POOL 73 > AccessAbility & Design for Dignity.

73

Payal Saluja

www.indipool.com

pg 14 | Photographed by Ishaan Shivadheen Dixit

IBDSA 2016 02 Keshsa and Shivani 08 Veena Chandran 24 Rahul Spall 30 Margarita Bergfeldt Matiz 34 Nilesh Kharade 40 Malcolm Rebello 44 Vineesh Vijayan 50 Nitika Bose 54

ACCESSIBILITY

MAKING LIVES EASIER

What are the exhibitions trying to highlight?

MM: The exhibition ‘Design for Dignity’ presents innovative Swedish design products that have facilitated significant improvements in the quality of life of people with disabilities. The exhibition highlights the importance and benefits of being inclusive when developing products for the future. It is accompanied by a photo exhibition ‘AccessAbility’, where Swedish photographer Markus Marcetic and 34 POOL #73

Indian photographer Sunhil Thakkar have portrayed 24 persons with different disabilities. The portraits and personal accounts of these 24 individuals from Sweden and India tell a story of dreams, hope, sorrow, love, family, daily life, work and leisure.

The two exhibitions have a beautiful dialogue where the public can get close to the personal accounts and at the same time relate with a designed tridimensional product that features

ACCESSIBILITY Photographed by Sunhil Thakkar

Margarita Bergfeldt Matiz, curator of the ‘Design for Dignity’ and ‘AccessAbility’ exhibitions currently showing at NID in Ahmedabad, explains to Praveen Nahar the importance of inclusive designing in the daily life of a person with a disability. Some of the products are developed for a very specific target group and are very high tech, such as the Tobii eye tracking device, which allows people who can only move their eyes the ability to communicate.

The exhibitions can be summed up in one word: dignity. To live with dignity, regardless of disability, is a human right according to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. All

people have the same value and an equal right to take part in society.

What role can designers play in this area?

MM: For a long time Sweden and Swedish designers have realized that by focusing on those that meet obstacles in everyday life they can develop products and a society that is better for everyone. It is not just about meeting the special needs of a person with a disability: it’s about including that person in a wider social context. www.indipool.com 35

ACCESSIBILITY and include persons with disabilities in the design process to gain understanding. This way of working provides data and knowledge that can be transmitted into many future projects.

Product: Penny Talks

Design: Anders Fällman

Company: Iris Hjälpmedel

Webpage: www.irishjalpmedel.se Organize daily life with tactile audio labels. Mark up the cases on CD collections or spice jars, make a talking time schedule or calendar, record translations, etc. The pen reads the recorded information as the tip is drawn across the label.

Developing a product with a disability in mind will result in improved products all around.

Photographed by Jonas Bergfeldt

As designers we have the capability of placing ourselves in the position of the user and raise awareness when designing. With our tools we can create scenarios to highlight the problem and to take it further to physical products or services. The hope is that being inclusive will soon be a natural part of the designing process.

Designers should put themselves in a disabled person´s everyday situation 36 POOL #73

Product: Let’s Fly

Design: TrustCare Carloni Design Company: TrustCare AB

Webpage: www.trustcare.se Lightweight, flexible and foldable walker/rollator with suspension for a smoother ride. Designed with the philosophy that the product should be functional and attractive.

ACCESSIBILITY What is the roadmap to improving accessibility?

MM: It is to change the mindset and make people understand that this is something that we all can benefit from in the long run. In Sweden we haven’t yet fully won the battle for equality for disabled people, and the participants’ own stories say a lot about the Swedish disability policy. Giving everyone a chance to be seen and heard is a step along the way to not seeing people with disabilities as a homogeneous group but as individuals with different needs. The personal stories of this exhibit and the design products on show can hopefully initiate discussions and strengthen cooperation internationally on accessibility, dignity and disability policies.

Product: Panthera X Design: Leif Thies

Company: Panthera

Webpage: www.panthera.se Being able to get around on one’s own is very important.

This wheelchair is built to be easy to operate. Its carbon fiber construction gives an extreme lightness and strength with a transport weight of only 2.1 kg.

