalborg: Institut for Arkitektur og Design Skriftserie nr. 29. Hamilton, K. (2003). The Four Levels of Evidence–Based Pratice. Healthcare Design, November, 3(4), 18–26.

Ulrich, R. S. et al. (2008). A Review of the Research Literature on Evidence– Based Healthcare Design. Health Environments Research and Design Journal, 1(3), 61–125.

Heslet L. & Dirckinck–Holmfeld K. (eds.). (2007). Sansernes Hospital. København: Arkitektens Forlag.

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as well as practitioners, not to mention organisations with commercial interests in innovation and product development. This reflects a notable shift of attention in design research as well as in design prac­ tice from product and manufacturing to user and experience. Moreover, it signifies an increasing interest in design processes; the interactions within these processes, their settings, tools, and methodologies. Collaborative creation, or co–creation, can broadly be defined as any act of col­ lective creativity, meaning at least two people interact and share a creative proc­ ess. Accordingly, collaborative design or co–design can be described as collective creativity applied to the design process. Thus, co–design is a creative process in which skill, knowledge, and experience can be shared to generate ideas and produce novel solutions. Such processes can involve different kinds of skilled practitioners, including users. These types of collaborations have received much at­ tention in recent design studies and in the literature (e.g. Sanders & Stappers, 2008; Leerberg, 2010)). However, little atten­ tion has been paid to co–design processes involving collaboration between trained designers. Employing empirical and experimental studies of co–design processes, the project introduces the notion of collaborative sketching or co–sketching. Co–sketching can be seen as a component of co–design and implies two or more designers collab­ orating and sharing sketches, including drawing on the same sketch or even onto each other’s sketches. The project inquires specifically into the interactional role of sketches in a collabo­ rative design process and asks: What hap­ pens in a co–sketching process? How do designers interact with sketches? Which sketches affect ideation and creativity — and why? Looking for the emergence of form in a design process, it appears that some sketches are critical; they may possess certain qualities in terms of e.g. aesthet­ ics, communication or complexity. We require more knowledge about these qualities and how to identify them. By

Malene Leerberg: Drawing a Line: Collaborative sketching and the design process When does form emerge in a design process? Or where? And how does form appear? Studying a work of design, we can hypothesise; we can talk to designers, an­ alyse their drawings and models, compare and contrast with the final design to iden­ tify origins and chronology of form choic­ es and decisions retrospectively. However, the interest of this project lies before the final design and purposely, the focus is on the actions and interactions within the de­ sign process, considering Bruce Archer’s witting reference to design as the medium of doing and making (Archer, 1979), i.e. a prospective perspective. We find the earliest traces of form in the designer sketch. The sketch can itself take on many forms: a napkin doodle, an elaborate drawing, a simple diagram, a mockup model, etc. This project considers primarily freehand drawing and diagram­ ming on paper. Analytically, sketches are mostly treated as artefacts, as documents of a process from idea to solution. For the designer, however, the sketch is the process; it is doing and making. Thus, sketching is regarded as integral to the design process, and the relationship between designer and sketch can be described as a trans­ formative exchange in which the designer and the sketch interact (Leerberg, 2010). Over the past four decades, the interac­ tions between designer and sketch have been subjected to numerous empirical and experimental studies (Eastman, 2000). The focus has been on the individual designer. However, the transformative exchange often involves more than one designer and materialises in a collabora­ tive setting. The collaborative aspect of designing has become a prominent focus in the con­ temporary design discourse. Expressions such as participatory design, co–creation and co–design are frequently used in the design terminology of researchers 84


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studying co–sketching we gain knowledge about the ways designers communicate and interact through sketching, which can contribute to a better understanding of designer skills, and specifically the signifi­ cance of sketches in the design process. This is of importance not only to design­ ers, but also to companies and research­ ers who initiate and facilitate co–design processes involving users and/or other non–designers. Potentially, recognition and strategic use of designer skills can promote interaction between participants in design processes to improve ideation, creativity — and the emergence of form. Malene Leerberg, Ph.D. student, Cross Faculty Department References: Archer, B. (1979). The Three Rs. Design Studies, 1(1), 18–20. Eastman, C. M. (2000). New Directions in Design Cognition: Studies of Representation. In: Eastman, C. M. et al. (eds.). Design Knowing and Learning: Cognition in Design Education (pp. 147– 198). Elsevier Science. Leerberg, M. (2007). Designers and Design in the Making. Paper presented at Paradoxes within Design Research: Mechanisms and Contradictions, the NORDCODE Seminar & Workshop, Lund University, 28–30 May 2007. Leerberg, M. (2010). Co–creation, Co– design, and Co–sketching: A case study in design process. In: Mind and Matter (selected papers from the NORDIK 2009 Conference). Taidehistoriallisia Tutkimuksia/Konsthistoriska Studier/ Studies in Art History, 41. Helsinki: Society of Art History (forthcoming). Sanders, E. B. N & Stappers, P. J. (2008). Co–creation and the new landscape of design. CoDesign, 4(1), 5–18.

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Theoretically and experimentally my research examines the communicative potential of pictograms in wayfinding. The potential is uncovered and developed through a spatial, bodily, and sensual dimension unfolded through the theory of phenomenological, the concept of atmos­ phere, and pervasive computing. In the meeting between graphic design and interaction design I merge some of the subjects’ core competences. My research questions are answered through theory and through the design experi­ ment. This places my research in the cat­ egory of ‘research through design’ (due to design experiments and subsequent reflection), and ‘research for design’ (due to the use of an epistemological and methodological approach). My research is about theories in design. It is based on the work of designing and tries to im­ prove, guide, and optimise the graphic design field from within. It is not my goal to transform graphic design into “some­ thing else”, but to enrich the field from within and to obtain new insights into the interaction with other design fields. I have programmed and designed physical and spatial prototypes in two case studies. The objective has been to “translate and test” design theories through the design experiment. Therefore, my thesis is based on both applied research and practice– based research with an emphasis on my own experiments. My investigations result in a proposal for a modern visual language. Due to its interactive nature it is flexible, complex, and changeable. It is sensual and ground­ ed in the body. This modernisation quali­ fies it to be used in a contemporary con­ text and in McLuhans “global village”. The pictogram’s status as a universal language gets a new twist: It can give you wayfind­ ing information, but also warn, entertain, inform, encourage, translate, etc. — de­ pending on the situation and context. The design emphasis shifts from being pri­ marily concerned with form and function of the symbol to focusing on user experi­ ence and interaction with the symbol. My studies shift focus from the objective and universal to the subjective and individual.

Mette Harrestrup Lauritzen: Embodied communication

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At the same time they change focus from the informative to the experienced and from the mental to the bodily. “In sum the image can no longer be restricted to the level of surface appear­ ance, but must be extended to encompass the entire process by which information is made perceivable through embodied existence. This is what I propose to call the digital image.” (Hansen, 2006, p. 10). Mark Hansen’s concept: “digital image” marks a bodily processing of informa­ tion. The interactive pictogram will be a proposal of how “a digital image” can be designed. In two case studies conducted at Kolding School of Design, I develop an in­ teractive pictogram. Subsequently, I con­ sider and reflect on its properties in the enlarged space. My prototypes display and record the user’s presence and movement in the room through physical computing. I call this first prototype a SENSOGRAM. In a future development perspective it may contain infinite layers of information. The sensogram will be able to draw on data from the Internet through data embedded in objects as well as from user–specific data or perhaps via wireless applica­ tions such as GPS. Pervasive computing detects the specific needs, wants, values, and preferences of the users. This space, where the user meets the sensogram, I will refer to as “augmented space” or “en­ larged space” (Manovich, 2002, p. 2).

to the interactive sensogram is a symbol of the journey which, hopefully, graphic design will undertake in order to preserve its professional position in the future. My contribution identifies an opportunity of how to go from a classic design style to a new theoretical design approach.

I would like to contribute to the internal discourse of graphic design by presenting a critical view of the theories used in re­ lated disciplines. In order to be applicable to the graphic design discourse, these the­ ories and methods must appear straight forward to the field and enrich it rather than restrict it. I claim that phenomeno­ logical theory suits the graphic design discourse well. Through epistemological debates and studies, as well as through two design experiments, I test phenom­ enological theory within the framework of a classic design field. Traditionally, sym­ bol and wayfinding has been studied and discussed based on a mental approach. By applying the theory of phenomenology I try to move the profession from a semiotic and positivistic influence to a multi–sen­ sual and bodily approach. This approach is both historically and theoretically de­ scriptive but will also hold a prescriptive angle to test the development potentials of the sensogram. Here, I associate Gernot Böhmes concept of atmosphere as a kind of conceptual connection between the user and the sensogram in the enlarged space. In the development of graphic design’s own discourse, it is my assertion that the phenomenology of Maurice Merleau– Ponty can enrich graphic design. In my work I will only focus on this particular phenomenological field and tone down other aspects of the large and complex theory which phenomenology represents. According to Maurice Merleau–Ponty, we are in the world before we reflect it

I try to add new insights to the graphic design field, tools, and theoretical ap­ proaches. I claim that graphic design uses the computer as a classical instrument and tool; in much the same way as 1930s graphic designers used a knife to cut lino­ leum. It is essential that the graphic de­ sign field sees the digital media as a tool as well as a medium in order to benefit from its embedded possibilities. The shift from the analogue and legible pictogram 90


and with no separation between subject and world. In my design experiments, however, I point out a distinction between subject and world, between the user and the sensogram. I define this gap through Böhmes concept of atmosphere. Through experimentation involving the theory of phenomenology and via pervasive com­ puting I translate my scientific theories into practical experiments; from spirit to hand and vise versa. By using a model where humans are understood as bodily and sensually em­ bedded in the world, I hope the theory of phenomenology will provide a framework within which symbol and wayfinding can unfold differently than under the restric­ tions of the positivistic and semiotic paradigms. Mette Harrestrup, Ph.D. student, Department of Communication Design References: Böhme, G. (2002). The Space of Bodily Presence and Space as a Medium of Representation. Localised March 10th 2010 at World Wide Web: http:// www.ifs.tu–darmstadt.de/fileadmin/ gradkoll/Publikationen/space–folder/ pdf/Boehme.pdf Hansen, M.. B. N. (2006). New philosophy for new media. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press Manovich, L. (2002). The Poetics of Augmented Space: Learning from Prada. Localised March 10th 2010 at World Wide Web: http://www.noemalab.org/ sections/ideas/ideas_articles/pdf/ manovich_augmented_space.pdf McLuhan, M. (1994). Understanding media: The Extensions of Man (reissue). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press Merleau–Ponty, M. (2002). Phenomenology of Perception. London & N.Y.: Routledge

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The purpose of the project “Visualization of Statistics” is to study how the relation­ ship between information and image affects user interaction with the statistical chart. In this project, user interaction is to be divided into the following four catego­ ries: Reaction, attraction, readability, and reflection. Visualization of statistics is a subject under the field of “Data Visualization”, which again is a subject under the head field of “Information Graphics”. Data visualization can subsequently be di­ vided into two main subjects: “Thematic Cartography” and “Statistical Graphics” (Friendly, 2009, p. 2). Statistical graphics can be further branched into the following two categories: Statistical graphics aimed at specialised statisticians and used to analyse data, and statistical graphics with the purpose of helping to understand data (Neurath & Kinross, 2009, p. 96 & 98) aimed at the general public. This project will focus on statistical graphics aimed at the general public. The task of transforming data into graphics is not an easy one: The design strongly depends on topic, culture, soci­ ety, user, and the context within which the graphic is shown. It requires experience, insight, proven knowledge, user tests, and cooperation across fields. Despite all this, it is still a relatively unexplored subject in the field of graphic design with a lack of proven theories. Statistics and design are, in the words of Wim Jansen, “Two worlds apart” (Jansen, 2009, p. 239). This leads to one of the main conflicts in the visualization of statistics. Statisticians criticise designers for creating too deco­ rated or too simple designs using humour and chartjunk1 in order to attract the user and make digestion of data easier. One of Edward R. Tufte’s design strategies is: … to clarify, add detail (Tufte, 1990), which contradicts Otto Neurath’s strategy: … a simple picture kept in the memory is better than any number of complex ones which have gone out of it (Neurath, 1936, p. 28). Graphic Designer Nigel Holmes believes that humour can help the reader under­ stand abstract data, and that the strate­ gies of Tufte result in boring designs.

