Welcome to The Posthumanities Hub & The Eco- and Bioart Lab Hybrid Seminar on “Design Ecologies: Towards Artistic and Postconventional (Research) Practices” with speakers Carrie Foulkes (University of Glasgow) and Dr Lynn Wilson (University of Glasgow), which takes place on 14th June at 13:15-15:00 CEST in the room Faros (Tema building, Campus Valla, Linköping University), and on Zoom (for registration details, see below)
Generous emptiness: sculptural and architectural encounters
Abstract:
This talk will ponder different kinds of ‘emptiness’ and their potentialities. As a way into thinking about some relevant themes, I’ll introduce the Sun Hive, exploring the hive’s material and conceptual aspects and how it symbolises a certain kind of relationship between humans and honeybees. Unlike many other forms of bee box that already have frames installed inside them, the Sun Hive provides a colony with a primarily ’empty’ space in which to build their comb, contained by a form that reflects and honours the bees’ natural preferences. The hive is imbued with an ethos of generosity, love and respect rather than of control.
Thinking about the Sun Hive will enable a consideration of some of the meaningful and generative ways in which an artistic practice can meet with a scientific method of observation in an ecological context. We’ll also look at spatial sculptural/installation practices as transformative sites in terms of human health and wellbeing. I’ll narrate embodied encounters with artworks and the ways in which these have resonated and provided support during a time of bereavement. The talk will close with a reflection on some of the ways in which built environments can be conducive to contemplative states, drawing on examples of remarkable public spaces such as the Kamppi Chapel – “the chapel of silence” – in Helsinki, and contrasting this with the prevalent strategy of ‘hostile architecture’ in urban design.
Bio:
Carrie Foulkes is a British essayist and poet whose multidisciplinary practice also encompasses visual and live arts. She is particularly interested in the intersections of experimental literature, narrative studies, bodywork, performance, medical humanities and bioethics. She is a doctoral candidate at the University of Glasgow and a visiting researcher at Linköping University. https://carriefoulkes.com/
Circular Design Perspectives from the UK. The Case for Multidisciplinary Practice
Abstract
The implementation of a circular economy requires a multidisciplinary approach to close the loop and advance research and practice across citizens, consumers, and businesses. Artists and designers have a vital role to play in advancing conceptual and practical applications of circular thinking – new material research, design for disassembly, zero waste design and design for durability.
The presentation will begin with an overview from Lynn about her experience of applying western art and design teaching practices with indigenous people in sub-Saharan Africa and how this earlier experience shaped her understanding of the current global environmental crisis. From there, the presentation will share examples from Lynn’s practice as a consultant working with design led and non-design led businesses and academics, critiquing solutions for a more sustainable society. Lynn will present her new project – Circular Materials Repository, working in collaboration with the Creative Informatics Centre, Edinburgh College of Art, Edinburgh University.
Bio:
Dr Lynn Wilson is a Scottish textile designer, circular design practitioner, researcher, and lecturer, who recently completed a social science PhD at the Adam Smith Business School, University of Glasgow. Her consultancy, Circular Design Scotland advances circular design knowledge through working with artists, designers, and businesses and is currently a post-doctoral researcher at the University of the Arts London, Centre for Circular Design.
Twitter: @LynnIWilson
Instagram: @LynnIWilson
TEDx Bath: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYqXf6ewboo
REGISTRATION
REGISTER HERE: https://liu-se.zoom.us/meeting/register/u5Ukd-ihrzMuGNMnDeKr_jKdV9x3cdrjdt4X