Product: Contour

Design: Designkonsulterna Company: Etac

Webpage: www.etac.com Softly-rounded pen specifically designed to avoid straining the finger joints. The handle is thicker than on most pens and allows for a simplified and comfortable pen grip. Indentations in the handle allow the pen to stay firmly in the hand. Its design enables people with impaired hand function to write for longer periods of time without discomfort.

Where does India stand?

MM: Just to mention two cases, India has 20% of the global blind population which equals 10 million people. According to Netradaan, a non-profit organization, India shares the highest burden of blindness in the world. According to the Swedish Rheumatic Association, arthritis is a wide-spread problem throughout the world and is expected to increase in the

Product: Panthera Micro Design: Jalle Jungnell Company: Panthera

Webpage: www.panthera.se Being able to get around on one’s own is very important, especially for a child. This wheelchair is built to be easy to operate and has only one front wheel for easy rotation. The wheelchair is designed for indoor use by children from 1 to 5 years. www.indipool.com 37

ACCESSIBILITY

Product: Tobii Dynavox I-12 Gaze Interaction Design: Myra Industriell Design Company: Tobii Dynavox Webpage: www.tobiidynavox.com Certain illness or disability can lead to impaired speech ability. This eye-controlled, voice-generated device enables effective communication in all forms, from voice output, environmental control and computer access to long-distance communication. Controlled by eye movements, it enables people with motor and speech impairments to lead more independent lives.

next 10 years. I learnt that design for the disabled is an area of focus at NID, which is very important as it indicates a ‘design for all’ approach. Indian designers should always try to design for all.

Webpage: www.somna.eu

Tell us a little about yourself.

MM: I am a Colombian-Swedish industrial designer. I studied Industrial Design at Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano in Bogotá Colombia and hold a Master of Fine Arts degree from Konstfack, the University College of Art and Design in Stockholm, Sweden. My portfolio includes a variety of design fields such as design for space, product design, exhibitions, crafts and curatorial work where I use my profession as a tool to contribute and enrich our lives.

A heavy blanket designed to relieve anxiety and insomnia, as well as improve body awareness. Within healthcare and psychiatry, it is highly recommended and a popular cognitive device. It is designed to simplify everyday life for people with physical and mental disorders and it has a particularly positive effect on children with ADHD.

All the projects I work with are important to me. They all have a common pattern - process, understanding, feel empathy, and create.

My graduation project at Konstfack

Product: The Comforter Design: Staffan Ramer Company: Somna

38 POOL #73

ACCESSIBILITY

Photographed by Mayank Loonker

Lovisa Söderberg Photographed by Markus Marcetic

was the Refrigerator Freezer Rack for astronauts at the international space station – it was supposed to let them easily take out frozen food from drawers under non-gravity conditions. I had the opportunity to work at the European Space Agency to develop the project with engineers, scientific and astronauts from ESA and NASA. Currently I am curating and designing exhibitions that highlight the importance, and all facets, of design.

Product: Aktiv Reacher Design: Veryday

Company: Etac

Webpage: www.etac.com Lightweight reachers to suit different needs. The rubber-coated gripping jaws can be opened wide, but can also be used to pick up small items. The jaws can be rotated from a horizontal to vertical position so the user does not have to twist his or her arm. A magnet in the handle can be used to pick up small metal items. The design allows for people with impaired hand function to use the reachers. Approved

by SRA (Swedish Rheumatism Association).

What brought you to India?

MM: When I was studying at Konstfack, our professor and director Lars Lallerstedt always mentioned the collaboration between Konstfack and National Institute of Design (NID), and the great experiences he had while visiting India. When the Swedish Institute and the Consulate planned to show the exhibition in India, NID in Ahmedabad was a natural place to start since they have had a very good collaboration over the years not just with exchange of students but also with projects and lectures.

The exhibitions will be on display from September 19 to October 1 in Mumbai before moving to Singapore, Macedonia, Belarus, Latvia and Brazil. www.matizbergfeldt.se

(Praveen Nahar is an Industrial Designer and Senior Faculty at National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad) www.indipool.com 39