L’École de design Nantes Atlantique

04/22/2010

Currently doing an internship at Dassault Systèmes, Goulven Briantais studied interaction design as an undergrad before joining the Master’s Program Tangibles Interfaces in 2009. He discusses this new curriculum and his final degree project meta}{meta...

How did you guys interact in the Tangible Interfaces class? What did you learn from your Course Leaders (Thierry Lehmann & Thierry Mellerin)?

I always looked forward to our sessions with the “Thierry’s”* because they would compel me to summarize my advancement, which helped me step back and get a clearer vision of my work. These meetings were crucial in defining my project and presenting it.

What is metadesign ?

According to Derrick De Kerckhove, “metadesign is the kind of design that puts the tools rather than the object of design in the users’ hands”. Gene Youngblood, a theorist in media arts and politics adds that “metadesign deals with the creation of context rather than content”. Metadesign gives users power over the design of products and goods. Metadesign is interesting in that users can become creative players in a framework thought up by designers themselves. Born in the wake of the web 2.0, this behavior pattern turns users into actual players and content generators.

 

What brought you to metadesign?

During my stay in the United States as part of my 4th year of study, I spent a lot of time observing the world around me. Being confronted with alternative consumption modes helped me realize that consumer status was changing, that the final product was no longer sufficient per se, that its history, its soul and specific process also needed to be brought to the fore. Artist sketchpads are as meaningful as complete pieces. Then I came across the term “metadesign,” – mostly in an article by Yann Le Guennec in CADI**. From then on, I knew I wanted to center my project on this topic.

 

Did you show you project to some architects?

I did. I presented my project in the same way to 3 different architects and they all had diverging opinions about it. It occurred to me that architecture was, just like design, a deeply emotional and social profession. Because each of these professionals has his/her own story, background, tastes, each one handles a request in his/her own specific way. There are as many points of views as there are architects. However, I noted that younger architects seemed to be more receptive to this type of participative approach.