Episode 8 - Future of Design Methods

Design Theory and Methodology 2019

In the final DTM podcast Peter talks to Elisa Giaccardi, Professor of Interactive Media Design at IDE, about what design methods will look like in the future. They talk about how artificial intelligence and machine learning are changing the design process from something that is ‘user-centred’ into something much more dynamic. Elisa introduces the idea of how humans and computers can design together through ‘co-performance’. They also touch on the ethical issues involved when dealing with non-human intelligences.

The interview is based on a book chapter by Elisa called ‘Technology and More than Human Design’ which explores how technology is impacting the design process. She mentions her PhD supervisor Roy Ascott, who has been a strong influence on many well-known designers and artists throughout the world. On page 6 of his book ‘Art, Technology, Consciousness’ he talks about the idea of ‘seeding’ that Elisa refers to. She also quotes from the much-cited social anthropologist Tim Ingold, who writes in his book ‘Correspondences’ about different modes of interaction between humans and non-humans. Ingold has published many interesting books touching on the cultural and contextual aspects of designing.

In the discussion Mieke mentions the work of John Seely Brown, who was director of the world-famous Xerox Palo Alto Research Centre (PARC). In a video titled Sense-making in our Post AlphaGo World he explores the “rapidly changing, broadly connected and radically contingent world and the lenses needed to frame, or reframe, the challenges that technological advances have pushed forward”.

Peter also mentions an idea called ‘negative capability’, the ability to embrace uncertainty and be comfortable in situations of ambiguity. The idea originally comes from the Romantic Poet John Keats! This short blog post provides more context and further links to explore the subject if you are interested.