VIRTUAL: Learning. Life. Work.

Abstract

It is something of a cliché in design studies circles to say that design is a practice in which the two ‘chaoids’ (Deleuze and Guattari 1994) of science and art converge (Hales 2015). This paper describes a process of evolution from the idea of STE(A)M, originally introduced by John Maeda in his milestone article “On Meaningful Observation” and the concept of IDEA (Intuition, Design, Emotion, Art) next to that of STEM, to the active involvement of the Humanities (Cultural Studies, Philosophy, Social Anthropology, Ethnography, etc) in Design Education, teamed up with the Arts as a counterbalance to the hegemony of STEMs. This theoretical position, form the basis of our Design Pedagogies in the Industrial Design Lab of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH) and the Design Lab for Kids, an education initiative for 9-11 year-old pupils to bridge the gap between STEM and the Arts & Humanities. Certain case studies and trans-disciplinary synergies, highlight our experience on the attempt to built up a Design Culture that embraces cultural diversity and different concepts of philosophy and educate our students (and kids) for others ways of being in the world. Referencing Christian Guellerin, Andy Polaine, Gilles Deleuze, Félix Guattari, Vincent Beaubois, Neri Oxman and Paola Antonelli we attempt to highlight why philosophy, as much as Humanities in general, are unquestionably intertwined with Design, if we are aiming at a profound societal transformation in the ways we learn, live and work. Following the critical step from STEM to STEAM by John Maeda, we propose to enrich the equation with the active involvement of Humanities, defining Design as a common ground between STEM and the [H]ARTS.