International Design Week 2023 | mutate or mute

International Design Week

1 theme

5 days

9 countries

15 workshops

18 lecturers

150 students

The Institute of Design and Communication, one of the largest institutes at the FH JOANNEUM, with around 300 students, contributestothecreativedynamicsoftheCityofGraz.Competence in design, human-centered methods and research are important elementsinourinterdisciplinaryeducation.Researchattheinstitute encompasses contemporary design challenges in society in collaboration with industry and other academic institutions. The institute offers a bachelor’s program in Information Design and master’s programs in Exhibition Design and Communication, Media, Sound, andInteractionDesign.Ourstudentslearntounderstandeconomic, social,cultural,andtechnologicalbackgroundstoeffectivelycreate designsolutionsforsocietyastheyshapetomorrow’sworlds.

www.fh-joanneum.at/idk

Design Month Graz bundles and condenses the energy of the local creative industries within one month, makes them visible to the outside world and thus makes a central contribution to anchoring the creative industries in people’s minds.

In 2023, Design Month Graz will take a look at the theme of REVOLUTION. In what way can and should design influence revolutionary processes? What do designers have to do with it? A look at the activist and political climate shows great confusion and frustration. The current mood offers good conditions for disruptive upheavals, i.e. revolutions. Perhaps right now it is causing the radical changes that are needed at many levels of society and the ecosystem. With the thematic focus in Design Month Graz 2023, we hope to help in the search for solutions, because we know that the time for disruptive upheavals has long since come.

After last year’s successful premiere, we are excited to bring a new mutation of the International Design Week back to the Institute of Design and Communication at FH JOANNEUM University of Applied Sciences Graz.

We are pleased that we are welcoming 19 international guests from our significant global partner university network as part of the Design Month in our UNESCO City of Design Graz.

The International Design Week enables our students to engage in the much appreciated and necessary cultural exchange with international design experts in the fields of media, sound, interaction, communication, and spatial design.

Furthermore, hosting this International Week in-house gives our students the opportunity to collaboratively create tangible outputs and develop design ideas beyond the classic classroom brief, allowing cultural exchange beyond the design studio setting.

We appreciate our international colleagues coming to Graz and sharing their expertise for further mutation of our undergraduate and postgraduate students into critical designers, makers, thinkers. We are looking forward to seeing the cultures of our figurative petri-dish grow new organisms in the international creative habitat.

Design mutates just like a single-cell organism, in permanent transition and transformation, adapting to cultural, social, political, economic, and ecological change. Without design the world is muted, at a stand-still, no voices of change to be heard.

Daniel Fabry Head of Institute Design and Communication Head of Master Programs

Birgit Bachler Head of Bachelor Information Design

Designers not merely embellish the face of our world, but act as a driving force to change the face of the world for good. Design exposes and interrogates the mutations resulting from our ever-changing planetary condition, between crisis and cure, and thus itself acts as a reflection of those mutations. Design, like a single-cell organism, is in a state of constant mutation and adaptation to its surroundings, perpetually responding to cultural, social, political, economic, and ecological changes. In the absence of design, the world would become muted, stagnant, and void of the innovation and progress necessary to navigate the complexities of contemporary life.

The International Design Week began on Monday with a networking day that featured a series of mini seminars open to all staff of the Institute of Design & Communication. The day commenced with a thoughtprovoking talk by Zachi Diner from the Holon Institute of Technology, Israel, discussing the rise and evolution of the AI universe and its impact on the creative landscape. Zachi emphasized how the advancement of AI gives rise to new roles and responsibilities for designers.

The second session, titled „Sound Atmospheres and Design: Programmatic Music for Visual Media“, was hosted by Luis Daniel Martínez Álvarez from Universidad Iberoamericana Puebla, Mexico. This interactive session explored the influence of sound design on the perception of space and media.

In the subsequent session, Melani Lleonart García and Álvaro Sanchis from the Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain, provided insights into their teaching methodologies. They showcased how co-design, qualitative assessment systems, and collaborative project reviews can effectively teach graphic design to large groups of students.

Emilio Lonardo from Politecnico di Milano, Italy, led an experimental speed dating session, engaging participants in discussions on speculative futures of design in a fast-paced manner. Conversations revolved around design scenarios such as humans being able to digest plastic or the establishment of the first interplanetary colony with 1000 inhabitants.

