Dissertation Proposal Defense - Nick Logler
Thursday, December 16, 2021
| 10 - 12 PM
Zoom
Exploring Material Imaginaries: Artifacts as Sites of Construction and Possibility
A child sits on the floor, arranging wood blocks into imagined worlds. A designer compares samples of waterproof fabrics for their next project. A factory worker pulls metals from discarded appliances for recycling. In these scenarios, wooden blocks, fabric, and appliances share at least two features: First, they are artifacts–objects designed and made by people. Second, they are materials–each actor uses their artifact to create something different. If however, we paired the factory worker with wooden blocks, or the child with appliances, they might be unable to imagine how these different artifacts could be materials. This difference is the phenomenon at the center of this work: some artifacts enter our imaginations as materials, while others do not. This distinction has consequences–human beings create an immense amount of stuff, and the impacts of large scale production, use, and disposal of these objects are felt around the world.
In order to begin to understand this phenomenon, in this proposed work I describe two tracks. First, I lay out a foundation for the theoretical construct material imaginaries–the field of constructive possibilities we can imagine for the artifacts around us. I describe some of the literatures and open technical and ethical questions which must be engaged with in order to develop a robust account of material imaginaries. Second, I present a plan for empirical work which investigates how individuals understand artifacts through the lens of material imaginaries. Specifically, I detail a 4-part design workshop during which participants explore the physical materials of everyday electronic artifacts, develop design concepts intended to widen material imaginaries, and reflect on their experience working at the boundary of finished artifact and material. In doing so, this work seeks to make at least 4 contributions: First, a theoretical account of material imaginaries. Second, insights into how people understand artifacts through the lens of material imaginaries. Third, unique artifacts intended to provoke and imagine how we might design resources which widen material imaginaries for a specific artifact. Finally, design insights on how we might design for wider material imaginaries for new and different kinds of artifacts.
Supervisory Committee:
Committee Chair: Batya Friedman, Professor, iSchool
GSR: Audrey Desjadrins, Assistant Professor, Interaction Design,School of Art + Art History + Design
Member: David Hendry, Associate Professor, iSchool
Member: Jason Yip, Associate Professor, iSchool