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Suit-able
This document discusses how work and professional identities have changed over time. Traditionally, people's professions could be identified by their distinctive uniforms or outfits, which served both practical and social functions. Now, it is more common to identify people by their cultural or sports interests rather than their occupation. The document explores questions around defining work, mapping existing work cultures, and investigating how brand and personal identities are expressed through work. It outlines a project to research a chosen profession, design an outfit representing it, and present the outfit in a brief "fashion show" to spark discussion around reimagining professional identities.
Suit-able
- 1. S U IT-able formerly “suit yourself” RCA Design Products, Platform 2 October 21st, 2009 Alexander Grünsteidl
- 2. HOM O GI NIZATION
- 3. HOW I STHE WOR K LA N D SC A PE CHANGING ?
- 4. G O INGTO ADDRESS T H IS BY LEARNING F RO M OCCUPATIONS T RADE S AND P ROFESSIONS
- 5. S T ER E OTYPES
- 6. C A RI C ATURES
- 7. RO L EMODELS Customer Feedback Play by Anthony, 7 years
- 8. LI FE ST YLES
- 9. S P ORT Shotput Marathon Track Weight Lifter Rower Cyclist
- 10. A ll th e L o nely People S x S W09 People on their Blogs and Tweet decks seeking powerplugs during conference in Austin Texas
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- 13. G U ILDS
- 14. “ T RA D I TIONAL” C O S T UMES
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- 18. CO M MUNITY T RA D I TIO NS
- 19. CU LT URAL VA RI ATIONS
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- 21. L O ND ON BUREAUCRAT
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- 23. CO U NT E R CU LTURE
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- 26. I D EN T ITY ?
- 27. H Y GIENE
- 28. S E RVICES BRA N D I DENTITY
- 29. S TO CK TRA DER
- 30. O U RP ROJECT
- 31. In the pastpeople could be distinguished in the street by their professional outfit. These outfits had both a utilitarian as well as a social signifying function. These days few signals identify a person's profession. It's easier to guess someone's sport's interest rather than seeing from his/her hands what tools s/he operates. Would it be desirable to identify people's professional and not just cultural or sports interest? And if, what would it be like?
- 32. Main Questions : Whatis work in our society? What work cultures exist? What kind of work do we do? What relationships do we form? What brand and personal identities are expressed? Whatʼs the cultural meaning?
- 33. Collectively Identify,index andMap • Production, Trade and Service processes • Utilitarian / functional requirements • Social signals including guilds, casts • Cultural meaning • Physical and virtual tools • Skills • Communication requirements • Social landscape • Place in (urban) environment
- 34. work occupation labour profession guilds caste / class trades ... ...
- 35. T Y POLO GIES
- 36. P RO DUCTION TRADE S E RVICE
- 37. O C CU PATIONS
- 38. Fruiterer Furrier Father I J K L Illuminator Jailer Karate master Laborer Illusionist Janitor Kinesiologist Landlord (also Landlady) Illustrator Jeweller Laundress (also Lavendar) Importer Journalist Law enforcement agent Industrial engineer Jurist Lawyer Industrialist Judge Leadworker Information Technologist Jockey Leatherer Information Designer Leather worker Inker Lecturer Innkeeper Level designer (also Mapper) Instructor Librarianship Interior designer Librettist Interpreter Lifeguard Interrogator Lighthouse keeper Inventor Lighting technician Investigator Lineman Investment banker Linguist Investment broker Loan officer Ironmonger Lobbyist Ironmaster Locksmith Ironworker Lumberjack Lyricist http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_Occupational_Classification_System M N O P Magistrate Navigator Oboist Painter Magnate Nanny Obstetrician Paleontologist Maid Négociant Occupational therapist Paralegal Mailman or Mail carrier Negotiator Odontologist Paramedic Make-up artist Netmaker Oncologist Park ranger Management consultant Neurologist Ontologist Parole Officer Manager Newscaster Operator Pastor Manicurist Night auditor Ophthalmologist Patent attorney Manufacturer Nightwatchmen Optician (also Optometrist) Patent examiner Marine Notary Oracle Pathologist Marine biologist Novelist Ordinary Seaman Pawnbroker Market gardener Numerologist Organizer Peddler Martial artist Numismatist Ornithologist Pediatrician Mason Nun Ostler Pedologist (soil) Master of Ceremony (MC) Nursemaid Otorhinolaryngologist Percussionist Massage therapist (also masseuse/masseur) Nurse Perfumer Matador Nutritionist Personal Trainer Mechanic Pharmacist Mechanician Philanthropist Mediator Philologist Medic Philosopher Medical biller Photographer Medical Transcriptionist Physical Therapist Mesmerist Physician Messenger Physician Assistant Mid-wife Physicist Milkman (also Milkmaid) Physiognomist Miller Physiotherapist Miner Pianist Missionary Piano tuner Model Pilot (shipping) Modeller Pilot (aviation) Moneychanger Pirate Moneylender Plumber Monk Podiatrist Mortgage broker Poet Mountaineer Police inspector Muralist Politician Musician Porter Presenter http://www.listofjobtitles.com/ President Press officer Priest