The networking day successfully kickstarted the International Design Week at the institute, exploring thought-provoking design topics, contemporary creative challenges, and innovative teaching approaches.

Animation is the art of bringing objects to life through movement. By manipulating shapes, forms, and colors from one frame to the other, animators can create the illusion of emotion and thought. Morphing allows the change of an objects look, essence or its identity: a mutation. E.g., a bottle can transform into a bird, then into a rain shower etc. Animation techniques that can be used range from 2D hand drawn to digital 2D, 3D and stop motion. No prior animation experience is needed.

Prof. Melanie Beisswenger is an animator with credits on the Academy Award-winning feature film Happy Feet, as well as Happy Feet 2, Iron Man 3, and the TV launch ad for BioShock. Her short films have been screened internationally and won awards. She writes for books, articles, and speaks at conferences.

In 11 animated clips, the workshop participants interpreted the theme of animation as a mutation in unique ways. Starting with the exploration of different techniques, students quickly worked through ideation, conception and experimentation, to develop their own story and style. Whether stop motion, 2D, 3D or a mix of these animation techniques, within the very limited time of 3 days, the students created fabulous works that are well worth revisiting: “it’s a loop” - let’s see it again!

Melanie Beisswenger Professor, Institute for Media Design Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences Salzgitter, GER

IDW was a great opportunity to try out techniques and types of creation I have never tried before. For me, being able to work in an inspiring and supportive animation environment really pushed me to step out of my comfort zone. We had daily recaps together where I could also experience the process other students made.

Hannah Drobir Student CMS

After my experience with stop motion, I believe now that everyone who wants to animate should at least try out stop motion once, even if it is not their preferred way to animate. Simply, because it will help you understand the change of a shape/form to create movement better. Spending as little as a few hours creating an animation taught me so much on shapes and form during a movement.

Renée Kerschbaumer Student IND

This week was full of learning new things, stress, and a lot of fun. We had a great tutor, who had already worked on big budget productions. She showed us different animation techniques and gave us tips to take our animations to the next level.

Luca Zaussinger Student IND

If communication design really claims to effectively convey the voices of cultural, social, political, economic, and ecological change, and if communication design really wants to be a “driving force” for social change, then we communication designers need to get to know and critically question the argumentative possibilities and media “instruments of persuasion”. How exactly can people be activated to change their behavior by means of communication design?

Since 2003, Matthias Beyrow has been teaching the interrelationships around branding, identity, and communications as a professor at the Potsdam University of Applied Sciences. He has been the editor and author of the Kompendium Corporate Identity & Corporate Design since 2007.

Matthias Beyrow Professor for Symbols & Identity, Department of Design Potsdam University of Applied Sciences, GER

The workshop „Be involved!“ used the concrete example of reducing „noise pollution in public spaces“. After a basic understanding of the interests of all protagonists involved („host“, „guest“ and „residents“) the participants identified and tested five methodical approaches to problem solving: „information“,„manipulation“,„instruction“,„intervention“and

These communication approaches broadened the repertoire of the participants and were presented in their different creative forms.

„regulation“.

It has been a week since my stay in Graz for the International Design Week, and looking back, I consider it to be a truly fulfilling experience that provided me with a breath of fresh air. The workshop encouraged us to really take the time to think about communication and the tools it offers us to convey our messages effectively.

Priscila Shihui Qiu Guest student UPV

The workshop I attended was very interesting and I learned a lot about how to communicate information. The key to a successful communication strategy is to think about the whole situation before you start the design phase. In some ways it is very similar to the design thinking process.

Madeleine Hurst Student CMS

In the workshop

essential to think before designing. It is necessary

PatriciaSalinasVilla GueststudentUPV

to have a communication strategy before carryingtooutthecreationofabrandoracampaigninorder adaptthemtotheneedsofpeople.

Be involved! we learned that it is

Is a temporary intervention in public space able to change people’s perception? On observing illegal street vendors, designer Simon Busse developed this workshop format on folding and unfolding cardboard structures to turn pedestrian zones into a goods presentation area. Students participating in this workshop are asked to find a location, select a product or a service and develop a temporary presentation/ mutation area for it that attracts on the one hand and a device that mutes on the other hand.