Pia Pedersen: Visualization of Statistics

Picture

Simple

Balance

Complex

Data

Good chart

Conflicting design strategies

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This raises some challenging questions: When does image and aesthetics become too dominant and prevent the user from understanding the data? Or when does the amount of data become too extensive and cause confusion? How can you make image and data go hand in hand, and how can you obtain the right balance in rela­ tion to the user? These are some of the main questions. Other important questions have to do with the fact that it is easy to make mis­ takes, or even tell a lie in the process of transforming data into graphics. It is the designer’s responsibility to communicate the data correctly, but is it possible to transform the data without losing objec­ tivity, and what will be the designer’s ethi­ cal role in that process? Is it acceptable to allow the designer to reduce data in fa­ vour of a better communication? And does he or she possess the required qualifica­ tions to do so? This leads to another very important issue: The interaction between the designer and the academic. One of the corner stones in the field of visualizing statistical data is Otto Neurath and his team and their work with Isotype2 back in the 1920’s. Their work focused on the same topics, and perhaps some of my questions can be answered by studying their work. The idea is to involve existing theory and evolve new theories on data visualization in both digital and printed media and subsequently test the theories on users. Studies of perception, cogni­ tion, and emotional design connected with theories on visualization of statistics will provide the knowledge needed for the user tests. The user tests will provide documented knowledge about what as­ pects in statistical graphics are important in relation to attractiveness and function­ ality. An analysis of the process that takes place when the designer transforms data connected with the statistician’s knowl­ edge will provide new methods in the field of statistical graphics and graphic design in general. Hopefully, these studies will help reduce the gap between statistics and design and form the basis of a satisfactory visualization of statistics.

Pia Pedersen, Research Assistant, Department of Communication Design 1 Chartjunk is a concept invented by Edward Tufte, which refers to the visual elements in data visualizations that are not neces­ sary to make the data comprehensible.

2 Isotype is an abbreviation for International System of Typographic Picture Education. An information system presenting statistics in pictorial form with the purpose of mak­ ing the information understood by people free standing from culture and language.

References: Friendly, M. (2009) Milestones in the history of thematic cartography, statistical graphics, and data visualization. Localised March 12th 2010 on World Wide Web: http://www.math.yorku.ca/SCS/Gallery/ milestone/milestone.pdf Jansen, W. (2009). Neurath, Arntz and ISOTYPE: The Legacy in Art, Design and Statistics. Journal of Design History. 22(3), 227–242. Neurath, M. & Kinross, R. (2009). The Transformer. London: Hyphen Press. Neurath, O. (1936). International Picture Language: The First Rules of ISOTYPE. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co., Ltd. Tufte, E. R. (1990). Envisioning Information. Cheshire, Connecticut: Graphics Press. User experiments

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Design takes place in different organi­ sational landscapes, technological land­ scapes, economic landscapes and in large cultural and institutional landscapes. Without question, these landscapes influence the way design is perceived, organised, implemented, and valued. One could say that design has a contingency element to it, meaning that there is no best way of designing, and there is no best way of managing design processes. So designers — just as enterprises — have to respond to changes in the environment. Some enterprises in certain periods of time are good adapters. Others are not. On the whole, the issue of established firms’ ability to adapt to changes in the environment has been subject to intense discussion in circles of research dealing with for example industrial dynamic, stra­ tegic management, and entrepreneurship. If we try to convert the theme to that of how design evolves in society, we may come up with two ‘extreme’ points of view. One is that new designs are easily adapted by established enterprises and launched to the market. The other ex­ treme view will be that well–established firms will have severe difficulties incor­ porating new ways and perspectives on design, so that new designs per say will be introduced by newcomers. Some will suc­ ceed, others not, but in short, a melting pot is created in which new entrants chal­ lenge established modes and images of design and eventually destroy the design tracks and features of even well–estab­ lished designerly enterprises. In the world of reality we are probably positioned in between these two extremes. Thus, Walsh (2000) proposes that: “Firms often respond to new strategic opportunities and threats with, among other things, a modification of structures and hierarchical relationships. The diffuse nature of design in these structures makes it easy to overlook the location and interactions of designers, though this might make a key difference to commercial performance of the firm.” (Walsh, 2000, p. 87). The issue of disruptive innovations introduced by Christensen and Overdorf

Poul Rind Christensen: Disruptive Design Introduction to a research agenda

Introduction A number of intriguing questions arise when you start to research the nexus of design and management as we do in the new research centre — Design, Culture & Management — established as collabo­ ration between University of Southern Denmark and Kolding School of Design. (See the presentation of the centre on pages 129–131). One of these questions — how come established enterprises and organisations at large have so severe difficulties imple­ menting new designs?1 — is discussed in this short presentation of a theme which we will research in more detail at the centre. This contribution is inspired by the work of Clayton Christensen and Michael Overdorf (2000) introducing the concept of disruptive innovation to the scene of innovation research. In this presentation the concept will be taken to the scene of design research. The presentation will follow this out­ line: First, an introduction to the interface of design and context and two different theoretical frameworks forming our view on this interface. Next, a short presenta­ tion of the theory of disruptive innova­ tions and two of the streams of research it points to. Then, the core of this contribu­ tion, namely what does it mean to say that design is disruptive? What are the impli­ cations of the theory? Based on a very short presentation of two perspectives, the article is concluded by a short outline of possible management implication to be explored. These implications are revealed under the heading ‘disruptive by design’. Design in context Although our knowledge on design proc­ esses has increased dramatically, we still have a lot to learn on how design proc­ esses and context interact to shape the outcomes of all the designing efforts. 96


(2000) has become one of the strong voices in this discussion.

information sy­stems and for example relationship ma­nagement with suppliers and customers to procedures in research, development, administration, and management, whether they are based on formalised rules or informal routines and conventions. Innovations may be disruptive to well– established production processes for the simple reason that they disturb produc­ tion routines if realised, or interfere with the service provided in the market and the after sales service provision established. Market research may be costly and out of step with established routines. The third group of factors relate to the value system of the organisation. It is not only values related to for example social responsibility but more fundamentally values governing and legitimising actions, judgements, and decisions in the organi­ sation and setting standards for members of the organisation on what they can do and cannot do. Values give priority to ac­ tion; what is urgent and what has a low priority? Values also govern coordination and the judgemental power and action orientation of the staff throughout the whole organisation. Finally, the values of the organisation tend to govern judge­ ments on attractive versus non–attractive market opportunities. These values are often tightly knit with the overall busi­ ness model and not least those traditions evolving in the management system on profit margins and risk behaviour. Therefore, innovation opportunities introduced to or developed in the organi­ sations may be disregarded because they are seen to disturb the overall business model of the firm, or for example because the initial market potential is considered to be too small to serve. New innovation opportunities may simply be disregarded because they do not fit those strategic tracks dominating the organisation.

The theory of disruptive innovations The basic question behind the theory of disruptive innovations is simple: Why do so few established enterprises innovate successfully? The answer and the theoreti­ cal foundation of it are more difficult to grasp. However, the main point made is that the core competences of established enterprises are exactly also their core rigidities, disabling the absorption capac­ ity of their organisation (Barton, 1995). Several reasons are given. Overdorf and Christensen (2000) discuss tree main sets of factors. The first group is the resources of the organisation in terms of staff people, knowledge repositories, managerial systems, brands, designs, technologies, production facilities, and relations with suppliers and customers. These resources are usually seen as the ownership based advantage of established enterprises. In the so–called resource based view on strategic management, they are even seen as the key strategic advantage, since they are often difficult to imitate. However, the other side of the coin is that these resources are typically devoted to estab­ lished business activities, i.e. business as usual. In short, innovations are seen to be disruptive if the resources of the firm cannot support them, for example if the innovation is based on a technology and knowledge base unknown to or simply not supported by the capabilities within the organisation. There are numerous exam­ ples of firms and entire industries being destroyed for this reason. But even more simple issues may be at stake. For exam­ ple, the new innovation may not fit the financial resources at hand, sales force or may disturb the established brand in the market. The second group of factors is the processes in use to conduct current business activities. They range from production processes and routines,

Implications The implications drawn from the theory of disruptive innovations are several. On one hand, the theory has implications at the analytical mesa level of the indus­ try regarding how to perceive industrial 97


Novo Pen

The hierarchy of design drivers and rigidities Values & Norms Beliefs; dominant outlook; clans; rituals; systems of sanctions and rewards Managerial system Education system; incentives: guidelines/rules & routines Skills & Knowledge Human resources; instituted learning & knowledge building system The Physical technical system Tools; machines; databases; software

The Case of IDEO — a critical point of view “Ideo is a very good (self–)marketing & design

firm but not an industry rocking firm. Large firms just love Ideo because Ideo offers such a well designed process to solve the big problem of “being not innovative”. You hire Ideo for comforting yourself for not using your own common sense and your own customer insights. You just outsource your understanding of the customer to Ideo. Let’s take the example of the insulin pen Ideo describes on its homepage as a case. They did the work for Lilly in 1997. Well, that is not really outstanding since the Danish firm Novo Nordisk introduced the pen in 1985. So Lilly was just catching up to this formerly unimportant drug firm from Denmark that 12 years earlier solved the problem that Ideo solved for Lilly. Novo Nordisk was a business innovator. Lilly is not. Where is the invention from design thinking that changed the industry? Where is the iTunes or the Kindle of Ideo? The problem with design thinking starts very early in the process with the problem definition phase. And that is where large corporations fail. They define the scope too narrow and then you get nice new things that sustain your current business but not new business models that rock your industry and yourself. ”

Citation from: Patrick Stähler — http://blog.business–model–innovation. com/2009/11/design–thinking–ideo–and– disruptive–business–model–innovation/

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dynamics. Established enterprises have difficulties in handling innovative ac­ tivities and challenges out of step with their tracks, past solution recipes, and established business focus and routines. Therefore, a number of researchers (Baumol, 2004) tend to agree that radical innovations most often are carried to the market by new entrant firms at the ex­ pense of incumbent enterprises. A case in mind is Ryan Air disrupting businesses for the well–established airlines in Europe. On the other hand, the theory has implications on the micro analytical level of the firm regarding how to man­ age different types of innovations in the organisation successfully. On one hand, those incremental innovations in step with established routines and values of the organisation, and on the other hand those — typically — radical innovations which are out of step with dominating values and practices in the organisation. Two types of learning tracks for innova­ tion management seem to be at play in the organisation. The first one is learning how to develop routines for systematic innova­ tion, while the other one is learning how to break down established routines and organisational inertia in order to foster radical innovations and new business tracks. While the first type of manage­ ment focuses on incremental fine tuning of the organisational machine, the other one focuses on reinventing the business of the firm. The paradox within all organisa­ tions is how to balance these two lines of innovation management. This even holds true for design as well.

tions as well as in clusters and production networks where shared management prevails. Designers may end up with solu­ tions celebrated by and even co–created with users but never implemented, for the simple reason that they do not fit and will be disregarded by those enterprises or organisations intended to implement and bring the design to the market. So what we are in search of is a counterpart to user–driven or user–centred design. We might for the reason of simplicity coin the concept of business–driven design (BDD). BDD hints to the important issue that it seems probable that a huge number of design solutions are never realised, for the simple reason that organisational inertia and managerial frictions were not anticipated. So, business–driven design research is preoccupied with the drivers and impedi­ ments facing different types of design so­ lutions and their alignment in the hosting enterprise. In the figure below, a tentative hierarchy of drivers and impediments are outlined in order to illustrate the major issues that may be included in the study of business–driven design. Undoubtedly, the technical systems and the managerial traditions for coordina­ tion are important determinants of how design activities are included and oper­ ated in the organisation. They may deter­ mine whether firms employ designers or procure design solutions in the market or how they combine the two. They may also influence the extent to which design solu­ tions are allowed to interfere with daily routines and systems, i.e. the extent to which design solutions have to align with current business and market positions. However, the value and norms embed­ ded in the enterprise are unquestionably of prime importance. Firms may have highly capable people employed, and yet they are engaged in business models that favour operational efficiency at the ex­ pense of business renewal. While manage­ ment tend to take interest in the opera­ tional efficiency of the strategic tracks and markets they are embedded in, design tends to be preoccupied with alternatives

What does the theory of disruptive innovation tell design? One might say that in times when user– driven design concepts are so highly cele­ brated in the community of designers, the theory of disruptive innovation encour­ ages designers to pay careful attention to the implementation of designs. New de­ signs, not least those breaking out of the ordinary, will always meet organisational inertia. This is the case in large organisa­ 99


to what is already in existence. This may cause problems of defining the problem and scope of design in the firm. The way designers work and the ex­ perimental logic of design processes may also collide with the causal logic embed­ ded in established business organisa­ tions (Sarasvathy, 2001), and thus lead to solutions sustaining business solutions of the enterprise of the past. This may be exemplified by the citation from a block conversation on design and innovation.

to embed design processes and implement design solutions. In short, one could say that we intend to study different organisational and managerial solutions to include design in business organisations, and how these solutions sustain and rejuvenate current business recipes. In figure 1, an example inspired by Christensen and Overdorf (2000) is displayed. The point is in es­ sence that different types of design solu­ tions may be more or less in harmony with the way processes are organised and the values in the firm. This trigger different solutions of implementation. See figure 1. The aim is thus to gain knowledge on what it takes to implement design solu­ tions supporting innovation and growth in different types of enterprises and: What designers can learn from that.

