Speculative design 2011
Man-Machine Affairs
Exploring myth and fact around technology relations
With Arduino + custom electronics Processing NFC video / film printed matter / pamphlets
My masters thesis project at the Experience Design Group, Konstfack, Stockholm.
I worked with Nina Bačun on the relationships between people and technology. We made interactive prototypes and fictional scenarios for two case studies, shown at the degree exhibition. There, we also offered consultation to anyone willing to share their experiences with technology — and in return suggested readings or prescribed actions toward a more rounded view of what tech was doing to them.
From the exhibition text:
Personal technophobia and technophilia were the triggers that led Nina Bačun and Anders Mellbratt to start re-questioning the world of existing and emerging technologies. While locating themselves in a technologically driven society, Bačun and Mellbratt investigate the rising quota of personal fears.
Can design take responsibility for the treatment of man-machine affairs? If yes, how? Within the concept of “man-machine affairs”, Bačun and Mellbratt question new perspectives on man-machine relations, desirable ends, the visibility of hidden processes of technology, and the potentials and limits of new roles for design.
Should exposure to a new syntax of metaphors serve as an additional tool to help people navigate their relationship to technology?
More info at Konstfack 2011 and the project website.