After training as a craftsman, Simon Busse studied Industrial Design at the SAdbK in Stuttgart and DA Eindhoven. Different international stages confirmed him to found his studio in 2005. He has been teaching and giving lectures for more than 10 years and has been a visiting professor at HfG Schwäbisch Gmünd since 2021.

Simon Busse Lecturer, Industrial Design University of Design Schwäbisch Gmünd, GER

It was a big challenge for the students to go from an idea to a working design prototype on a one to one scale within the short time frame of a design sprint, but I was thrilled how quickly the guest students were supported by the local students and a group was formed that encouraged each other. The workshop facilities were ideal for constant team meetings, reviews and quick implementation - big thanks to all students for the inspiring results and the entire FH Joanneum team for the fantastic hospitality!

I learned great folding tech- niques and mechanisms and also improved my modelma- king skills for cardboard. I wish it would have been a longer experience, but I know that’s due to the seminar week.

Titus Kollmann Guest student HfG

It was a very exciting workshop because I was able to get a taste of product design and learn a lot of new things from other students as well as from our workshop leader. It was also a challenge to develop this whole concept including the product within only three days. Working with new materials such as cardboard, tape and hard plastic was not easy at first, but I was able to master it very well.

Elisa Groß Student IND

The environment of the workshop was an experience of its own, with everyone willing to give a helping hand or constructive advice. The creativity in the room was tangible as you could see everybody‘s gears turning in their head for how they are going to make their stand work, and their excitement when they finally did.

Shelby Campbell IND Exchange student MRU

In this workshop the students will realize a poster, based on the three laws of robotics established by the writer Isaac Asimov. The objective is to approach graphic design in collaboration with the AIs DALLE-2 and Midjourney. Using the text to image method (prompts), a set of graphic elements will be made, the group will initiate the ideas and

intentions and the students will make the visuals in co-creation with the AIs. The goal is to imagine and develop (or explore and design) a common form of work within the group with the AIs.

Nicolas Tilly has been teaching interaction design since 2013 at the École Supérieure d‘Art et Design d‘Orléans. He also gives workshops in art schools in France and abroad. Nicolas Tilly specializes in creative coding which he uses in experimental websites and video games projects. For several years he has been conducting research on digital playing cards.

Emanuel Cyriaque has been teaching publishing and new forms of writing and reading related to digital technology since 2007. Specialized in digital literature, he is also the director of Éditions hyx (editions-hyx.com), a publishing house specialized in art, architecture, and digital culture.

Nicolas Tilly & Emmanuel Cyriaque Teachers, Media design

École Supérieure d‘Art et Design d‘Orléans, FRA

We learned how to use Midjourney as part of a production process, we

made a poster with the use of AI and it was really interesting (and scary)

Daniel Mayerhofer Student IND

get the image we wanted.

to see what Midjourney is capable of. But also how hard it can be to get

exactly what one wants from it. The learning curve for writing efficient

promts was quite steep and it took a surprising amount of tries to actually

Claudia Wachter Student IND

On Tuesday, my team dedicated most of the day to generating a wide range of images using various prompts, aiming to gather a diverse collection for the following day. Wednesday was focused on everyone designing their own posters using the images generated. Considering our plans for the AR experience, we eventually settled on a single poster to proceed with. We divided our tasks among the five members, with my responsibility being the animation using Blender. On the final day, we fine-tuned our work, printed the posters, and captured photographs of them. We then ventured into the city to place the AR version of our posters on different buildings.

As the main theme “Mutate or Mute” implies, this design workshop will focus on the impact of AI on the design landscape and explore how AI tools and services can enhance traditional design processes. The aim is to focus on brand and strategy design and to give students hands-on experience using AI tools for research, discovery, brand definition, visual identity, and conceptual brand applications.

Zachi Diner heads the Visual Communication Department at HIT. Experienced interaction designer, educator, and entrepreneur with 20+ years in digital design and new media. Co-founded two successful design agencies in Israel, and led and partnered on numerous projects for companies, startups, and enterprises. A Creative researcher with a passion for design and aesthetics.

The workshop brought together 12 design students to explore and reimagine traditional branding and strategy frameworks using cutting-edge AI tools, including ChatGPT and generative AI services like Midjourney, Stable and many more. Their objective was to generate fresh ideas, strategies, concepts, and products for classical brands such as Gillette, Uber, Nestle, and red bull. Over the course of the workshop, participants were practicing collaboration, exploration, and experimentation to push the boundaries of conventional design thinking.