Disruptive by design It seems to me, that the overwhelming emphasis these years on user–driven in­ novation — and design — has disregarded the issues involved in implementing de­ sign solutions, not to mention embedding design processes in established enterpris­ es or organisations. Empirical studies in Denmark, Sweden, the UK, and Holland all indicate that de­ sign capabilities of the firm is one key to its competitive edge. However, a number of studies also indicate that most estab­ lished organisations tend to disregard design or employ design processes and solutions that sustain current business op­ erations and strategies of the enterprise. For an overview see for example Walsh (2000) and Cunningham (2009). Therefore, there is good reason to look into the organisational and manage­ rial factors that hamper and mould the implementation of design processes and solutions, which may contribute in stra­ tegic ways to rejuvenate the business. In other words, why and how do renewing design processes and solutions trouble established enterprises? And what are the implications of employing design as a stra­ tegic element in the competitive profile of the firm. In consequence, the research agenda we plan to realise will deal with issues related to how design is included in the strategies and business development of established enterprises using design. We want to study the role of organisational inertia and how the logics of design and the logics of business management are in interplay and mould the outlook of how

Poul Rind Christensen, Head of Research, Professor, Cross Faculty Department and SDU 1 A number of studies and surveys give rise to this question. See for example Commission of the European Communities, 2009:

Design as a driver of user–centred innova­ tion, Commission Staff Working Document, Bruxelles, page 27.

References Baumol, W. J. (2004). Entrepreneurial Cultures and Countercultures. Academy of Management Learning and Education, 3(3), 316–326. Christensen, C. & Overdorf, M. (2000). Meeting the Challenge of Disruptive Change. Harvard Business Review, MarchApril, pp. 66–76 Commission of the European Communities. (2009). Design as a driver of user-centred innovation, Commission Staff Working Document. Brussels: Commission of the European Communities. Cunningham, P. (2009). National and regional policies for design, creativity and user–driven innovation. Thematic Report. Pro Inno Trendchart. 100


Leonard–Barton, D. (1992). Core capabilities and core rigidities: A paradox in managing new product development. Strategic Management Journal, 13, 111–125. Sarasvathy, S. D. (2001). Causation and Effectuation: Toward a theoretical shift from economic inevitability to entrepreneurial contingency. Academy of Management Review, 26(2), 243–288. Walsh, V. (2000). Design, Innovation and the boundaries of the firm. Design Management Journal, 1(1), Academic Review, 75–92.

Figure 1 Inspired by: Overdorf & Christensen, 2000 Organising for design implementation

Fit with organisation processes

Poor

Good

2. Disturbing designs

3. Disruptive designs

Types of design processes and solutions demanding top management attention to succeed

Types of design processes and solutions that will rock the foundations of the firm and the business model in operation

1. Sustaining designs

4. Diverting designs

Types of design processes and solutions sustaining current business and confirming current values

Types of design processes and solutions that fit the operating organisation, but rock the values and strategies of the firm

Fit with organisational values

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Poor


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Current Research

cognition is based on experience, which can be cultural as well as non–cultural.

Sisse Tanderup: The Georg Jensen and Alessi Design

Sisse Tanderup, Ph.D. student, Department of Product Design

A comparative analysis focusing on the use of memory

References: Tanderup, S. (2009). The Georg Jensen and Alessi Design — A comparative analysis focusing on the use of memory. Analecta Romana Instituti Danici, XXXIV, 19–38.

The aim of this project is to investigate the use of memory in design by engaging in a comparison between the designs by the two companies Georg Jensen and Alessi. When Alessis designers create their pro­ ducts, they are usually inspired by cultural forms, and often specifically by the con­ cept of memory in philosophy, sociology, and psychology. Danish design, on the other hand, traditionally focuses on form and function, frequently referring to the forms of nature. Alessi’s motivation for in­ vestigating the concept of memory is that it adds a cultural dimension to the design objects, enabling the objects to have an identity creating impact. My hypothesis is that the concept of memory indeed does play a role in Danish design. Whereas memory is used deliberately in Italian design, in Danish design it manifests itself more intuitively as a non–culturally gener­ ated memory; a memory which is founded in the organic, in nature metaphors. In other words, there is a thematic differ­ ence between Danish and Italian design’s use of memory with a positioning of na­ ture against culture. Terminology The concept of “memory design” refers to the idea that design carries the po­ tential to be identity creating. Memory presupposes consciousness — the ability of abstraction and reflection, and at the same time it requires intuition and empa­ thy. Some forms appeal more to the user than other forms; this may be socially and culturally determined. At the same time, design only becomes memory design over time. Memory is connected to sto­ rytelling; in the way the designer tells a story through his design, as well as in the way the user recognises the story in his perception of the design. Memory design requires recognition first and then cogni­ tion. Recognition is emotional, whereas 103


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weave dynamically in user interaction is perhaps one, if not the most, important challenge facing HCI research in the years to come. The basic assumption of this Ph.D. project is that cognitive semiotics is able to increase our knowledge regarding this challenge substantially. Cognitive semi­ otics is a relatively new branch within semiotics that sees meaning construction as inseparable from how the human mind works. By synthesising research from consciousness studies and cognitive lin­ guistics, cognitive semiotics has come up with a series of interesting insights into the way conceptual meaning is anchored in sensuous forms in perception. While the focus of cognitive semiotics has previ­ ously been centred on studies of meaning in language and visual arts, my aim is to investigate its heuristic value for design research. More specifically, I intend to elucidate fundamental epistemological and semiotic aspects of user experience in interaction design. The following of­ fers a description of some of the research results that have been achieved so far.

Thomas Markussen: Interaction design and cognitive semiotics The aim of this Ph.D. project is above all to develop a cognitive semiotic framework for systematically describing the interplay of aesthetic experience and meaning con­ struction in interaction design. With the advent of interaction design there are two crucial and interrelated problems that design research needs to address. The first epistemological prob­ lem encompasses the question of how technological systems today rely, to an increasing extent, on full–body interac­ tion. As the user interface is currently moving beyond the screen into a hitherto uncharted land in between image, object, and the surrounding space, various new cross moda­lities between perception and bodily movement become possible. To account for this experiential and phenom­ enological complexity, Human–Computer Interaction (HCI) must ally itself with the­ ories of embodied cognition and action. The second semiotic problem concerns the way users are required conceptually, through their explorative interaction with technology design, to reshape or even cre­ ate mental models to be able to cope with a design product. Traditional HCI has for years put its trust into so–called cognitive models (Krippendorff, 1989; Norman, 1988). But basically, those models are only suitable for recognition tasks where people categorise and identify objects or things that they are already familiar with such as door handles, car radios, refrig­ erators, and so on. What happens in our mind when there are no cognitive models available that match the interface design which we are facing? When the object’s visual appearance does not afford any known functions at all? Or if the func­ tionality of familiar objects suddenly gets mixed up with new additional functions that actively engage the human body as a whole? Understanding how such novel concept formation and aesthetic experience inter­

Emotional design In the article Bloody Robots as Emotional Design, which was presented at the Design and Emotion Conference in Hong Kong in 2008, I lay out a new theoretical framework for dealing with mixed emo­ tions involved in medico–product experi­ ences (Markussen, 2009). Emotion–driven design in healthcare sectors differs from other emotional approaches in that the designer often needs to have a more nuanced understanding of the eliciting process of emotions. Medical treatment typically implies that patients live through compound or even conflicting emotional states. The treatment itself might involve unpleasant affective states, yet at the same time patients tend to appraise these stimuli as the ‘necessary evil’ for achiev­ ing a beneficiary goal: cure and well–be­ ing. Moreover, there is a clear difference between emotions arising from bodily sensation, and emotions that result from our cognitive interpretation of the situ­ ation. In my article I propose a theory of 107


emotions in design, which encompasses both bodily sensation and higher–level cognitive processes. In so doing I synthe­ sise somatic and appraisal theoretical approaches to emotions in design re­ search. Ideally, this framework could serve as a guideline for identifying differ­ ent emotional aspects of user experiences with medico equipment. Furthermore, in the case design teams need to conduct research of healthcare and medico envi­ ronments, the framework could help to inform and direct the planning of user research.

Mixed realities, museum design, and the reframing of cultural models Bringing mixed reality technologies into the museum space allows the interac­ tion designer to reconfigure the museum experience. In a recently published article in the International Journal of Design’s special issue on cultural aspects in in­ teraction Design, Peter Gall Krogh and I attempt to explain how museum visitors have to reorganise their culturally de­ termined models of the exhibition space when using a mixed reality hydroscope for learning and navigating in a public aquari­ um (Markussen & Krogh, 2008). Our aim is not only to describe the effect culture has on user experience, but more impor­ tantly to elucidate how culture and ex­ perience mutually shape one another. To achieve this we lay out a general cognitive semiotic framework that might be used to evaluate existing interactive exhibi­ tion design in museums or as a backdrop for understanding how to design for user experiences.

Interactive Art and Aesthetic experience Emotions and knowledge acquired through sensuous experiences belong to the aesthetic dimension of human life. When the user has sensuously to explore and experience a design product in order to come to an understanding of its func­ tions, we could use a concept from Dunne (2006) saying that we face aspects of para–functionality. In Dunne’s normative view, the para–functional aesthetic expe­ riences that we find in electronic products should ideally result in a new or different way of perceiving the world. In Markussen (2010) I have attempted to explain the underlying cognitive principles of such experiences as they may unfold in interactive art and design. Taking Dunne as my starting point I move on to give a more elaborate cognitive semiotic account of how the interweaving of aesthetic experience and new concept formation may lead to a different understanding of social interaction between people as it takes place through wearable interfaces in a responsive environment.

Thomas Markussen, Ph.D. student, Department of Communication Design1 1 Ph.D. disserta­ tion delivered for public defence on 4 January. Appointed assistant professor at Aarhus School of Architecture as of the 1 February 2010.

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References: Dunne, A. (2006). Hertzian tales: electronic products, aesthetic experience, and critical design. Cambridge: The MIT Press. Krippendorff, K. (1989). On the Essential Contexts of Artifacts or on the Proposition That" Design Is Making Sense (of Things)". Design Issues, V(2), 9–39. Markussen, T. (2009). Bloody robots as emotional design: How emotional structures may change expectations of technology use in hospitals. International Journal of Design, 3(2), 27–39. Markussen, T. (2010). A cognitive semiotic approach to the aesthetic interplay between form and meaning in responsive environments. In Vihma, S. & Karjalainen, T. (Eds.), Design semiotics in use. Helsinki: University of Arts and Design Helsinki. Markussen, T., & Krogh, P. G. (2008). Mapping cultural frame shifting in interaction design with blending theory. International Journal of Design, 2(2), 5–17. Norman, D. A. (1988). The psychology of everyday things. New York: Basic books

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Apart from the design professional knowledge, the project research draws on knowledge generated in other trade groups that perform research in school/ learning environments, and the signifi­ cance of the senses in relation to well–be­ ing and learning. The aim is to combine this knowledge with the needs of the users along with the consultant firm Konsulenthuset Cubion’s experiences and practice. This combination will generate new knowledge about how aesthetics can optimise learning environments. The research project uses the investiga­ tive ideas and methods of the design proc­ ess, and the research results are reached through active and practical research as well as participatory design in which the researcher/the designer facilitates and develops explorative and innovative proc­ esses that involve the user–group in the initial phase of the development of sensu­ ous learning environments. The industrial Ph.D. project ‘Aesthetic learning environments — Integration of aesthetics in learning environments based on user–involvement’ — is carried out in cooperation with the Danish consultant firm Konsulenthuset Cubion.

