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Material-Oriented Active Making: A Promising Approach for Sustainable Transitions

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Cross-Cultural Design. Interaction Design Across Cultures (HCII 2022)

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Abstract

This study is based on a workshop themed on Material-oriented Artefact Design (MAD) that 30 students majoring in Design from Chinese universities took part in. Through the methodology of Constructing Grounded Theory combined with the research methods of Participatory Observation, Semi-structured Interview and Questionnaire, we explored the distinctions between MAD and Problem-oriented Artefact Design (PAD), analyzed the advantages of MAD and further explained the reasons why MAD is worth refocusing on recently. The study demonstrates MAD is an effective way to break through the mode of PAD, exploring an active making route of materials as the starting point to advocate a new design language and material culture, so as to guide students to see materials as “new living species” that can interact and dialogue by continuous experiments. In this way, the relationship between designers and materials is subtly changing, from hierarchy to flat and equal relations, from passive acceptance to attentive care, which facilitates entering into the post-Anthropocene era for sustainability.

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Acknowledgments

This study was conducted based on the workshop hosted by Bajiao Design. Thanks a lot to the organizers, tutors, and the 15 interviewees who shared valuable information with me.

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Correspondence to Ye Yang .

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Yang, Y., Zhou, H. (2022). Material-Oriented Active Making: A Promising Approach for Sustainable Transitions. In: Rau, PL.P. (eds) Cross-Cultural Design. Interaction Design Across Cultures. HCII 2022. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 13311. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06038-0_19

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06038-0_19

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