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- 54. HOT CH OCOLAT VENDOR
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- 67. LES CO STUMES G ROTESQUES Nicolas de Larmessin II (ca. 1638-1694),
- 70. S TREET VENDO R B E R L I N
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A naive youngwoman comes to New York and scores a job as the assistant to one of the city's biggest magazine editors, the ruthless and cynical Miranda The Devil Wears Prada 2006 Priestl http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458352/ Ober 2006 a waiter’s adventures with a mix of clients http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0476681/ In the future, criminals are caught before the crimes they commit, but one of the officers in the special unit is accused of one such crime and sets out to prove Minority Report 2002 his innocence. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181689/ A young woman, recently released from a mental hospital, gets a job as a secretary to a demanding lawyer, where their employer-employee relationship turns Secretary 2002 into a sexual, sadomasochistic one http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0274812/ Bridget Jones's Diary 2001 It's Monday morning, Bridget has woken up with a headache, a hangover and her boss. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0243155/ Dot.com 2000 A day in the life of a Dot.Com company circa 2000 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0400380/ An unemployed single mother becomes a legal assistant and almost single-handedly brings down a California power company accused of polluting a city's Erin Brockovich 2000 water supply http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0195685/ Beau travail 1999 This film focuses on an ex-Foreign Legion officer as he recalls his once glorious life, leading troops in Africa. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0209933/ Being John Malkovich 1999 A puppeteer discovers a portal that leads literally into the head of the movie star, John Malkovich http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120601/ Office Space 1999 Comedic tale of company workers who hate their jobs and decide to rebel against their greedy boss. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0151804/ You've Got Mail 1998 Two business rivals hate each other at the office but fall in love over the internet. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0128853/ Gattaca 1997 A genetically inferior man assumes the identity of a superior one in order to pursue his lifelong dream of space travel. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119177/ Upon being fired from his job at the bakery, Bimbo and his best mate go into business for themselves and purchase a chipper (a fish and chips van); but will The Van 1996 the pressures of financial success sour their friendship forever http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118064/ On the run after murdering a man, accountant William Blake encounters a strange Indian named "Nobody" who prepares him for his journey into the spiritual Dead Man 1995 world http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112817/ Clerks 1994 A day in the lives of two convenience clerks named Dante and Randal as they annoy customers, discuss movies, and play hockey on the store roof. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109445/ The Hudsucker Proxy 1994 A naive business graduate is installed as president of a manufacturing company as part of a stock scam. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110074/ Hoffa 1992 A film based on the story of legendary union figure Jimmy Hoffa. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104427/ Le mari de la coiffeuse 1990 Twelve-year-old Antoine falls profoundly in love with a voluptuous but suicidal hairdresser, a formative experience he never forgets.. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100112/ FILM Brazil 1985 A bureaucrat in a retro-future world tries to correct an administrative error and himself becomes an enemy of the state. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088846/ My Beautiful Laundrette 1985 An ambitious Asian Briton and his white lover strive for success and hope, when they open up a glamorous laundromat. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091578/ Das Boot 1981 This is the story of 42 raw recruits caught up in a war they didn't understand, and the Captain who must lead them in their struggle to surviv http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082096/ Nine to Five 1980 Three female employees of a "sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot" find a way to turn the tables on him http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080319/ All the President's Men 1976 Reporters Woodward and Bernstein uncover the details of the Watergate scandal that leads to President Nixon's resignation http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074119/ Dark Star 1974 Low-budget story of four astronauts in deep space, whose mission is to destroy unstable planets in star systems which are to be colonised... http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069945/ Future Shock 1972 t talks about how technology is moving too fast and too quick for humans to keep up with it. This leads to "future shock" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0826713/ THX 1138 1971 Set in the 25th century, the story centers around a man and a woman who rebel against their rigidly controlled society. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066434/ Playtime 1967 Monsieur Hulot has to contact an American official in Paris, but he gets lost in the maze of modern architecture which is filled with the latest technical gadgets http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062136/ Mon Oncle 1958 Monsieur Hulot visits the technology-driven world of his sister, brother-in-law, and nephew, but he can't quite fit into the surroundings. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050706/ Citizen Kane 1941 Following the death of a publishing tycoon, news reporters scramble to discover the meaning of his final utterance http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033467/ Modern Times 1936 The Tramp struggles to live in modern industrial society with the help of a young homeless woman. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0027977/ In a futuristic city sharply divided between the working class and the city planners, the son of the city's mastermind falls in love with a working class prophet Metropolis 1927 who predicts the coming of a savior to mediate their differences http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0017136/ Bronenosets Potyomkin 1925 A dramatized account of a great Russian naval mutiny and a resulting street demonstration which brought on a police massacre. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0015648/ TV A drama about one of New York's most prestigious ad agencies at the beginning of the 1960s, focusing on one of the firm's most mysterious but extremely Mad Men 2007 talented ad executives, Donald Draper. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0804503/ The story of an office that faces closure when the company decides to downsize its branches. A documentary film crew follow staff and the manager Brent as The Office 2001 they continue their daily lives http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0290978/ Are You Being Served 1972 The misadventures of the staff of a retail floor of a major department store. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068040/
- 73. on l in e c o mmunities ?
- 74. YO U RP ROJECT
- 75. • Choose aprofession (can be your future own) • Investigate and document to identify requirements • Create an outfit, that reflects and signifies this profession, places it within a social context and interacts with public space.
- 76. • Choose aprofession (can be your future own) • Investigate and document to identify requirements • Create an outfit, that reflects and signifies this profession, places it within a social context and interacts with public space. • Present this outfit in a 30 - 60 second “fashion” show
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- 78. • Collectively discuss,evaluate and create a framework for an approach to the future work landscape ...
- 79. S U CCESS ! any questions contact : Alexander Grünsteidl ag@digitalwellbeinglabs www.digitalwellbeinglabs.com We tune technology to create harmony in your life.
Editor's Notes
- #8 Customer feedback form by Anthony, 7 years, 2008
- #12 http://www.gutenberg.org/files/10940/10940-h/10940-h.htm
- #16 A sailor (?) in local folk attire in picturesque island community of Marken in Holland (Netherlands). Image scanned in from color photo slide that I took on 23 March 1966. 
- #17 Soot covered chimney sweep (schornsteinfeger) between jobs on a city street in Tübingen in southwest Germany in 1965. 
- #18 A pair of "travelling carpenters" (journeymen, or Wandergeselle in German) on a city street in Tübingen in southwest Germany in 1966. They are seen here in traditional dress of black waistcoats, black flared trousers, black hats and white shirts. Often they are seen carrying twisted or gnarled pieces of wood, with their possessions wrapped in fabric tied to the end, suggesting an image of a wizard to some people. Attached to a zunft or guild, they may be found in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. While completing a 1-2 year apprenticeship, they are not permitted to come closer than about 50 kilometers to their hometown or village. Gypsy-like they go from town to town, seeking odd jobs in exchange for overnight accomodations or a bite to eat. For additional information and other images, check out the following web pages: www.englishforum.ch/other-general/15362-travelling-carpen... de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wanderjahre www.en.charpentiers.culture.fr/thepeople/compagons/thecar... 
