Tobias Revell opens the door to speculative design, with ‘Speculative and Critical Design at Work’

This session introduced the students to the core principles, tools, and methods of Speculative & Critical Design in applied contexts, such as a design fiction video that follows a person into a regenerative design future, or again, artifacts from a world where non-human species and future generations have a say in policy-making.

How can design be used to reveal hidden or obscured #tendencies and #assumptions in designs, users, and systems? Yesterday we filtered them through the lens of projectors, tracers, and exploits, provoking informed thinking on alternative futures. The significance of these lenses is expressed in the forecast of future directions, then, in the methods with which to approach the evolutionary scenario, and finally, in ‘staging’, i.e. visualizing to aid an understanding and get everyone on the same page, conveying a serious message but in a fun way. As well as introducing the concepts, the masterclass focused on where these techniques from critical design can be applied and the impacts and outcomes they can produce for design research, engagement, and production.

The audience had the chance to grasp key definitions and concepts of speculative and critical design while reflecting on the importance of always putting critical and speculative thinking into a design process. Moreover, they received an introduction to a range of canonical projects from speculative and critical design, and therefore, a general understanding of the critical issues around the subject. The module ended with an overview of examples of how to use speculative and critical design techniques to enhance outcomes in an applied context.

Thanks to Tobias Revell, design futures lead at Arup Foresight, and all participants for the rich exchange placed on the table.

We hope to see you at the next event around mid-April. Stay tuned!