VIRTUAL: Learning. Life. Work.

Abstract

In the design disciplines, how we employ methods of “making” is varied and often challenging to quantify in typical research terms (qualitative and quantitative, for example). But through a cross- and transdisciplinary lens, activities and processes centered on making can be powerful explorations of spatiality and tools for change and dismantling hierarchical power structures (Chappell et al., 2023). Making can thus be seen as a gradient of processes operating at different scales ranging from pedagogy to creative practice and inclusive of physical, psychological, and societal realms. There is a need for a more inclusive and diverse perspective on this topic across numerous disciplinary fields and methodologies. This paper aims to expand definitions beyond material practice to one of culture and belonging. Through the lens of Interior Design, the discipline has a unique history and set of biases related to “making.” Centered around an ethics of care philosophy, this paper outlines two distinct interpretations of the term’s potential in designing physical environments. The first explores ideas of craft, using physical and digital processes to challenge conventional ideas about making and fabrication, architectural design labor, gender roles, and pedagogy. While the physical artifact may be material, the labor and its meanings are often immaterial or invisible. The second approach looks at making as a form of embodied research. Mindfully carving out space for reflective practices, it aims to “make room” for new identities and perspectives within a historically marginalized design field. From pedagogical practices of intense, unstructured making activities to critical and feminist pedagogical values of self-actualization and belonging, the possibilities of expanding ideas of creating and crafting move beyond any one discipline or method.