Tine Ebdrup: Aesthetic learning environments — Integration of aesthetics in learning environments based on user-involvement

The physical surroundings play a large role in achieving a positive learning environment. However, often the ‘hard values’ — the practical, functional, and technical — take over when it comes to designing new learning spaces. Often the aesthetic needs are forgotten or neglected in construction and renovation processes. Aesthetics are often reduced to something secondary — if indeed it is given any significance at all. Nevertheless, research shows that the ‘soft values’ — choice of material, texture, surfaces, colours, and shape have great influence on people’s well–being and ability to learn. Based on this knowledge, aesthetics ought to be included in the very early stages of decid­ ing new learning environments. However, we lack a substantiated and specific knowledge of how to incorporate sensu­ ous considerations into the beginning of the process. One obvious place to begin would be with the aesthetic needs of the users and the users’ role in the process. Therefore, this project sets out to investi­ gate how the design professional knowl­ edge of tactile, visual, shape, and colour effects can ‘open up’ the users and make them aware of their sensuous needs; and how to articulate, operationalise, and translate these needs into construction processes. In addition, the project seeks to create an awareness among all the players of renovation and construction projects concerning aesthe­tics and the significance of aesthetics when it comes to creating an atmosphere; and an awareness of the significance of the senses when it comes to well–being and learning. The ability of the designer to capture, describe, specify, and translate tactile im­ pressions and impressions of colour, form and shape is essential to the objective of research, its communication and practical consolidation.

Tine Ebdrup, Research Assistant, Department of Product Design

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of Quartz’ which has a rounded seat (a bit like a barrel) to prevent homeless people sleeping on it. My claim is that design­ ers work with supporting or changing behaviour patterns all the time, but that this important aspect of their work does not receive sufficient attention in design education and design research at large. Ultimately, I want to make designers as well as the users of their designs more aware of the social values that influence the design process and hence the de­ signed environment. These values are not necessarily shared by all users of a certain space, interior, or object and may serve the interest of some user groups more than others. If indeed these interests shape our understanding of certain situa­ tions and therefore influence our behav­ iour patterns, design is potentially a very powerful instrument for those who know how to use it. This power can obviously be put to bad as well as good uses. In their book ‘Nudge. Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness’ legal scholar Cass R. Sunstein and economist Richard Thaler suggest that many people need incentives to help them do what they want to do but cannot always get around to doing. They show that by altering small details of a set up, it is possible to affect peoples’ choices substantially. For instance, placing the healthy food where it is easily visible will make sales of wholesome foods go up instantly, or by using small plates, peo­ ple will actually eat less and thereby lose weight. Awareness of such mechanisms and bringing them to active and reflected uses in their work, designers can strength­ en their role as one of the most important and influential ‘choice architects’ of mod­ ern society. As a consequence of the above chain of reasoning, I see design as a major, and yet largely unexplored, tool for changes in everyday habits. Viewed like this, design can seriously affect such pressing and ultimately political issues as climate (by promoting a green life style), health (making good eating habits easy), and crime issues (making it harder to commit crimes by physical measures). Design is as

Trine Brun Petersen: Design Governs our Behaviour Design is a ramified field with affinities to as diverse professions as art history, eco­ nomics, anthropology, technical studies, psychology — and many more. However, until recently, design history and design theory have almost exclusively been the domain of art historians. For the same reason, traditional design research has fo­ cused mainly on the stylistic and aesthetic aspects of design while functional issues have not received the same scholarly attention. In my Ph.D. thesis: ‘The Form Shapes the Norm. A discussion of Design as a Way of Governing Behavior’1 I explore how designers, through their practice, anticipate and sanction certain behaviour patterns while discouraging others. My research question is: Does design govern our behaviour and if so, how does this influence manifest itself in material structures? Should the critical design researcher look to the intentions of the designer, the object itself, or — as an­ thropologist Bruno Latour suggests — in the network formed by human and non– humans alike? Personally, I find the last possibility most appealing but find it hard to combine this approach with the form– sensitive sort of analysis that I believe is mandatory for research in design. The Ph.D. project revolves around a rather comprehensive case study of a relatively new prison in Denmark called Statsfængslet Østjylland (the State prison of Eastern Jutland). However, my thesis is that design influences human behaviour in a wide variety of ways ranging from the very subtle to more extreme cases in which design explicitly hinders certain unwanted users or uses. In fact, any de­ sign object has been created with certain uses in mind — even the most anonymous cup suggests a way of holding it as well as a way of drinking from it. To the other extreme, we find objects made explicitly to exclude specific users such as the ‘Bum Proof Bench’ shown in Mike Davis’ ‘City 113


much about anticipating — and influenc­ ing — behaviour as about creating at­ tractive things. As such, design should be assessed not only in terms of its aesthetic and stylistic merits but also in terms of its moral, political, and social consequences. Trine Brun Petersen, Ph.D. student, Cross Faculty Department 1 In Danish: ‘Formen følger normen. En diskussion af design som adfærds­ regulerende praksis’.

References: Davis, M. (1998). City of Quartz. Excavating the Future in Los Angeles. London: Pimlico. Latour, B. (2005). Reassembling the Social. An Introduction to Actor-Network-Theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Petersen, T. B. (2010) The Form Shapes the Norm. A discussion of Design as a Way of Governing Behavior. Ph.D. thesis, to be published in spring 2010. Kolding: Kolding School of Design. Sunstein, C. R. & Thaler, R. (2008). Nudge. Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. Verbeek, P.–P. (2005). What Things Do. Philosophical Reflections on Technology, Agency and Design. University Park, PA: Penn State University Press.

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We consider decoration to be an active changeable element which can provide a pleasurable experience for the employees. Our research is practice based and carried out through a series of experimental in­ vestigations of ornaments, textile materi­ als, and textile techniques in combination with polarising, UV and IR filtrating foils.

Vibeke Riisberg & Joy Boutrup: Adjusting daylight and solar heating in office buildings — A practice based investigation of new decorative and functional solutions

Existing solutions As a starting point, we did a survey of existing shadings on the market and made a small qualitative study of daylight adjustments in six office buildings — five of them taken into use between the year 2000 and 2005, and one in 1984. The conclusion from the study is that problems with light and heat are still not solved in office buildings. Artificial light is often turned on all day, even during the summer, because the blinds are down — a circumstance which increases energy consumption. The shadings on the market are general­ ly roller blinds and Venetian blinds or flat panels — the majority is without decora­ tion and in white or neutral grey tones. They all have an anonymous appearance, which does not provide the user with any tactile or visual pleasure. We would like to challenge this in our research.

The research is rooted in textile know­ ledge and conducted by a small team with competences in textile engineer­ ing and textile and graphic design. The team is headed by Associate Professors Joy Boutrup and Vibeke Riisberg in collaboration with Research Assistants Annette Andresen, Mette Ploug, and Seiko Takanashi Marquard. Introduction In old as well as new office buildings there is a need to be able to regulate daylight and temperature according to changes during the day and seasonal changes. For the employees, strong sunlight often causes problems when working on com­ puter screens; the increase of temperature in the office space can be most impeding. But it is also vital to our health and state of mind to have sufficient and changing daylight in our working environment. Several research projects have docu­ mented the problem (Christoffersen et al., 1999, Figueiro et al., 2002). However, these investigations are mainly concerned with measurements of sufficient daylight, health issues, building regulations, and architectural problems. They do not con­ sider the aesthetic aspects of the work­ ing environment or suggest new interior design solutions. In this project we seek to merge aes­ thetical, functional, and theoretical reflec­ tions into decorative shadings, which can adjust daylight and solar heating in of­ fices. The objective is also to explore new solutions that will take maximum advan­ tage of daylight in order to save energy.

Hypothesis The point of departure for our research is a conviction that decoration is more than just frippery. We believe that ornaments can bring about more pleasure to the users of a working environment and also become an integrated functional element in the shading. According to the design historian David Brett, decoration is an expression of a deep human need for visual pleasure. He defines this as a group of values, which include social recognition, perceptual sat­ isfaction, psychological reward, and erotic delight. (Brett, 2005, p. 6). All the practice based experiments are based on the following hypothesis: — It is possible to unite decoration and function in a new type of interior screens — The optimal regulation can be obtained by combinations of materials with differ­ 119


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ent properties regarding light and heat — It is possible to do this using two or more adjustable layers with patterns creating new visual impressions by combination.

mentation, we selected three distinctly different pattern categories: Flowers, Textures, and Geometric — all well known within the textile vocabulary (Meller & Elffers 1991). The reason for this choice was partly a wish to establish a common frame of reference, which could be recog­ nised by a wide group of users, partly to further investigate the visual and func­ tional effect of combining two different materials with three different patterns in two layers. Scale and proportion between figure and ground were studied in relation to printing techniques, the size of the win­ dow and a standard panel system. In the system, two or three layers can be com­ bined sliding the panels horizontally. An ongoing evaluation took place in the group, until finally three patterns were se­ lected: One big flower with no repetition, one texture — opening gradually towards the top and resembling the surface of a melon, and one geometric repeat pattern with oval shapes in different sizes. The three patterns were printed as devoré on a ‘silver fabric’ — woven with a flat aluminium coated yarn — and on a cotton/polyester fabric leaving the pat­ terns as more open areas in the fabric. Over the course of three sunny days in July, we registered 14 combinations with digital photos and a thermal cam­ era. Digital thermometers were placed in the window and next to the computer on the working desk. The light intensity was measured in four different places in the room with a luxmeter. The analyses of the measurements and the visual effects are not yet concluded, but it seems clear that the influence of different materials on the temperature is relatively low while the light distribution is more dependent on pattern and mate­ rial of the panels. Another immediate observation is that the exclusion of colours seems to make it difficult to remember the various com­ binations, even though they are in fact very different. This suggests a wider focus in future research experiments address­ ing the question of the role of colour and memory. In the future, this observation

Experiments We decided to do the first series of experi­ ments as flat horizontal sliding panels, since it would give us the opportunity to work with overlaying different ornamen­ tation and materials. In order to limit the experiments, we used only white, grey, and silver tones. Nine different materi­ als were selected and printed or cut with five geometric patterns — all constructed from the same hexagon grid. The patterns were designed to form an open and closed position in pairs of two layers — allow­ ing more or less light in the room. From the first 32 samples 14 were selected and tested in a 1:4 scale model of an office at Kolding School of Design. The illuminance on different spots in the model were measured in order to get a picture of the general distribution of light. All combinations were documented with a digital camera during the process, and the aesthetic appearance of each combina­ tion was discussed among members of the team. These first experiments made it clear that the design of pattern, the choice of material and technique as well as the vari­ ation of backlight in daytime and artificial light in the evening pose a huge challenge, which is further complicated by the need for functional performance to distribute daylight and moderate the solar heating. The experiments confirmed the idea that textiles and other fibre based materials diffuse the light and remove the glare, while the IR–reflecting foils generally reduce the amount of light and heat but have no positive effect on the glare. Our preliminary findings show that a combi­ nation of materials in two or more layers will be necessary for an effective screen­ ing against heat and glare. The second series of experiments were made in full scale. The materials were limited to two textiles based on the preliminary investigations. As a point of departure for developing the new orna­ 121


along with a hypothesis on textile genre identification will be tested on a group of potential users.

project was initiated 1 January 2007 and will continue until 31 December 2010. Vibeke Riisberg, Associate Professor, Department of Product design Joy Boutrup, Associate Professor, Department of Product design

Development of woven qualities The experiments mentioned above were based on printing techniques and com­ mercial fabrics, where only certain effects regarding transparency and density can be reached. In order to have a wider range of density differences two lines of experi­ ments were started, in which the fabric was woven with certain densities and density contrasts in view. One experiment was carried out in col­ laboration with Lindauer Dornier GmbH, a German manufacturer of industrial looms. On their newly developed Easy– Leno loom the weft density can be varied and controlled. The result was a series of 20 machine woven fabrics with different densities and material combinations — some of them were designed for devoré and subsequently printed. The other line of experiments was ex­ ecuted on a 24 shaft hand loom at Kolding School of Design. In these samples we tested new fibres with specific light dif­ fusing properties, such as Waveron from the Japanese company Teijin. In order to reach our goal of creating more environ­ mentally friendly and sustainable solu­ tions for interior screens we also experi­ mented with Teijin’s newly developed bio synthetic fibre “Biofront” in combination with other materials. Making such fine, dense fabrics by hand naturally limits the size of the samples and none were made in the full size of a screen. The woven samples have not yet been evaluated in detail, but it is clear that designing the fabric during the construc­ tion in the loom gives the possibility of a much wider range of visual and aesthetic expressions and a better control of the levels of light diffusion and transparency.

