L’École de design Nantes Atlantique

03/15/2010

From October 4 to 10 2009, L’École de design sent a delegation to the international design workshop IDEM in Eisenerz (Austria) to address a far-reaching topic: "Will design save the world?"

The IDEM workshop (International Design Education Meeting) was brought to life 24 years ago. This year it was organized by the University FH Joanneum in Graz who warmly welcomed 50 students and 14 faculty from Germany, Belgium, France, Slovenie, de Lithuania, Israel, Mexico and Austria. Among them was a small team sent by L’École de design featuring Nathalie Ciprian, Laurent Neyssensas (faculty members), Nicolas Doisy and Pierre Lescop (5th-year students).

"The workshop took place in a landscape not unlike Teotihuacan," says Nathalie Ciprian, Course Leader for Graduate Studies. Indeed it was held amidst the abandoned mines of Styria; ocre-colored and carved like terraces, they are quite reminiscent of said mythical Mexican city. A breath-taking landscape scarred by a much troubled past. The area went through hard times economically industrially and politically speaking.

In this eerie setting the 60 participants tackled the far-reaching topic of the workshop: "Will design save the world?"

A tricky, more down-to-earth question was also asked to participants: "How should designers respond to the ongoing crisis? To any type of crises?"

 

Divided into 7 multicultural groups, students and faculty racked their brains about this topic thus learning to work collaboratively in cross-disciplinary teams: adjusting to a new context, sharing methods and developing a truly unifying concept.

Here’s an overview of the projects exhibited at the end of the week:

 

Eisenerz aux enchères (Auctioning Eisenerz): wrought iron miniature model of the city, agonizing. For sale.
"Evacuation": a film/testimony meant to bring inhabitants to awareness that the post-crisis era is theirs to seize.
Wereldverbeteraar: projet rooted in interactions between environment & technology. Land-art meets the web…
Steel Living: a huge signage system for tourists made of a steel flow.

 

This workshop is a tremendous opportunity for institutions to carry out broad-scoped projects together with peers in a limited (and therefore intense) time. Along the same line, for 4 years now L’École de design has organized the workshop C.R.E.D.O. (Cooperation in Research and Education for Design Opportunities) a one-week European workshop held at the Abbey of Fontevraud (in the Loire Valley). The Cumulus association and the Pays de la Loire Regional authorities partnered this event. The 2009 session revolved around the following topic: "the herb garden of the Ideal City."

 

Further reading:

CREDO: 2009 Session Feedback

Credo 2009: "The Herb Garden of the Ideal City" International design Workshop in Fontevraud