These deliverables were presented and each team showcased the research, insights, and AI-backed creativity. The workshop served as a springboard for participants to engage with classical brand strategy fundamentals and rethink of ways to create new and extended sub brands and new concepts for product line and visions.

Zachi Diner Head of the Visual Design Department, Faculty of Design Holon Institute of Technology, ISR

The workshop encouraged us to think critically and creatively, pushing us beyond our comfort zones. We were challenged to overcome obstacles and develop innovative sub-brands that stayed true to the essence of the parent brand while capturing the attention of target consumers.

It was interesting to create a whole new product just with using AI tools and it was fun to learn how to use them. We learned a lot about how brands and their marketing work and we learned how to make use of the AI tools which will take part in our future.

Lorena Beste IND Exchange student HSD

Helene Schober Student IND

Overall, I believe events like the International Week should be held more frequently. The opportunity to focus on a single topic for an extended period of time has a significant learning effect. It allows students to explore a topic in greater depth and go away with a more profound understanding of the subject matter.

Alina Schweighofer Student IND

This workshop proposes the implementation of augmented reality as a vehicle to analyze and extend the message in public murals to rethink and redefine the impact in the identity construction of those pieces in the community, considering participatory design processes. With this workshop we seek that participants understand the communication intention of the mural, its impact in the community that cohabits and to extend the message through a new audiovisual narrative proposal displayed in mobile technology in-situ.

Mariana Gonzáles de la Rosa, Industrial Designer, CONACYT fellow in the Industrial Design Postgraduate UNAM, Diploma in Social Economy and Cooperative Entrepreneurship. Head of Industrial Design Program, IBERO Puebla, México. President of DI Integra, Mexican Association of Institutions and Schools of Industrial Dev

Roberto Razo Rodriguez, Professor from Puebla, Mexico. He has been involved in instructional design projects and finds a passion in the relation between education and design using interactive technologies as a medium to relate people with content, through experiences that can take them to reach knowledge.

Maria González de la Rosa & Roberto Razo Rodriguez

Head of Industrial Design Program & Professor Universidad Iberoamericana Puebla, MEX

The workshop „Murals and the City“ was held, where students were invited to explore the city in search of a mural that resonated with them. They were tasked with analyzing three dimensions of the murals: the emotional aspect, the rhetorical elements, and the public opinion. The main challenge of the workshop was that within such a short timeframe, the students were able to achieve and comprehend that designing an experience involves a series of cognitive and technical processes.

It was so nice to learn how to do new things with techniques I already knew, but at the same time with a different approach. Also, the teachers were so good with us, always helping us with everything we didn‘t understand and also, I liked that they provided us with a quick lesson on other software that we didn‘t know yet, like Adobe Aero and a short introduction to the VR lenses.

Sarah Elizabeth Rivera Sánchez CMS Exchange student ITESO

A term the workshop leaders brought closer to us was ‚Participatory Design‘, which we also made use of by interviewing pedestrians about the murals we found in the city. I also didn’t know how many murals Graz actually had. They are hidden gems indeed (and they really upcycle the city).

The output of the workshop was to create a symbiosis of murals and augmented reality. What I also liked, is that we had theoretical approaches as well as practical. The first day we strolled through Graz, and we were looking for murals. After finding one we liked, we were putting a lot of thought in it as we were observing the surroundings, experimenting with our senses, and interviewing people.

Rosa Pfeiler Student IND

Nadja Pirchheim Student CMS

A Fanzine is a quick and easy way to share creative ideas and express oneself. It‘s a great platform for self-expression. In the „HT>LT“ workshop, students will focus on imagemaking and explore the connection between high-tech and low-tech techniques. They will design a small, printed publication (fanzine) featuring visuals related to the theme „Hybrid“. The image-making process will be significant: students will sketch images using an AI platform

(high-tech), then refine and produce them using traditional analog techniques (low-tech).

Golan Gafni is a lecturer and final project moderator at the Visual Communication Department of the Faculty of Design at the Holon Institute of Technology. He is also a graphic designer at Keren & Golan Graphic Design Studio (01kg.com) and the editor and publisher of The A5 Magazine (thea5magazine.com).