References: Attfield, J. (2000). Wild Things – The material culture of everyday life. Oxford: Berg. Brett, D. (2005). Rethinking Decoration – Pleasure & Ideology in the Visual Arts. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Christoffersen J. et al. (1999). Vinduer og dagslys – en feltundersøgelse i kontorbygninger. SBI–Rapport 318. København: Statens Byggeforskningsinstitut. Figueiro M. G.et al. (2002). Daylight and productivity — A possible link to circadian regulation. Light and Human Health: 5th International Lighting Research Symposium (pp. 185–193). Palo Alto, CA: The Lighting Research Office of the Electric Power Research Institute. Meller S. & Joost, E. (1991). Textile Designs, Two Hundred Years of European and American Patterns for Printed Fabrics. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers Riisberg, V. & Boutrup J. (2008). Adjusting daylight and solar heating in office buildings — a practice based investigation of new decorative and functional solutions. Paper at the Nordic LIGHTING + DESIGN conference, Helsinki 1–3 October 2008.

Adjusting daylight and solar heating in office buildings is funded by the company Kvadrat, the Danish Centre for Design Research and The Danish Ministry of Culture’s Research Foundation. The 122


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Research Events & Collaboration Malene Leerberg: Design Responsibility: Potentials and Pitfalls — The 8th NORDCODE Seminar hosted by Kolding School of Design

The 8th NORDCODE Seminar was hosted by Kolding School of Design on the 27th through the 29th of May 2009. For three days, more than 50 designers and design researchers from all of the Nordic countries, Great Britain, and Italy gathered to give talks, participate in a workshop, present ideas, and discuss an array of issues related to the theme of the seminar: Design Responsibility: Potentials and Pitfalls. The NORDCODE Network The Nordic network for research on communicative product de­ sign (NORDCODE) was initiated in 2000 by research colleagues of the Department of Industrial Design and Engineering at Chalmers University of Techno­ logy (Gothenburg, Sweden) and the “Meaning of Form” research group at the University of Art and Design Helsinki (TAIK), Finland. The network aims to support research and developments within specific fields of design, including such areas as design semiotics/semantics, design aesthetics, design research meth­ odology, design processes, tools and methods, identity aspects of product form, form perception,

form experience and pleasure, cultural signification of design, and points of contact with visual arts. Since 2003, NORDCODE has conducted a series of annual seminars as well as a series of Nordic Ph.D. courses gathering design researchers, designers, and doctoral students at Nordic design research institutions. Perspectives on Design Responsibility Far from being a simple concept in design and design research, the notion of design responsi­ bility reflects an ever growing attention to and critical think­ ing upon the effects of design — of conceptualising, creating, producing, using, and putting artefacts into the world. There are issues of functionality, sus­ tainability, ethics, aesthetics, and signification — just to name a few. The aim of the seminar was to bring these issues into play and examine the potentials as well as possible pitfalls of design responsibility in connection to the communicative aspects of design. Design researchers and professional designers with an in­ terest in the field were invited to contribute with working papers, and the call for papers proposed some questions of interest: — What does the notion of design responsibility entail for design research and design practice? — How can design responsibility be used or be useful for designers and in design research? — What is responsible design — and what is it not? — How is responsibility com­ municated in design and design research? Of the submitted working pa­ pers, just short of twenty were accepted in review. The semi­ nar presentations ranged from concept building and visual communication in Finnish heavy metal music to tracing ideology in design texts; from using design games in participatory design projects in third world countries to considering the meanings of luxury and the implications for designers and society. The wide scope of design topics and

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per­spectives illuminated the com­ plexity and challenges of respon­ sible design and design research as well as the opportunities for designers and design researchers to influence education as well as industry and society. Keynotes Three keynote speakers contrib­ uted to elucidate the complexity of the seminar theme by present­ ing three different perspectives on the concept of responsibility. Young design researcher and Associate Professor Marie Riegels Melchior defended her Ph.D. dis­ sertation Danish in Fashion! An Examination of Design, Identity and the History of the Danish Fashion Industry in February 2009. Her keynote speech was a critical take on linking nation and branding, exemplified by the construction of the concept of “Danish Fashion.” Designer Boris Berlin of the Danish design studio Komplot Design traced more than 20 years of designing with partner Poul Christiansen, while reflecting upon the necessity of being responsible as well as irresponsible as a designer. And finally, Professor and Head of Research at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design Martin Woolley mapped the contempo­ rary condition of design in light of the global financial and envi­ ronmental crisis. While discuss­ ing challenges and opportunities for design education, industry, and research, he asked: Does design mean responsibility for the right stuff? Research Publication As an outcome of Design Responsibility: Potentials and Pitfalls, a research publication is in the works and planned for release in late spring 2010. The publication aims to rethink the well–known proceedings format and include a large selection of visual material to document the seminar. Furthermore, the publication presents the three keynote speeches and a selection of the presented working papers, which have been reworked by the authors to full research papers.


Further information on the NORDCODE Seminar and NORDCODE is available on: http://www.dskd.dk/index. php?id=1513 http://www.nord足 code.net/ Malene Leerberg, Ph.D. student, Cross Faculty Department

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Research Events & Collaboration Members of the International Advisory Board Kolding School of Design Kolding School of Design has appointed an International Advisory Board comprised of researchers in art and design. Board members are committed to act as research advisors on research strategy and plans, join as experts in specific projects, supervisors and eventually co– writers with DK–researcher. Richard Buchanan, Professor, Head of Research Centre of ‘Management as Design’ at Weatherhead School of Manage­ ment, Case Western Reserve University, USA Area of Expertise with respect to design: Before coming to Weatherhead, Richard Buchanan served as the head of school for ten years at Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Design. He has taught design theory fo­ cusing on communication design and industrial design, but also extends design into new areas of application such as interaction and organisation design. Richard Buchanan is the editor of Design Issues, an international journal of design history, theory, and criticism published by MIT Press and he is the president of the Design Research Society based in the United Kingdom. Homepage: http://design.case. edu/who/ Contact: rbuchanan@case.edu Ellen Dissanayake, Affiliate Professor; Author and Lecturer, School of Music. University of Washington, USA Area of Expertise with respect to design: Ellen Dissanayake is an independent scholar, author, and associate professor, whose writings about the arts synthesise many disciplines and apply to many fields. Recent talks have addressed audiences in design,

crafts, arts education, arts thera­ py, arts in healthcare, anthropol­ ogy, semiotics, and neuroaes­ thetics. She has developed a unique perspective that consid­ ers art to be a normal, natural, and necessary component of our evolved nature as humans. She has held Distinguished Visiting Professorships at Ball State University in Indiana, the Univer­ sity of Alberta, Edmonton and the Institute for Advanced Stud­ ies at the University of Western Australia. Additionally, she has taught at the National Arts School in Papua New Guinea, the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka, Sarah Lawrence College and the New School for Social Research in New York City. Homepage: http://ellendissa­ nayake.com/ Contact: edissana@seanet.com William B. Gartner, Professor, Clemson University, USA Area of Expertise with respect to design: William B. Gartner holds the position of Arthur M. Spiro Professor of Entrepreneurship at Clemson University. Prior to Clemson, he was at the University of Southern California. He is the 2005 winner of the Swedish Enterprise Forum International Award for outstanding contribu­ tions to entrepreneurship and small business research. Besides his scholarship on entrepreneurial behaviour, his re­ search focus on entrepre­neurial narratives and explores the ways that stories are used to raise financing and generate support to transform ideas into on–go­ ing businesses, and insights that can be ascertained through new methods in evaluating entrepre­ neurial narrative. He has received funding from the Corporate Design Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts to document, through an oral history project, the design processes in film, furniture and exhibitions of the designers Charles and Ray Eames. Homepage: http://business. clemson.edu/Managemt/faculty/ L3_fac_Gartner_new.html Contact: gartner@clemson.edu

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Janet McDonnell, Professor, Research Director, Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, University of the Arts, London Area of Expertise with respect to design: Professor McDonnell’s research interests are in studying design and other kinds of profes­ sional work in its natural setting where many competing practical pressures are at play. Her focus is on different means of mak­ ing practices ‘visible’ e.g. the methods in use, the decision– making behaviour, how ideas get introduced and established, the informational bases (sources, uses and quality) that individuals and groups rely on, and the influences of assumptions and norms. Uniting different projects is an interest in supporting reflective practice, increasing the potential for individuals and groups to learn from experi­ ence, enabling user engagement in design, com­­munication of expertise, and understanding the social interactional aspects of col­ laborative activity. She has co–ed­ ited the book: About: Designing, J. McDonnell and P. Lloyd (eds.) Taylor and Francis, 2009. She is editor–in–chief of the journal CoDesign. Homepage: http://www.csm. arts.ac.uk/janet–mcdonnell.htm Contact: j.mcdonnell@csm.arts. ac.uk Johan Redström, Design Director / Senior Researcher, Interactive Institute, Sweden Area of Expertise with respect to design: Design Director Johan Redström has a background in philosophy, music and interac­ tion design. In his research he aims at combining philosophi­ cal and artistic approaches with focus on experimental design, critical practice and the aesthe­ tics of information technology as material in design. Homepage: http://redstrom. se/johan/ Contact: johan.redstrom@tii.se Saras Sarasvathy, Ass. Professor, Darden School of Business, University of Virginia , USA


Area of Expertise with respect to design: Saras D. Sarasvathy is a member of the Strategy, Entrepreneurship and Ethics area at Darden School of Busi­ ness, University of Virginia. Before joining Darden, she had been on the faculty of University of Washington and University of Maryland. She received her Ph.D. in Information Systems from Carnegie Mellon University, su­ pervised by Herbert Simon, 1978 Nobel Laureate in Economics. She is a leading scholar on the cognitive theory and is the author of ‘Effectuation: Elements of Entrepreneurial Expertise’. Effectuation is widely acclaimed as a rigorous framework for understanding the creation and growth of new markets and organisations. A new textbook, along with a detailed instructor’s manual is currently in the works. Homepage: http://www. darden.virginia.edu/html/direc_ detail.aspx?styleid=2&id=4363 Contact: SarasvathyS@darden. virginia.edu Susann Vihma, Professor, Department of Visual Culture, Aalto University, School of Art and Design, Helsinki, Finland. Doctor of Arts, Professor, History and Theory of Design Area of Expertise with respect to design: Susann Vihma has specialised in history and theory of design. She is head of the re­ search project SeFun 2004–2007 funded by the Finnish Academy as part of the Industrial Design Research Programme. Docent at the University of Lapland (Design Semiotics and Design History). Constitutive member of the Nor­ dic network of design research Nordcode. Homepage: http://www.dcdr. dk/dk/Materiale/Mind+Design/ No+4/SusannVihmaCV.pdf Contact: svihma@taik.fi Martin Woolley, Professor, Associate Dean — Applied Research, Coventry University, United Kingdom Area of Expertise with respect to design: Design research, Sustain­ability, Product semantics, Technology transfer, Doctoral

pedagogy, User–centered design, Affective design, Corporate and brand identity. With an early background in three dimensional and industrial designs, his research interests have broadened to encompass design–related aspects of the in­ novation process i.e. how design concepts evolve and move into the public domain, either in a commercial or societal context. Recently, he has moved into a re­ search project management role. He is currently principle inves­ tigator on the E.U. Framework 5 ‘AGORA Cities for People’ project and on the ‘Emotional Wardrobe’. Designing for the 21st Century EPSRC/AHRC cluster project. He has continuing international research collaborations with universities in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia and Finland. He has been active on many national and international research bodies including the AHRC Research panel 2, He was a RAE panel member in art and design in 1992 and 1996 and have been a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, writing the ‘Design Directions’ sustainable design brief and chairing the judging panel for the past two years. He is currently on the Design Research Society Council and the Design Education Association (DEED) executive. Contacts: martin.woolley2@ coventry.ac.uk Lou Yongqi, Professor, Deputy Head, College of Design & Innovation of Tongji University, Tongji University, Shanghai, China Area of Expertise with respect to design: Lou Yongqi focuses on interdisciplinary sustain­ able design education, research and practice. He is the Scientific Committee member of The Alta Scuola Politecnica (ASP) Italy (2009–2011), Coordinator of DESIS–China (The Network on Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability in China), Executive Board Member of Shanghai Industrial Design Association, and Secretary General of Cumulus 2010 Shanghai Conference. He was the