- #31 1 +++ Project_Suit_yourself +++ Short one week project In the past people could be distinguished in the street by their professional outfit. These outfits had both a utilitarian as well as a social signifying function. These days few signals identify a person's profession. It's easier to guess someone's sport's interest rather than seeing from his/her hands what tools s/he operates. Would it be desirable to identify people's professional and not just cultural or sports interest? And if what would it be like? This projects rapidly identifies utilitarian requirements and social signals, including guilds, casts, production and service processes, materials (both physical and virtual) tools, communication requirements etc Outcome: Collective: map and index requirements and objectives of our current work cultures. Individual: Design (assemble) an outfit for yourself that signifies your current or future profession. Present: 30 seconds "fashion" show dressed in your own outfit and discuss. Next Step: collectively discuss, evaluate and create framework for future work development Key words: cultural tribes Work cultures References: historical dresses of guilds A fisherman A cab driver A cobbler A tailor A butcher Etc Functional clothes Brown, grey, blue, green overalls for different manual professions Protective dust free overcoat / suits in MicroChip manufacturing and Food processing(not worn in public) Contamination suits Work cultures IBM geek outfit Government Clerk with Bowler hat and umbrella The eighties banker
- #32 1 +++ Project_Suit_yourself +++ Short one week project In the past people could be distinguished in the street by their professional outfit. These outfits had both a utilitarian as well as a social signifying function. These days few signals identify a person's profession. It's easier to guess someone's sport's interest rather than seeing from his/her hands what tools s/he operates. Would it be desirable to identify people's professional and not just cultural or sports interest? And if what would it be like? This projects rapidly identifies utilitarian requirements and social signals, including guilds, casts, production and service processes, materials (both physical and virtual) tools, communication requirements etc Outcome: Collective: map and index requirements and objectives of our current work cultures. Individual: Design (assemble) an outfit for yourself that signifies your current or future profession. Present: 30 seconds "fashion" show dressed in your own outfit and discuss. Next Step: collectively discuss, evaluate and create framework for future work development Key words: cultural tribes Work cultures References: historical dresses of guilds A fisherman A cab driver A cobbler A tailor A butcher Etc Functional clothes Brown, grey, blue, green overalls for different manual professions Protective dust free overcoat / suits in MicroChip manufacturing and Food processing(not worn in public) Contamination suits Work cultures IBM geek outfit Government Clerk with Bowler hat and umbrella The eighties banker
- #35 Collective: map and index requirements and objectives of our current work cultures.
- #40 http://www.listofjobtitles.com/
- #69 Les costumes grotesques Nicolas de Larmessin II (ca. 1638-1694), Habit d’Imprimeur en Lettres (The Printer’s Costume), ca. 1680. Engraving. Graphic Arts GA 2007.04409. This copper plate engraving is from Les costumes grotesques et les metiers or the Fancy Trade Costumes series. In the series, over 70 artisans are dressed in the materials of their occupation, in this case the tools of a printer. Nicolas de Larmessin II is one member of a family of printmakers and booksellers, many with the same name, leading to much confusion in attributing their work. The family had their own publishing house in Paris, where they designed and printed books, prints, calendars, and other popular works on paper. To see more of Larmessin’s work, look at: Les avgvstes representations de tovs les roys de France depvis Pharamond ivsqv’a Lovys XIIII: dit Le Grand, a present regnant, 1679: auec vn abrège historique sous chacun, contenant leurs naissances, inclinations et actions plus remarquables pendant leurs regnes (Paris: Bertrand, 1679). Engraved portraits of the Kings of France. Graphic Arts Collection (GAX) Oversize 2008-0170Q
- #70 Costumes Grotesques There follows a selection of images from a series entitled Les Costumes Grotesques: Habits des métiers et professions… They were published in 1695 by one Nicolas de Larmessin, although I’m not exactly sure which Nicolas was responsible for them, as there seem to have been four generations of Nicolases in the de Larmessin family. Although Nicolas II (d. ca. 1694) or III (d. ca. 1725) would seem the likeliest suspects. These light-hearted images seem to carry just a faint aftertaste of Arcimboldo’s grotesques. Unusually for a series of late 17th century prints, they seem to be widely-available in poster form. I lifted the present images from the allposters site.