Digital image making using AI platforms, has transformed art and design, empowering creators with limitless possibilities while challenging them with authenticity and content saturation. The main aim of this workshop was

to use these platforms as a sketch for an idea for a short publication and then to maximize the visual look by using hand techniques. The results were surprising: abstract, funny and very experimental.

GolanGafni HolonLecturer,FacultyofDesignInstituteofTechnology,ISR

Philipp Wenisch Student IND

Our goal was for the generated pictures to be somewhat connected so we can tell a story through them. It was real fun, and everyone got lots of different results. After picking the best pictures and designing a layout for the fanzine we printed it. For our fanzines we tried to combine digital with traditional methods of designing. In my case I added a few hand-drawn illustrations to the AI generated ones.

I loved experimenting with AI, and I liked the way that we were encouraged to challenge its limits and create something new and original. I would keep exploring this theme, thinking more about the ethical concerns of AI and how we can work with it in an ethical way.

Antonia Mariana Birdici Guest student UPV

As I had never tried out AI image creation programs before, I was quite fascinated by how intricately the AI depicted my prompts about medieval oil paintings of cats causing chaos in different locations, for example, so I dedicated my fanzine to showing AI cats doing weird stuff in different times and drawing styles.

Tina Bergmann Student CMS

When it comes to data, telling stories seems to be about complexity and bare facts. The result is boring information that does not stick. You will be challenged to tell stories by visualizing data. The stories become data; information becomes images. When texts are translated into images, another part of your brain/fantasy will be activated, and new imagination will be generated. This seems more complex but will be made simpler by thinking more concretely.

Maaike Hamelynck is a graphic designer with an MA in Brand, Design and Reputation Management. She runs a design studio and teaches. Next to designing media, her interests are visualizing stories behind people, products, and institutions through infographics, preferably in collaboration with students.

Maaike Hamelynck Lecturer for Graphic and Interaction Design Coordinator Department of Design, Minerva Art Academy Hanzehogeschool Groningen, NLD

In my workshop I wanted to challenge students to tell stories by visualizing data. Digital and with the monotype printing technique. Their stories became data; information became image. They’ve translated their facts of breakfast into images. And visualized abstract topics (global, 10, digital etcetera) in posters and zines, which activated another part of their brain/fantasy and new imagination was generated. Finally a social topic had to be communicated to an audience with the choice whether this should stay as it is (mute) or change forever (mutate). This seemed complex, but was made simpler by thinking more concretely.

It was a meditative and hands-on workshop that encouraged us to explore our creative sides, leading us to craft captivating posters and „zines“. Throughout the duration of the workshop, we engaged in lively discussions within our group, exchanging ideas about different approaches and processes. The workshop certainly provided invaluable insights that will be of great benefit to my future career as a designer.

Hanna Dierneder Student CMS

I learned many things, including the fact that data doesn’t always be complicated, and that working analog can produce amazing outcomes. But above all, I learned to just start doing, instead of thinking it all trough beforehand.

Chiara Fuchs Student IND

The three-day workshop on „Analyzing Everyday Data“ provided us with a creative platform to explore the hidden narratives within our daily experiences. Through infographics, painting, stencils, and transformative techniques, we explored how to mix data analysis and artistic expression.

Pablo Jordán Vilches Guest student UPV

This workshop plans to develop an exhibition whose content will be generated and designed during the days of the International Design Week. After an initial approach based on storytelling, the students will start deciding on the main topics and carrying out a research process. After analyzing the results, we will work on the best visualization systems to design a mutant exhibition capable of changing during the week.

Melani Lleonart & Álvaro Sanchis are lecturer and researcher in the master’s degree in Design and Illustration and the Degree in Design and Creative Technologies at the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV). Together they are the Co-Founder of Pedra, a design and communication studio focused on editorial design and exhibition design.

Álvaro Sanchis & Melani Lleonart

Professor & Associate Lecturer Departamento de Pintura, Facultat de Belles Arts Universitat Politècnica de Valencia, ESP

What are feelings? Why do we keep some animals as pets and eat others? Why do we think differently? In the workshop Dear Aliens, this is what Humans are like, we have conceptualised and designed a participatory exhibition to show two exceptional visitors from a distant planet some aspects of what people are like. After choosing the themes and elaborating on the questions, we designed the different interactions to obtain the data and its graphic visualisation.

