Swiss Design Network Symposium 2024 Design Research / Designforschung / Recherche-création / Ricerca-Design

Concept

The Swiss Design Network Symposium for 2024 (held on 4-5 December) focuses on design’s capacity to produce practice-based knowledge.

The symposium hosts two keynote lectures, several exhibitions, as well as discussion panels in parallel sessions. Held for the first time at ECAL / University of Art and Design Lausanne (HES-SO) since the inception of SDN activities, the symposium revolves around the disciplines imparted in all Swiss schools of design, and mobilises junior researchers (teaching assistants, PhD candidates, postdoctoral researchers) as the prospective production of knowledge is entrusted to them.

Each panel is discipline-based with a transdisciplinary approach and is led by at least one Swiss junior researcher affiliated to one of the schools that are members of SDN (ECAL, FHNW, HEAD, HKB, HSLU, FHNW, SUPSI, ZHdK), selected via a call for proposals peer-reviewed by the members of SDN board. Each panel takes the format suggested by the panel leaders as long as it tackles new knowledge, has an international outreach, and includes at least two guests plus the panel leader in a slot of 1.5 hours. For example, the panels can take the form of a series of three paper presentations with a debate, a collaborative workshop, or a performative conference. The official language of the symposium is English. Contributions from researchers affiliated to countries that are currently war zones are possible only if contributors affiliated to counterpart institutions are involved.

We expect to hold seven panels, focused on disciplinary remits with a transdisciplinary approach, as follows:

• Industrial and Product Design
• Interior Design
• Fashion Design
• Interaction and Service Design
• Graphic and Type Design
• Photography
• Social Design
• Technology and Design