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chief curator of the International Students’ Exhibition of Shanghai Biennale of 2006 and 2008. Homepage: http://www. tongji–design.org/english/9– 4news.html Contact: lou.yongqi@gmail.com


Research Events & Collaboration Centre for Design, Culture & Management A new Collaborative Venture by Kolding School of Design & University of Southern Denmark During 2009, researchers from University of Southern Denmark and Kolding School of Design have unfolded a joint vision of a research unit in the nexus of design culture and management. The vision has materialised as a joint research centre — Centre for Design, Culture and Management (CDCM). The background for the establishment of the Centre Denmark is regarded as an outstanding international design nation. At the same time the traditions which have sustained Danish design for decades are being challenged by the socio– economic, cultural and technical transformations of society that have taken place over the past few years. In our knowledge society, design plays an increasingly im­ portant role as a marker of ethi­ cal, cultural, social and economic values. Design is promoted and marketed within a steadily more advanced design culture where designers, design institutions, the media and advertising interact in a way that draws in other art forms as well. Significant political and environmental values are at stake, as design reflects our way of life and our entire consump­ tion culture. The designer of the future must possess the ability to view innovation and design in a larger societal context. Welfare– oriented design, climate issues, globalisation of production and trade, new media technologies etc. all contribute to fundamental changes in the way we live, think and communicate. Eventually, these factors will influence the aesthetic foundation of design work.

Danish as well as international studies underscore the role of design in transforming new insights and visions into actual products and services. They point to the fact that companies with a specific design strategy show improved performance results compared to firms with a slug­ gish design activity. Integration of design into the competitive profile of the organisation puts considerable pressure on the its strategy and management. Application of design in business development requires innovative ways of view­ ing the market, and the highly creative elements of the design process often clash with tradi­ tional administrative rationales of established companies. In other words, design plays a central role for companies’ and for the knowledge society’s abil­ ity to transform new insights and ideas into tangible sustainable innovations. This constitutes a critical challenge to the tradi­ tions and the knowledge base of the design discipline, to the design profile of enterprises, and to the management rationale that characterises the design work in organisations. Hence, it is crucial to gain more insight into design processes, design culture and de­ sign management as well as the context and interaction between these practices. The establishment of the Centre CDCM creates strong interdis­ ciplinary interaction between academic disciplines within the humanities, social sciences and design. We believe that such interdisciplinary research will add strikingly new perspectives and new insight, which will benefit both practitioners and users of design. The objective of the centre is to strengthen the successful integration of design into the strategic efforts of private companies as well as public institutions — eventually improving the quality of life of every citizen as well as society as a whole. Research results from the centre will also feed into the masters education in design ma­

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nagement jointly run by Kolding School of Design and University of Southern Denmark since 2007. The foundation of the interdis­ ciplinary research environment of the centre is the core research activities related to — the knowledge of design methods and design processes ac­ cumulated at the Kolding School of Design; — insight into the aesthetic di­ mensions of design and cultural analyses of the forms of expres­ sion within the design discipline performed at the Department of Literature, Culture and Media Studies (ILKM) within the Faculty of Humanities; — knowledge about manage­ ment, innovation and market relations provided by the Department of Entrepreneurship and Relationship Management at the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Southern Denmark. The vision of the Centre The vision of CDCM is to con­ tribute original research to a future–oriented appreciation of design at the crossroads between Scandinavian design culture and design management. The centre plans to engage in innovative research and iconoclast develop­ ment projects and contribute new types of research in the area where academic research tradi­ tions, design experimentation and company–based knowledge about implementation intersect. The objective of the research at the centre is to provide new insight which will strengthen design practices steeped in tradi­ tion and contribute to innovation of Danish design culture and economy. Research activities at the Centre The collaborative efforts will be based on several long–term knowledge building research themes and relevant creativity promoting projects. The long– term research themes determine which application oriented re­ search and development projects the centre will undertake.


Research themes in progress and consideration — The cultural embeddedness and management of design processes – Tradition, creativity and in­ novation in Danish design culture – Design management in a culturally diversified world – The culture of creative envi­ ronments and organisations — Strategic design and management – The role of the user in design processes – Applications of design in companies and organisations – Organisational performance and design

Design, Sustainability, Ethics and Aesthetics — a program exploring the nexus of ethics and aesthetics ground­ ing strategies for sustainable design. The program is founded and to be undertaken by a cross– faculty team from Humanities, Social Science and Design. Team members are Associate Professor Anders Munch (SDU); Assistant Professor Hans– Christian Jensen (SDU); Ph.D. student Malene Leerberg (DK) and Associate Professor Vibeke Riisberg (DK). Contact: Anders Munch and Vibeke Riisberg, Associate professors.

— Aesthetics and ethics, welfare and sustainability – Design in public organisations – Sustainable design processes and their context

User–driven design methods — a project about user–driven design at Danish hospitals. Financed by the Danish Enter­ prise and Construction Authority and implemented in collabora­ tion with the Technical University of Denmark (DTU). Team members are Associate Professor Vibeke Riisberg, Research Assistant Lene Wul, Research Assistant Caren Weisleder. Contact: Vibeke Riisberg, Associate Professor.

— Design and dynamics in indus­ try and society – Research on trend making, future studies and science fiction – Disruptive designs and innovation – Entrepreneurship and the grass roots of design.

Strategic design as rhetorical strategy — with focus on values. An ongoing business Ph.D. project in collaboration with Middelfart Sparekasse (2008–2010). Contact: Kirsten Bonde Sørensen, Ph.D. student.

Current research projects and prospects Corporate Design and Cultural Diversity — The project investigates barriers and opportunities for development of creative design processes through interaction in multicultural organisations. The project is supported by the Danish Council for Strategic Research (2010–2014) and car­ ried out in collaboration with Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus University. Contact: Poul Rind Christensen, Professor.

Design management — the contribution of design management to innovation in companies. An ongoing Ph.D. project by Ph.D. student Pia Bruun Ericksen (2009–2013). (Currently on maternity leave). Contact: Pia Bruun Ericksen, Ph.D. student or Elin B. Sørensen, Associate Professor.

— The role of design in open in­ novation systems – Design in clusters, networks and global supply system

Design Entrepreneurship — Creative designers have a high propensity for entrepreneurship, which makes them of significant interest to entrepreneurship research. Grounded in empiri­ cal observations, the aim of the work is to create knowledge and

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specify the distinct opportunities, barriers, motives, methods, etc. of creative designers’ entrepre­ neurial processes. Contact: Suna Løwe Nielsen, Assistant Professor Imitation–driven design. — A project on the role of imitation in the dissemination of new design and the role of IPR (intellectual property rights) in the protection of ODM (original design makers). The project is in its infancy. Contact: Poul Rind Christensen, Professor. Disruptive design — the ability of organisations to incorporate new designs into established business systems. Research journal article in progress. Contact: Suna Løwe Nielsen, Assistant Professor or Poul Rind Christensen, Professor. Edward Elgar Anthology of International Entrepreneurship — ‘Contemporary Design & Management’ edited by CDCM. Contact: Poul Rind Christensen, Professor or Suna Løwe Nielsen, Assistant Professor. International Doctorial Retreat on Design & Management. — A Ph.D. course for design students in Europe and the USA prepared jointly with Professor Richard Buchanan, Case Western Reserve University, USA. To be held late autumn of 2010 or early spring 2011. Venue: Denmark. Contact: Poul Rind Christensen, Professor. The organisation and staffing of the Centre CDCM expects 15–20 researchers from the founding institutions and at least three Ph.D. students to be affiliated with the centre in the years ahead. Funding will come from grants jointly financed by Kolding School of Design and the University of Southern Denmark, from larger joint grant applications, and from collabo­ rative business Ph.D. projects associated with or embedded in the centre.


Directors: Anders Munch, Ph.D. Associate Professor, ILKM (Design Culture and Theory) Poul Rind Christensen, Professor, Head of Research (DK/IERL) (Design Management and Organisation).

Administration: The centre is currently staffed with a part time secretary. International Advisory Board: CDCM has invited internationally recognised design researchers within the relevant research are­ as to join the advisory board. This group of researchers will serve as inspiration for the research and development at the centre. It will also strengthen the centre’s inter­ national publication profile by contributing to academic papers and book publications. As of November 2009, the follow­ ing researchers have accepted the invitation: Richard Buchanan, Professor of Design, Wetherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, Managing as Designing, USA. (Design Theory; Design Management) William B. Gartner, Centre Director, Arthur M. Spiro Professor of Entrepreneurship, Clemson University, USA (Entrepreneurial Design) Saras Sarasvathy, Assistant Professor, Darden School of Business, Virginia University, USA (Cognitive approaches to design) Martin Woolley, Professor, Associate Dean, Applied Research, Coventry School of Art and Design, Coventry University, UK (Industrial Design and Strategic Design) More invitations are still pending. Design Forum: The centre plans to establish a Design Forum with representa­ tion from leading design users and providers within business and cultural life as well as public interested bodies, with a view to including these users and pro­ viders, on a regular basis, in a

dialogue regarding relevant re­ search and development projects. The Design Forum will be invit­ ed to join in a dialogue with the leadership of the centre and with researchers about relevant topics of research. It will also act as a sparring partner — together with the International Advisory Board — in the drafting of the centre’s long–term research profile. Publications: It is imperative to build an inter­ national publication profile in recognised peer journals and an­ thologies in order to strengthen the reputation of the centre and the researchers’ careers. It is equally important, how­ ever, for the centre to gain a first–class standing among the business, organisational and cultural communities in Denmark and the rest of Scandinavia, since these entities are expected to utilise the research, experiments and professional design projects being developed at the centre. Finally, it is essential that relevant teaching materials be published in order to highlight the useful effects of the innova­ tive research results. Hence, the centre intends to start its own series of publica­ tions as an open source memo series on the Internet. The centre will organise at least two annual conferences — one promotional conference tar­ geted at the business and cultural communities, and one annual research conference aimed at the network of researchers affiliated with the centre. Furthermore the centre’s staff will report on the research results through training, lectures etc. The web address: The CDCM web page will be www.CDCM.dk The opening of the centre: The kickoff of the centre’s activi­ ties will be a regional conference for the business and cultural communities which will centre on the inclusion of potential partners — interested companies, cultural institutions and other

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researchers — in the formulation of urgent research and develop­ ment projects and training needs which the centre hopes to be able to fulfil. Further information: Poul Rind Christensen — Kolding School of Design Phone +45 41 61 17 35 Anders Munch — University of Southern Denmark Institute of Literature, Media and Cultural Studies Phone +45 66 11 20 78 Suna Løwe Nielsen — University of Southern Denmark Department of Entrepreneurship & Relationship Management Phone +45 65 50 14 68


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Research in progress

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Research in progress LARM1 - Radio Culture and Auditory Resources Infrastructure — A collaborative research project