We learned how to plan and approach an exhibition. There was a lot of brainstorming. Our professors always gave us very helpful input in between and guided us on a path. After all the planning we also started with the implementation, where the great feedback from our lecturers was also very helpful. The exhibition was completed, and everyone was able to participate. At the end, the results were evaluated and analyzed.

In the few days I learned how to pick small building blocks out of a big idea and how to work with them. We were also taught how to approach something like this. I liked the workshop but especially the professors very much!

Beyza Nur Kilinc

Throughout the workshop, students and teachers were encouraged to immerse themselves in a variety of interactive exhibits that beautifully captured the essence of different emotions. Each installation presented a thought-provoking representation of human feelings, enabling people to gain a deeper understanding of the complexities that shape our emotional landscape. One of the most striking aspects of the workshop was its ability to create a sense of empathy and connection among people as well as deep questions that would question their morality. I learned a lot, since I didn‘t have any exhibition design experience, from the font to the way the questions and everything was placed. It really shows that there‘s always a small secret that makes an exhibition what it is.

Tiago Durão Barata IND Exchange student IADE

Our constantly evolving society challenges our perceptions of reality with scientific discoveries like mirror neurons and the interconnectedness of all species. This deep change in human thought affects design, potentially shifting the role from designing objects to designing relationships. The workshop “Design After” explores how design can catalyze transformative and innovative processes through a future-thinking approach.

Emilio Lonardo is a designer, entrepreneur, writer. Phd and lecturer at Politecnico di Milano, School of Design, he obtained his PhD with a thesis on the relationship between urban space and psychological well-being. He has several international publications and is founder of the startup D.O.S. Design Open Spaces.

Emilio Lonardo Adjunct Professor, Dipartimento di Design Politecnico di Milano, ITA

Our evolving society challenges certainties. Science reveals profound insights into human behavior, like mirror neurons shaping our perception. Space fragments, time fades. Interconnected interpretations blur human supremacy. Design adapts, forging relationships over objects and environment. The Workshop „Design After“ explores catalytic, transformative design for a future of innovation.

After a few ice-breaking games, which were entertaining and a great way to get started, we learned brainstorming techniques. It is always difficult to keep the flow in brainstorming sessions after a certain point. But with these methods and games we had great tools to keep going. I‘m already looking forward to applying that to my next project.

Anna Meinhart Student AUD

We tried different tools to open our creativity to seemingly unlikely futures. It‘s hard to imagine how our future will look, but we know we will evolve. Not that long ago self-driving cars and moving cities were completely „sci-fi“, but now we have Teslas and cruise ships. Through a trend-wheel, card games and research we tried to explore our possible futures.

Anine Hallén CMS Exchange student NTNU

The construction of sound spaces within video games focuses on the interactive, creative, and innovative creation of sound design from the notion of musical programmatic, visually and the idea of space. This workshop focuses on the creation and development of interactive sound spaces linked to horror, action, shooter and fighting video game themes, through the invention of sound cues, war Foleys, fatalities, violence, and actions through sound. As well as it is oriented to the creation of diverse sound spaces for videogames through aesthetic elements of concrete and acousmatic music of Latin American origin.

Luis Daniel Martínez Álvarez has a degree in Music from the Universidad de las America’s Puebla (UDLAP), a Master in Research in Image, Art, Culture and Society and a Master in Composition for Film and Videogames from the Berklee College of Music, and a PhD in Cultural Studies. He is the author of several book chapters and articles on film and animation in Mexico, Oxford/ United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany and India.

The workshop was a wonderful experience, the students of the FH Joanneum University showed their great creativity throughout the course and in the final project. The sound designofthestudentsandtheirabilitytocreate atmospheres of terror, action and tension was reflected in a fun, exciting and tense journey thethroughimages,soundandspace.Attheendof eachwholeproject,Ithinkwealllearnedalotfrom other and we managed to start thinking about sound from pictorial, interactive and programmatic aspects.

Luis Daniel Martínez Álvarez Researcher and Professor, Diseño, Artes y Arquitectura Universidad Iberoamericana Puebla, MEX

In this workshop I got an idea on how sound design acts in different spaces and what is important for a foley to actually work. With my team, we created the background sounds for a short movie scene with our own, self-made foleys! It was a lot of fun. Also, I am thankful for the teacher sharing his passion with us in such a fun way.

