slides from an invite talk at Virginia Tech

1. Materials and Imagination in HCI
and Interaction Design
Nicolai Brodersen Hansen
Aarhus University
Centre for Participatory Information Technology
Centre for Advanced Visualisations and Interaction
nbhansen@cavi.au.dk

2. Me
• M.Sc in Information Studies, Aarhus University
• PhD fellow 2013-2016
• Affiliated with the PIT and CAVI centres
• Advisor Kim Halskov
• Research interests:
• Materials and materiality in design
• Participatory creativity and innovation
• Creative collaborative design processes

3. Aarhus University?

4. Aarhus University?

5. Centre for Participatory
Information Technology (PIT)
• Participatory Innovation
• Participatory Publics
• Sustaining IT development
• Aesthetics of Participation
• Artistic strategies of Participatory culture

6. Centre for Advanced Visualisation
and Interaction (CAVI)

7. Centre for Advanced Visualisation
and Interaction (CAVI)

8. Centre for Advanced Visualisation
and Interaction (CAVI)

9. Research through design

15. Research question
“how can we understand design
materials as generative, as supporting
designers and users in creating new
ideas in interaction design, HCI and
Participatory Design?”

16. Theoretical framing
• Schöns idea of the “generative metaphor”
• Deweyan pragmatism: Inquiry and technology
• Materiality discussions in IxD, HCI, PD, etc.

18. Design materials

19. Design materials

20. Design materials

21. Design materials

22. Design materials

23. Design process and materials

24. Generative metaphors
• Seeing something as something else
• “seeing a troubled inner city neighborhood as
urban "blight" and, hence, taking steps rooted in
the idea of disease.”
• Generating ideas by exploring potential alternative
metaphors

25. Generative metaphors

26. Generative metaphors

27. Generative metaphors

28. Generative metaphors

29. Generative design materials
• Generating and developing new ideas by
experimenting with materials
• What is the interplay of materials and ideation?
• What qualities of materials support ideation in
design?

30. Urban Media Space

31. Urban Media Space

32. Urban Media Space

33. Urban Media Space

34. “Living blueprint workshop”

35. “Living blueprint workshop”

36. “Living blueprint workshop”

37. “Living blueprint workshop”

38. “Living blueprint workshop”

39. “Living blueprint workshop”
Creating
cardboard-
characters
Creating future
scenarios on
blueprint
Presenting future
scenarios in
plenum
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3

40. An example of Material
design artefacts in use
• Employed in a wide range of
design situations
• Sketching, cards, probes,
props, mockups

41. An example of Material
design artefacts in use
• Employed in a wide range of
design situations
• Sketching, cards, probes,
props, mockups

42. Design considerations
• Which actions were supported
by the material design
artifacts?
• Why?

43. Rapid transformations of the
design space
• Transformations of the
problematic design situations
are manifested immediately
• Inquiry can move along
effortlessly
Dynamic Design space
Rapid changes

44. Documentation of design
Moves
• Creating physical
manifestations of agreements
• Documents currently imagined
situations in the scenario Dynamic Design space
Rapid changes Documenting moves

45. Aligning collaborative efforts
• Constant need to agree
on specifics of scenario
• Prompts reflections
• Keeps design artefact
relevant
Dynamic Design space
Rapid changes Documenting moves Aligning collaboration

46. Provoking reflections
• Transformations of the
problematic design situations
are manifested immediately
• Forced to reflect through
(created) problematic
situations
Dynamic Design space
Rapid changes Documenting moves Aligning collaboration
Provoking reflections

47. Suggesting designs
• Participants could use design
artefacts to manifest design
suggestions
• Resolve problematic situations
through using the material
design artefacts in a
generative role
Dynamic Design space
Rapid changes Documenting moves Aligning collaboration
Provoking reflections Suggesting designs

48. Design materials in the Living
Blueprint Workshop
• Tools for specific inquiries
• Constrains and enables specific kinds of inquiry
• Keeping collaborative inquiry on track
• Highly detailed and updated design space
• Kept constant focus on the combination of bodies, building and
future use of the library

49. Material design artefacts in the Living
Blueprint Workshop
• Very specific future scenarios
• Insights into previously undiscussed subjects
• Specific and engaged understanding of the projected library

50. Summary
• Material design artefacts and their productive qualities
• Pragmatism in a generative role:
• Rapid transformations
• Documenting design moves
• Aligning collaboration
• Provoking reflections
• Suggesting designs

51. The demoscene
• Computer art subculture
• Creating ‘demos’
running 3-4 minutes
• Multidisciplinary efforts
• Attracts both musicians,
graphicians
programmers, and a
legion of hangers-on,
organizers and the likes

53. Blunderbuss by Fairlight

54. Blunderbuss by Fairlight

62. Creating a demo
Demo
framework
Graphics Music
Routines /
effects
Finished
demo
Demosceners Demosceners Demosceners

63. Design materials

64. Design materials

65. Design materials

66. Design materials

67. A prototypical design
process

68. A prototypical design
process

69. A prototypical design
process
• Music setting the mood

70. A prototypical design
process
• Music setting the mood
• Graphicians and programmers in close
collaboration

71. A prototypical design
process
• Music setting the mood
• Graphicians and programmers in close
collaboration
• Musicians kicking in now and then

72. A prototypical design
process
• Music setting the mood
• Graphicians and programmers in close
collaboration
• Musicians kicking in now and then
• Pictures of music (?), code and graphics WIP all
of them.

73. Collaboration flow
Programmer
3d software
Dropbox
Demo-engine
Graphician
3d object
transformer
script
Amiga ftp
3d object
GNU Rocket

74. GNU Rocket

75. Candystall - the making of

76. Candystall - the making of

77. Candystall - the making of

78. Candystall - the making of

81. Creativity, collaboration and
frameworks
Programmer
3d software
Dropbox
Demo-engine
Graphician
3d object
transformer
script
Amiga ftp
3d object
GNU Rocket

82. Generative design materials

83. Generative design materials

84. More?
• http://www.designmaterials.dk
• nbhansen@cavi.au.dk
• http://pit.au.dk
• http://cavi.au.dk