The Project The objective of the LARM project is to develop and construct a national, digital, and user–driven research infrastructure that will enable and stimulate future radio and audio based research as well as knowledge dissemination. User–driven research deliveran­ ces for the infrastructure will be tools for metadating and annota­ tion of radio and audio source material as well as philologies and description tools for separate clusters of radio resources from a representative and broad vari­ ety of the humanities’ research fields. Since an entirely new and immensely rich field of source material relies on the research maturation of radio and audio resources, this maturation will be the central aim of the LARM project. The infrastructure will be directed at cultural heritage sources for radio in particular. This section of the cultural heritage is found in the archives of the Danish Broadcast Corporation (DR–ARC), in State Media Collection (Statens Medie­ samling) as well as in local archives, mainly museums such as The Danish Media Museum. The existent analogue and digitalised collections of radio resource material at the Danish Broadcast Corporation represent a unique, collected cultural history of one of the

oldest broadcasting services worldwide. Not only are the collections comparable to other international broadcasting corporations, they are unique among these in the coverage of cultural and political history. There is no detailed research within the humanities which cov­ ers this part of the cultural heri­ tage, just as there is very limited research (e.g. historic, rhetoric, and linguistic) which uses histor­ ic auditory material as a source. This is due to copyright issues and technological shortcomings, but also the fact that research traditions such as the humanities’ is still skewed by a reliance on print, while so much culture has transpired in the transience of broadcast media, and while the grand broadcaster of the Internet allows significant new forms of research to develop. Research access to the above mentioned archives will be of immense value to the humani­ ties, and the construction of a national research infrastructure will facilitate access and bring into use valuable resources of national importance and enable Danish researchers to engage internationally with researchers performing similar work. The research infrastructure will further the use of radio resource materials in such fields as linguistics, media studies, history, ethnology, and audi­ tory culture. It will enable future research in a number of areas. LARtM: The Silent Avantgardes The idea behind the LARtM Work Package is to focus on the field vaguely described in the constel­ lation ‘sound + art’ (the ART– part of LARtM). It has the ante­ rior purpose of actually arriving at a definition of this field (if in­ deed it is one field). What are the categories, how do we describe them, do they manifest them­ selves into (new) paradigms? And what would be best practice for metadating and documenting the field? Furthermore, this question also points towards a funda­ mental problem regarding the definition and function of ‘art’ in

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a mediated cultural context and environment. The work package has three gen­ eral objectives: 1) To make a platform (design / information space) from which one may access streaming sound, documentation, and interna­ tional perspectives about Danish sound art / avant–gardes. 2) To combine existing major archives into the LARtM platform(s), including an ex­ panded revision of existing (and non–existing) metadating. 3) To locate and include into the platform the truly silent avant– gardes — those NOT included in major archives. Head of Research on WP – LARtM: Ass. Professor Morten Soendergaard, Aalborg University. The Role of Kolding School of Design Basically, Kolding School of Design is linked to the LARtM Work Package. However, design researchers and art based design­ ers at Kolding School of Design may be engaged in interactive design projects related to other Work Packages in LARM. Design researchers will partake in creat­ ing design methods facilitating the interfaces to users and inter­ active design features promoting a uniform but flexible interface. LARM is anchored in a con­ sortium with the following participants: Danish Broadcast Corporation (DR), The Danish Research Network (FSK), The State and University Library (SB), Copenhagen University (KU), Roskilde University (RUC), The University of Aarhus (AU), Aalborg University (AAU), The University of Southern Denmark (SDU), The Royal School of Library and Information Science, and Denmark’s Media Museum (DMM). Kolding School of Design is an associated partner. LARM is based at the University of Copenhagen. Head of research at the LARtM work package is associated professor Morten Søndergaard, Aalborg University, Ballerup Campus.


Liaison officer at Kolding School of Design is Senior lecturer and Study Coordinator Barnabas Wetton and the Associate Professor at Department of Communication Design (to be appointed). A Ph.D. student will be assigned to the project. References and further details: http://larm.hum.ku.dk/ 1 Part of the text is reproduced from the LARM homepage and other programme materials.

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Research in progress Poul Rind Christensen: Corporate Design and Cultural Diversity Kolding School of Design has entered a partnership based research programme on the pros­ pects of design in multicultural organisations. The program is supported by the National Danish Council for Strategic Research. In the following, a description of the aim, background, work pack­ age, and partnership is shortly revealed. Summary of the Research Programme In today’s competitive environ­ ment, creative designing of prod­ ucts, organisational structure, and processes gain increasing attention. However, good designs most often do not emerge by accident but as the result of a managed process. Moreover, the management of designing proc­ esses is increasingly complicated by increasing globalisation. In this regard, the resulting cultural diversification is often mentioned as being both beneficial and detrimental. This research project is posi­ tioned in the interface between the fields of management theory, anthropology, and design re­ search. The project investigates barriers and opportunities for development of creative design processes through interaction in multicultural organisations. The consequences of cultural diversity on three different levels are investigated: 1. Micro level: The individual opportunities for and motivation to adjust to the multicultural setting. 2. Meso level: The outcome of group and identity creation. 3. Macro level: The results of the institutional and organisational context. Focus is on knowledge sharing and social capital as facilitators of creative designing. Management tools dealing with the above mentioned processes

will be developed in collabora­ tion with the private companies LEGO, Vestas, Danfoss, KMD, Prime Cargo, and Gabriel. Objective of the project In a global business environment much focus has been directed at managing culturally diverse work teams. So far, research has found that diversity can be both an ad­ vantage and a set–back. However, relatively consistent results show that human heterogeneity is more beneficial with regard to creative tasks than with regard to routine tasks (Hambrick, Davison, Snell, & Snow, 1998). Creative designing of products, organisational structures and processes have only received scant interest in relation to interaction processes in multi­ cultural organisations. However, designing abilities in a globalised environment are vital to Danish industry. The scientific objective of the project is — to develop and apply a mul­ tilevel analysis of interaction in multicultural organisations with specific focus on knowledge sharing and social capital and to access the effect on creative designing. The practical objective of the project is, — in close interaction with our company partners, to develop tools for managing interaction processes in multicultural set­ tings with creative designing as the intended outcome. Background and key research questions of the project Danish businesses are facing the growing demands of globalisa­ tion. This development increas­ ingly poses challenges of intercul­ tural collaboration to individuals and organisations. Most mainstream cross–cul­ tural management research has looked upon culture and cultural differences as static constructs. General behavioural and inter­ actional patterns exist and differ between different national popu­ lations and certain differences in social values, linguistic and

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communicative expressions may generally challenge interaction across nationalities. However, in our understanding of intercul­ tural interaction we also include the external context surround­ ing the encounter. For example, institutional, organisational, and socio–economic constraints may also impede collaboration. Moreover, we also acknowledge more recent arguments that even though national differences exist, people do change/adjust attitudes, interaction styles, and behavioural patterns during in­ tercultural encounters (Brannen & Salk, 2000). While many models and management tools have been using the mainstream approach to culture in manage­ ment, much less work has been done using more dynamic and negotiated conceptions of culture as a construct. This is also true in the complex area of multicultural teams. Many studies have discussed the influences of human het­ erogeneity on different areas of organisational performance and group interaction. They have been focusing on multinational enterprise management (Bartlett & Ghoshal, 1989), diversity man­ agement (Thomas & Ely, 1996), organisational demography (Martins, Milliken, Wiesenfeld, & Salgado, 2003), or multicultural teams (Earley & Mosakowski, 2000), just to name a few. In re­ cent years, multicultural groups have increasingly been perceived as means to help master the culturally diverse and complex organisations of today, and to increase our chances to work, learn, and become more inte­ grated across countries, cultures, and languages. Hence, the use of both co–located and virtual multicultural teams has become the modus operandi within many organisations (Maznevski & Chudoba, 2000). An important objective of bringing groups of individuals together across cul­ tural differences is to create an environment that promotes inter­ cultural networking, knowledge sharing, and creativity. Promoting creativity, knowl­ edge creation, and social capital


within organisations are es­ sential challenges in today’s business environment (Kogut & Zander, 1992; Mäkelä, 2007). Knowledge sharing and social capital are argued to lead to bet­ ter performance due to improved decision–making and better coordination (Lazarova & Taylor, 2009; Zarraga & Bonache, 2003) and are thus important precon­ ditions for interpersonal creati­ vity (Nonaka, 1994; Srivastava, Bartol, & Locke, 2006). In prac­ tice, however, interaction and knowledge sharing may prove challenging (Argote, Ingram, & Levine, 2000). And if knowl­ edge is not shared, the cognitive and creative human resources available within a group remain under–utilised. Human resources management is a particular con­ cern in multicultural organisa­ tions where cultural and linguis­ tic differences create barriers to communication, networking, and understanding (Hambrick et al., 1998; Von Glinow, Shapiro, & Brett, 2004). Hence, there is a risk that the potential creativity of multicultural organisations will not result in constructive designing processes. Designing is in essence the use of human creativity to a purpose (Carayannis & Coleman, 2005). Hence, we understand designing broadly in relation to organisa­ tions as well as product develop­ ment. Much research has focused on the design of organisational structures and processes, and within design research a number of studies outline product ap­ pearance, experience, percep­ tion, and use (e.g. Schifferstein & Hekkert, 2008). A distinction is made between research about practice, research for the purpose of practice, or research through practice (Archer, 1995). However, studies on the actual management of choice and con­ figurations of elements, materi­ als, and components that give the product particular attributes of appearance, performance, ease of use, and method of manufac­ ture are still extremely scarce (Chiva & Alegre, 2007). Design management includes not only the creative effort of designing,

but also a number of technical, strategic, and market–oriented issues (Buchanan, 2004). These convergences and requirements involve complexity within the process which requires certain management activities to support and sustain it. In consequence, the cross–fertilising link between business studies and design research is clear. However, anthropology has also started to become a popular approach to understanding design and management processes — espe­ cially in a user–centred context (Verganti, 2008). It is therefore fruitful to apply a multidiscipli­ nary framework bridging from management to anthropological and design factors. From these different theo­ retical traditions and debates the project intends to introduce and develop a new conceptual framework for creative designing processes in multicultural envi­ ronments along with exploring its implications for practitioners within Danish organisations. Hence, the general research ques­ tion to guide this project is: How can interaction in multicultural organisations facilitate knowledge sharing, social capital, and finally creative designing? While the project aims to con­ tribute to international theory development, we also want to in­ clude our company partners that are close to the actual problems in formulating and refining sub– research questions. Hence, our company partners are already and will further be included in the process of developing the more detailed and locally ad­ justed research questions. Innovative value and relevance of the project Innovative value: The research project is innovative for several reasons. It is one of the first to investigate how interaction processes in multicultural organisations facilitate creative designing — especially in a Danish context. Research in areas such as language use, social capital, and institutional factors influencing interaction outcomes

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is relatively underdeveloped in studies on multicultural organisations. While the bulk of research on multicultural organisations is growing, only few studies have intended to map the dynamic between micro, meso, and macro level factors in intercultural interaction. Impact and relevance: Being a small industrial coun­ try, the economic gains for Denmark from adjusting to a more globalised world economy are obvious. Recent reports have indicated that foreign employees are an increasingly important part of Danish economy. Hence, with growing globalisation the understanding of multicultural settings becomes ever more relevant. Moreover, in The Danish Ministry of Science’s publica­ tion Forsk2015 on prioritised themes for Danish research, it is argued ‘that it is vital to create a better knowledge foundation to strengthen the cultural compe­ tencies of societal actors and pre­ pare the Danish society for a glo­ bal world and utilise the options of globalisation offensively.The research need is directed broadly at creating a contemporary and practical understanding of cul­ tural dynamic as they are shaped during increasing globalisation’ (our translation). This project contributes to the understanding of cultural dynamic. It will have an impact on com­ panies’ human resources strate­ gies in relation to team composi­ tions and group management. The research team will contribute with concepts, models, and tools for human resources officials and managers so that they will be better equipped to communicate and collaborate in multicultural settings. This could improve and utilise the much needed creative potential of Danish organisations in the future. International Advisory Board and supportive staff members Apart from Danes, the project includes members of six differ­ ent nationalities. Furthermore, project members are currently also affiliated with Victoria


University of Wellington (Zander), Helsinki School of Economics (Piekkari), ESADE, Barcelona (Dolan), Clemson University (Gartner), Western Case Reserve University (Buchanan), and University of Leeds (Guttormsen). Project Management Associate Professor Jakob Lauring, Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus University (ASB) Project Administrator Professor Jan Selmer, Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus University (ASB) Professor Poul Rind Christensen, Kolding School of Design (DK/ SDU) Enterprises engaged Enterprises engaged in the research collaborations include: LEGO, Vestas, KPMG, Prime Cargo, and Gabriel. Poul Rind Christensen Head of Research, Professor Cross Faculty Department References Archer, B. (1995). The nature of research. Co–design, 2, 6–13. Argote, L., Ingram, P., & Levine, J. M. (2000). Knowledge transfer in organizations: Learning from the experience of others. Organizational Behavior & Human Decision Processes, 82(1), 1. Carayannis, E., & Coleman, J. (2005). Creative system design methodologies: The case of complex technical systems. Technovation, 25(8), 831–840. Bartlett, C. A., & Ghoshal, S. (1989) Managing across borders. London: Hutchinson Business Books. Buchanan, R. (2004). Interaction pathways in organizational life. In R. J. Boland, & F. Collopy (Eds.), Managing as designing. Stanford: Stanford University Press.