Anna Maier Student IND

Some of the highlights of the week were definitely the creation and recording of sounds, on the first day. The teacher gave us a list of random things like monkeys, shotguns, beers, ghosts, and many many more, and with that we had to go to the city to find and record similar sounds that resembled the ones on the list.

Maria Belem Dueñas Lynce de Faria IND Exchange student IADE

As an example, take the idea of a lightsaber sound being made from a tube of water that is rustling against the wind, or someone’s rib cage breaking open to reveal visceral being a combination of crushed paprika, carrots and a paper bag.

Isabel Carvalho IND Exchange student IADE

We dove headfirst into the world of sound and music, learning all these cool things about sound design. The teacher has a way of explaining things that make you go, „Ah, now I get it!“ and that made the whole workshop super interesting.

Lalissidis Evripidis Guest student HfG

This workshop will deal with the following areas: 1. The value of emptiness for creativity. The unifying role of emptiness. Empty space is a potential opportunity for discovering and uniting multilevel meanings. 2. Emptiness as a portal for the transition of information into a multidisciplinary threedimensional space. 3. Interpenetrating structures of space and media, where the past, present and future coexist in each other without separation of discrete zones. 4. The balance of nature and art through fractal discipline.

Koka Ramishvili lives and works in Geneva and Tbilisi. Participated in important solo and group exhibitions in Berlin and Glasgow, at Arnolfini in Bristol, Tate London, Munich, Vienna, Linz. Teaching experience at Tbilisi State Academy of Arts, Haute école d‘art et de design in Genève, and Perpignan (HEART) in France, and at the class of Michelangelo Pistoletto at the Vienna Fine Arts Academy.

Inspiring Emptiness is an interdisciplinary program that includes modern achievements in the field of quantum mechanics, astrophysics, neuropsychology, art therapy, information science and the experience with the exhibition space in modern conditions of changing the world. Work with students took place simultaneously in two main modes, the informational mode giving a motion vector and the second mode, work with a drawing and a model. The work with the drawing and the model should not have been controlled by consciousness. Students absolutely freely did what the hand, line, plane, color wanted without any control over this process during the information excursion into the development of spatial solutions for exhibitions.

Tbilisi State Academy of Arts, GEO

Koka Ramishvili Teacher, Fine Art

We build an exhibition-space without limitations which was our main project for this workshop. It was a lot of analog work which was also really nice. Then we decided to make a video for the end presentation in Kunsthaus, which we worked on the whole last day.

Michael Aldrian Student IND

The idea finding was a very interesting creative way, very different to how we usually work in the design world. Since our instructor is an artist, it was very interesting and a very inspiring experience.

Maria Kübeck Student AUD

Emptiness as a tool for the inner process of creating. How to stop thinking about what to do and just do it? During the three days with our teacher, we started to free our minds just drawing without thinking. Going on and on - for hours. Out of those shapes you could see a process – without recognizing we were developing a style and forms.

Luisa Krätzschmar Student AUD

In this workshop we want to experience how visual experiments exemplified by combining analog and digital printing techniques can lead to astonishing results in design, thus ways of building a strong and unique, individual visual language of communication. For this undertaking the historical photographic printing technique, cyanotype, will be introduced to playfully combine with digital design tools and develop fresh atmospheric surprises, amazing effects, and unexpected creations.

Dr. Stefanie Reich is a professor at the University of Applied Sciences in Kiel and situated in the Faculty of Media. She is the Head of the Institute for Information Design. Her research focus is the interdependence of participation and design in the context of different media formats.

In Visual.X.periments we explored the creative possibilities of combining cyanotype, an analogue historic photographic process, with modern digital design techniques to approach individual, fresh, and vibrant visual mutations. We experimented hands-on with different effects, from subtle tonal variations to bold graphic images, thus various materials, to push the boundaries of cyanotypes in the digital mix further and design truly original works of art that leave some space for an open mind and new visual interpretations.

Stefanie Reich Professor, Institute for Information Design Kiel University of Applied Sciences, GER

We were able to perform these inputs straight away and had plenty of time to experiment which is especially with cyanotypes extremely helpful. So, we could play around with the duration of exposure time, the intensity and amount of chemicals on the material we wanted to print on.

Nicolas Platter Student IND

The workshop was amazing, and I really enjoyed working analog! Our teacher was so kind and let us just play around and experiment. I made a lot of prints in A6, I think around 20 pieces, and I also printed on a jute bag, which turned out pretty well! I am going to buy the chemicals and do more in summer.

