Hi Tobie
In 1979 Peter Weibel gave a live presentation on the Austria television
channel ORF called "Zeitblut / Time Blood" in which he let blood out of
his arm while talking.
http://www.mediaartnet.org/works/zeitblut/
You can see the ethical / moral issues that arise from this work in the
response / faces of the audience in the television broadcast.
Best wishes
Björn
hi,
In my thesis I'm writing about speculative forms of design. I don't
mean unpaid client pitches, rather a form of product design where
hypothetical design is exhibited and disseminated in other public
settings.
In the previous 2 years I've been helping lead a brief with
postgraduate design students with a focus on speculative design as a
form of public engagement with science and technology, and we have had
some interesting situations:
- A student filmed themself letting blood from their arm into an
instrument, and then brought the instrument into the crit, with the
needle still attached.
- A scientist was filmed, then the interview was used without consent,
causing some problems.
- Students have worked with patients and patient groups, and then
represent individuals or groups in their work in unexpected ways.
Additionally students frequently blur fictional accounts with claims of
truth. Individuals are consulted initially, then the work takes a turn,
and there is little or no attribution or care to separate subsequent
material from the initial research. Scientific research, or policy
documents, or market research, or literary fiction are used as sources,
with no attribution.
I am undoubtedly guilty of most of these things at some stage (though
not the blood-letting). I also feel that we should be encouraging
students of this form of design to work independently, and to encourage
them to take risks. I would hate to crush these problematic approaches
with some form of design bureaucracy.
But there surely is some place here for a form of ethics for designers,
as they increasingly move into the territories of other disciplines
with different expectations, and simultaneously become more
sophisticated at promoting and circulating their work to broader
audiences.
Does anyone have any thoughts on these issues? Have you any references
for accounts of similar situations?
best wishes,
Tobie Kerridge
Tobie Kerridge
PhD candidate
Interaction Research Studio
Department of Design
Goldsmiths, University of London
New Cross
London SE14 6NW
T: +44 (0)20 7078 5183
F: +44 (0)20 7919 7783
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