Chiva, R., & Alegre, J. (2007). Linking design management skills and design function organization: An empirical study of Spanish and Italian ceramic tile producers. Technovation, 27, 616. Earley, P. C., & Mosakowski, E. (2000). Creating hybrid team cultures: An empirical test of transnational team functioning. Academy of Management Journal, 43(1), 26–49. Hambrick, D. C., Davison, S. C., Snell, S. A., & Snow, C. C. (1998). When groups consist of multiple nationalities. Organization Studies, 19(2), 181–206. Kogut, B., & Zander, U. (1992). Knowledge of the firm, combinative capabilities, and the replication of technology. Organization Science, 3(3), 383–397. Lazarova, M., & Taylor, S. (2009). Boundaryless careers, social capital, and knowledge management: Implications for organizational performance. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 30, 119. Martins, L. L., Milliken, F. J., Wiesenfeld, B. M., & Salgado, S. R. (2003). Racioethnic diversity and group members’ experiences. Group and Organization Management, 28(1), 75–106. Maznevski, M. L., & Chudoba, K. M. (2000). Bridging Space over Time: Global Virtual Team Dynamics and Effectiveness. Organization Science, 11(5), 473–492. Ministeriet for Videnskab, Teknologi og Udvikling. (2008). FORSK 2015 — Et prioriteringsgrundlag for strategisk forskning. 42 pages. Mäkelä, K. (2007). Knowledge sharing through expatriate relationships: A social capital perspective. International Studies of Management & Organization, 37(3), 108–125.

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Nonaka, I. (1994). A dynamic theory of organizational knowledge creation. Organization Science, 5, 14–37. Schifferstein, H., & Hekkert, P. (2008). Product experience. Amsterdam: Elsevier Srivastava, A., Bartol, K. M., & Locke, E. A. (2006). Empowering leadership in management teams: Effects on knowledge sharing, efficacy, and performance. Academy of Management Journal, 49(6), 1239–1251. Thomas, D. A., & Ely, R. J. (1996). Making difference matter: A new paradigm for managing diversity. Harvard Business Review, Sep–Oct, 79–90. Verganti, R. 2008. Design, meaning, and radical innovation: A metamodel and a research agency. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 15: 436–456. Zarraga, C., & Bonache, J. (2003). Assessing the team environment for knowledge sharing: An empirical analysis. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 14(7), 1227–1245.


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Research Staff at DK:

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Current Researchers at Kolding School of Design

Anne Flemmert is an associate professor at Kolding School of Design. In addition, she is head of research and analysis at etrans, a user–driven innovation project which focuses on turning the electric vehicle and other sustain­ able transport solutions into a market success in Denmark. Anne holds a Ph.D. degree in consumer research from Department of Marketing and Management at University of Southern Denmark. Her research focus is to investi­ gate how objects, services, and communication messages on an ongoing basis are utilised to create symbolic and cultural meaning in the everyday lives of consumers in a highly change­ able, diverse, and fragmented world, and how design both reflects and constantly forms new cultural meaning. Anne Katrine Gøtzsche Gelting holds an MA in industrial design from The Aarhus School of Architecture in Denmark. She earned her Ph.D. degree at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine arts, School of Architecture in Copenhagen. Her Ph.D. disserta­ tion deals with the different tech­ nological and cultural contexts for designing electronic products. She is currently employed as an associate professor at Kolding School of Design and teaches design method and theory. Anne Louise Bang is a textile designer from Kolding School of Design. She is currently working on an Industrial Ph.D. project funded by the Danish textile manufacturer Gabriel A/S. Her subject is an investiga­ tion of emotional values related to fabrics in action. She is also affiliated to the research project Creative designing of interaction in multicultural organizations: The role of knowledge sharing and social capital.

Birgit Lyngbye Petersen holds a BA in education from Teachers Training College in Hellerup, Denmark, an MA in education from The Danish University of Education, and has studied humanistic design studies at the University of Southern Denmark. Currently she is conducting a Ph.D. on a project engaging Copenhagen Business School, the Centre for Textile Research (SAXO), and Kolding School of Design. Caren Weisleder is a graphic designer from Kolding School of Design. Through her master studies at the Köln International School of Design (Cologne, Germany) and her professional life, she has specialised in the field of Service Design. For the past 6 months she has worked as a research assistant at Kolding School of Design, working on a research project about user– driven innovation and supportive design for hospitals. Else Skjold holds an MA in cul­ ture and communication from Copenhagen University (2003). In 2006–8 she conducted a report commissioned by Kolding School of Design concerning how fash­ ion research could best be im­ plemented in the fashion design education. She is currently work­ ing on her Ph.D. project which is co–finansed by Copenhagen Business School, where she is affiliated to the research program ©reative Encounters. Her Ph.D. project is based on a so–called wardrobe study, and within this framework she develops method­ ologies to study dress–practice. Her main area of study is men’s wear. Eva Knutz holds an MA (Fine Art). She received her education at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy (Amsterdam), at Cooper Union School of Art and Design (New York) and at Frank Mohr Institute, Department of Digital Media and Environment (Groningen). As a Ph.D. student at Kolding School of Design, she works with game design

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and narratives, focusing on the specific environment of pediatric patients. Joy Boutrup is a textile en­ gineer and expert in textile chemistry from Fachhochschule Niederrhein in Krefeld, Germany. She has worked in research at Textilforschungszentrum Nordwest in Krefeld and lec­ tured in a tenure position at The Danish Design School. She is former head of Textile, Paper, and Leather Conservation at the National Museum of Denmark. Currently she holds a part–time position as associate professor at Kolding School of Design com­ bined with extensive lecturing activities all over the world. Kirsten Bonde Sørensen passed as a graphic designer from Kolding School of Design and Utrecht School of the Arts, Holland and holds an MA in rhetoric (MARC) from Aarhus University. She is currently work­ ing on an industrial Ph.D. project funded by the Danish savings bank Middelfart Sparekasse and attached to Kolding School of Design. Her research is within the field of strategic design and investigates how design can con­ tribute in business development and innovation. Kirsten Nissen is a textile design­ er and weaver from The Danish Design School in Copenhagen. As a textile artist and designer she has received several awards and grants, and has exhibited in Europe, Japan, Brazil, and the USA. She has served as a teacher at Kolding School of Design where she is currently working as a Ph.D. student on the subject of Pattern Generation. Lene Wul holds an MA in history from University of Southern Denmark. From 1995–1998, she was a Ph.D. student on Refugee– discourses in interwar time. At Kolding School of Design she holds a position as research se­ cretary, and is currently working on a research project about user– driven innovation and supportive


design for hospitals. She is also exploring how narratives can be used in developing new design tools for a better understanding and support of co–dialogues. Malene Leerberg holds an MA research degree in art history from the University of Aarhus in Denmark and California State University, Northridge, USA. She has worked in communica­ tion and project management, partaking in interdisciplinary projects with designers, artists, and architects. As a Ph.D. student at Kolding School of Design, she is working on a project entitled In the Making: The interactional role of sketches in the design process. Mette Mikkelsen is a textile designer from Kolding School of Design. She is project manager of the etrans project, a user–driven innovation project focusing on turning the electric vehicle and other sustainable transport solutions into a market success in Denmark. She holds an MA in design from Danish Centre for Design Research. She has a long career of working with industry — most recently with the Danish textile company Gabriel, where she worked as a textile designer and project manager handling the full value–chain from first idea to sold project together with major furniture companies in Europe. Mette Harrestrup Lauritzen is a graphic designer and Interaction Designer from Kolding School of Design and Hogeschool voor de Kunsten in Utrecht, Holland. As a Ph.D. student at Kolding School of Design she combines the two design–practices through experimental design–research, investigating how pictograms and wayfinding transforms in the meeting with phenomenology and pervasive computing. Pia Pedersen is a graphic design­ er from Kolding School of Design and ESAG Penninghen in France. Through her studies and profes­ sional life she has specialised in the field of Information Graphics. For the past 6 months, she has

worked as a research assistant at Kolding School of Design, and is due to begin a Ph.D. on Visualization of Statistics in 2010. Poul Rind Christensen holds an M.Sc. in business econom­ ics, Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus University and a Post Graduate Research Diploma from Institute of Social Studies, Den Haag, Holland. Since 1993 he has been appointed professor at University of Southern Denmark (1993–2005); Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus University (2005–2009). Currently, he is head of research at Kolding School of Design and holds a part time chair at University of Southern Denmark. Among other honorary positions, he has served as a board mem­ ber of the National Strategic Research Council (2005–2009). He also serves as editorial board member and reviewer of several international research journals. His research interests include the nexus of design and management. Sisse Tanderup holds an MA in art history from the University of Aarhus in Denmark. She cur­ rently works as a Ph.D. student at Kolding School of Design on the subject of memory in Danish and Italian jewellery design. Thomas Markussen holds an MA degree in comparative literature from the University of Aarhus. At Kolding School of Design he recently completed his Ph.D. dissertation in which he develops a cognitive semiotic framework for understanding the inter­ weaving of aesthetic experience and meaning construction in interaction design. In his earlier work, which includes lecturing, writings, and media productions, Markussen focused on the impact of technology use within art, ar­ chitecture, and design. Currently, he holds a position as an assist­ ant professor at Aarhus School of Architecture. Tine Ebdrup is a textile designer from Kolding School of Design. Through her professional life

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as a designer and her studies as a research assistant at Kolding School of Design, she has gained knowledge and an interest in the important role which physical environments play in the well–be­ ing of people. As a result of this, she will begin an industrial Ph.D. in spring 2010. The subject will be: Aesthetic learning environ­ ments — Integration of aesthetics in learning environments based on user–involvement. Trine Brun Petersen holds an MA in cultural studies from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. She has served as a lecturer at Copenhagen University and worked as curator at Trapholt Museum of Modern Art in Denmark. Currently, she is a Ph.D. student at Kolding School of Design and works on a project about design as an ideological practice. Vibeke Riisberg Ph.D., graduated as a textile designer from The Danish Design School and stud­ ied computer graphics at Visual School of Art in New York. The subject of her Ph.D. dissertation was Design and Production of Printed Textiles — from analogue to digital processes. Research interests include textile design, decoration, sustainability, and user–driven innovation. She serves as an editorial board mem­ ber of The Nordic Textile Journal and currently holds a position as associate professor in textiles at Kolding School of Design.


DK: Research Portal – READ

READ — REsearch in Architecture and Design — is a research data­ base for Kolding School of Design shared with The Royal Danish Academay of Fine Arts School of Architecture, Aarhus School of Architecture, the Danish Design School, and The Danish Centre for Design Research. READ presents an overview of the four schools’ research and publications. Get in touch with experts within architectural and design research. Find research projects and activities and detailed in­ formation about the researchers behind the projects. You can do a cross–search of the five institu­ tions or find information about the schools’ research separately by using the five sub–pages on the portal. READ is a direct link to knowl­ edge about architecture and design in Denmark. www.re–ad.dk

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First published in Denmark in 2010 by Kolding School of Design © 2010 Kolding School of Design www.designskolenkolding.dk Aagade 10 DK–6000 Kolding Denmark All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means (including photocopying, recording, or in­ formation storage and retrieval) without permission in writing from the publisher. Editors: Poul Rind Christensen & Lene Wul Translation: Marianne Hilger Photos: Ole Akhøj, Torben Lenau, Novo Nordisk, Anne Grarup, Niels Grubak Iversen, Magnhild E. Disington, Rikke Otte Pedersen and authors of the book Printing: AKA–Print Form: Marte Meling Enoksen and Karen Grønneberg ISBN: 978-87-90775-51-3 Paper: Munken Print Cream and Arctic Silk Typefaces: Charter ITC and GT


ISBN 978-87-90775-51-3

9 788790 775513


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