How are futures imagined, performed, and made durable over time? Where and how are futures being made? Who is included and who is excluded from these futures? Where are the opportunities for design to develop possible alternative futures in a world of emergent, complex socio-technical systems?
This is a studio-based course that will cover the history, core concepts, criticism and application of design and speculation. Bridging imagination, storytelling, and real-world needs, students will explore speculative thinking with multiple perspectives and approaches within the world of design, film and literature. It offers a broad perspective on the use of speculation to imagine alternatives. The major topics covered will explore design fields broadly, using Speculative Critical Design as a point of departure. Working with both practice and theory, participants learn to use speculative thinking and storytelling as a medium to raise critical questions and to provoke debate on what alternative pasts, presents, and futures could be.