Lisa Pendl Student IND

We did everything by ourselves: mixing the chemicals, applying it on the paper and then choosing the materials we wanted to „print“ - putting them on the paper and exposing it to the sun or to the UV-light. I produced 35 small pictures (A5 format), where I experimented with plants, photos (printed on transparent foil) and other materials (foils, tape, plastic bags).

Eva Črepnjak Student AUD

Persuasive technology is shaping our behavior, manipulating our emotions, and defining our understanding of reality itself. In this workshop, we will use design thinking to explore what humane interaction design might look like outside the paradigm of the attention economy and surveillance capitalism.

Nitzan Waisberg is an internationally recognized expert on human-centered design and design thinking. Formerly a Consulting Professor at the Stanford d.school, she now applies design thinking to technological, business, and social justice challenges in Israel and around the world.

Nitzan Waisberg Lecturer, Faculty of Design Holon Institute of Technology, ISR

Addicted to our apps. Distracted to oblivion. Insecure. Polarised. UX is failing to serve human needs. UX is doing harm. In this 3 day International Design Week Workshop, we created a social movement - antiux - empowering designers to rethink current industry practices in digital design and shift them back to serving the things that are important about being human.

The aim was to design a human experience that prioritized values opposite to those of „profit-driven design,“ allowing us to not only gain awareness of the current design landscape but also explore innovative ways of designing that go beyond the confines of rampant capitalism.

Andrés Mata Gutiérrez Guest student UPV

We asked ourselves what’s important about being human. The answer is that we are all different, having different cultural background, other experiences, and feelings. Different memories and imagination.

Celina Bettmer Student AUD

This experience reminded us of the essence of humanity, embracing both the highs and lows, and recognizing the power of genuine connections. It was a transformative journey that reinforced the significance of designing with empathy, purpose, and a profound appreciation for the human experience.

Helena Opower Student CMS

The code of your life consists of instructions written in DNA, a series of 3 billion letters. How can a code with only four letters (A, C, G, and T) create so many different proteins necessary for your body? Could we humans encode it better? This workshop aims to question the current systems for encoding DNA and reconsider an infinite array of interactive visual systems with a hands-on approach and critical thinking. Workshop participants will bring their multidisciplinary knowledge to generate prototypes that will create debate, wonder, and even awe!

Carla Molins Pitarch is an experience designer, creative technologist, and researcher working in the intersection of design, technology, and biology to bring a tangible instance of complex scientific concepts to society. Lecturer at CITM (UPC), Marie Curie fellow at ELISAVA; doctoral researcher (GRECC & OCC) at UPF, Spain; MFADT‚ 19 Parsons, USA.

Carla Molins Pitarch

Lecturer & Researcher, Multimedia Department Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, ESP

The International Design Week offered the perfect framework to get inspired, experiment, and explore new ideas to combine experience design, visualization, and science. We used the toolkit from the Lab to the Street to ideate, prototype and test many great ideas.

The students worked tirelessly to go from a foreign topic like DNA to creating unique, powerful, and memorable experiences using very common materials like cardboard, foam and even fluffy pipecleaners! The Phygital is here.

In the course of the workshop, I had to deal with the topic of DNA. Which I really liked, as this is a topic I‘ve never dealt with in detail until now.

Alexander Wildinger Student CMS

I had a lot of fun figuring out how to create a prototype in a playful way from the ground up – from the brainstorming, to sorting out ideas, to testing the first paper prototype, to building a functional proof of concept prototype. I also really enjoyed that every participant had freedom to use whatever they were good at to create their own interpretation of a phygical genome - no matter if art, sound, or coding.

Theresa Dietinger Student CMS

I had a valuable experience at the workshop and gained a deeper understanding of the relationship between research, science, technology, and design, particularly in the context of interaction design. Overcoming personal limitations and biases is a significant step in personal growth and professional development.

Yao Amevi Amessinou Sossou Student CMS

The climax of the 15 workshops taught by our 18 guest lecturers from France, Georgia, Germany, Israel, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands and Spain were the final presentations in Kunsthaus Graz. There the students showed the results of their work on the subject of “Mutate or Mute” in the areas of communication, media, sound, interaction, and exhibition design.