Dear colleague,

I would like to draw your attention to the above event taking place in
Dundee in June of this year. "Prototype" will be co-convened by the Victoria
and Albert Museum and Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design at the
University of Dundee, and will explore the radical and multiple ways that
creative people are experimenting with ideas. The symposium looks to excite
the mind and nurture unusual conversations by presenting a diverse range of
perspectives concerned with innovation and ingenuity.

Prototyping is done in many industries - from cars to ceramics, medical
equipment to publishing, architects to chefs - but the process, development
and understanding for each is different. What can one discipline teach
another about prototyping? What place does prototyping hold for scientists,
artists, politicians, athletes or business managers? How can prototyping
lead these and other disciplines to imagine and re-imagine the future?

This event aims to reduce barriers by generating trans-disciplinary
conversations, thus setting the scene for the forging of new partnerships
and fresh understandings for contemporary and future craftspeople. We hope
to bring together representatives from academia, public and corporate
sectors to discuss the history, theory and practice of prototyping, thereby
creating a sustainable network of like-minded individuals and organisations
that will continue to develop prototyping as a tool for change.

Invited speakers include:

• Michael Schrage, Business Innovator, MIT
• Elizabeth Sanders, Participatory Designer, MakeTools
• Stuart Brown, Biomedical Engineer, University of Dundee
• Norman Klein, Novelist & Cultural Critic, California Institute of the Arts
• Simon Starling, Conceptual Artist
• Pieter Jan Stappers, Design Theorist and Innovator, University of Delft
• Hazel White, Interactive Jeweller, University of Dundee
• Leonardo Bonanni, Architect, Designer, Artist, MIT Media Lab
• Frederic Schwartz, Architectural Historian, University College London
• Constance Adams, Space Travel Architect, Synthesis International
• Rosan Chow, Designer, Deutsche Telekom Laboratories
• Chicks on Speed, Musicians, Artists, Innovators

Prototype – Craft in the Future Tense will be acting as the central focus
for Craft Festival Scotland, an ambitious series of nationwide events
happening throughout the summer of 2010. “Future Craft”, the theme for
Dundee’s contribution to the Festival, will portray the different faces of
craft and the different voices it has as a creative practice. It will focus
on reviving the way people see craft by initiating a range of public events
comprising several major exhibitions, films and workshops which are set to
challenge perceptions and profile debates around craft.

The University of Dundee has, for the past two years, been at the forefront
of the V&A at Dundee Steering Group, with support from Abertay University,
Dundee City Council, Scottish Enterprise and the Scottish government. The
project, which aims to establish a presence for the Victoria & Albert Museum
at the heart of the city's waterfront, took a massive step forward in August
when Michael Russell MSP, Minister for Culture, External Affairs and the
Constitution, announced the Scottish Government's significant commitment of
support. An international architecture competition was launched in January
of this year for the £47m centre, financial support for which is expected to
come from the Scottish government, philanthropic and corporate sponsors via
a charitable trust. As the first V&A base outside of London, V&A at Dundee
would aim to provide space in which to showcase Scottish applied arts and
design in an international context, act as a focus for debate and dialogue
for the creative economy, enhance the creative environment for the benefit
of the general public and creative education, and create a platform for
partnership working in the cultural sector in Scotland.

We hope you will be able to join us for Prototype – Craft in the Future
Tense, and Crafts Festival Scotland, in Dundee this June. Online
registration is now open, and more information may be found on the event
website, http://www.dundee.ac.uk/djcad/prototyping. Please feel free to
forward this email to anyone you feel would be interested in taking part.