Lecture - Service Design and Saving the World
It was a really interesting lecture this week and has definitely given me a lot of jumping off points for further research. I must admit at first I was sceptical about how interested I would be in service design however as soon as the lecture started delving into how activists can change the world I was in. I am definitely more interested in the political side of this and how we can change thing socially in service to people and that makes it service design. This has already given me a clear idea of where to go with my research this week.
Can Art Stop a War and Save the Planet?
This was such an interesting watch,[1] I have always been fascinated with the power of activism and Carol Wells did such a good job of running through the power that posters have had in this sphere. I thought it was interesting how powerful simple images with one line of text can be, especially the And Babies piece.
I really want to explore this further so I think this week I am going to focus my research on political posters and how they can be of service to people and improve their lives.
Peter Kennard
I have Peter Kennard's book Visual Dissent [2] so I decided to use it for research this week. I've always loved his protest art and think he uses quite a simple method to produce incredibly powerful results. The trident project (top 2 images) has always stayed with me after seeing it on the underground in London in 2016. Not only was it in line with my personal beliefs but it was also such a clear message, communicating to the millions of peiople travelling through London each day that we should stop Trident and use the money elsewhere. I think Kennard makes an excellent point in the book stating that Trident costs around £205 billion to build and maintain but that could instead be used for hospitals, housing, schools etc.
Another one of my favourite projects by Kennard is his Refugee project. You can see in the bottom 2 images he created a series of paintings that initially looked like blank canvases but the more you look the more you can see a face looking back at you. It represents the idea that stateless people have become almost invisible, Kennard refers to them as 'unpeople' It also shows the anonymity of refugees and asylum seekers as they are overlooked by society. I think this is so powerful in encouraging social action - making people see the reality of how these people are treated and wanting to change that alongside Kennard.
Political posters like this are so powerful and the idea that social action is a service to people makes me want to focus on this for this brief.
Nina Chanel Abney
Nina Chanel Abney’s large-scale paintings confront the social issues of the Black Lives Matter movement and the relationships between police officers and people of colour. Irreverent, bold, and pop-savvy, they’re layered with words and faces in a bright mash-up that recalls Matisse’s cut-outs.[3] I think this is such fresh style, using block colours create strong shapes and get the message across. It is such an eye catching way to say an extremely important message, hopefully getting it across to different people who may not usually see images like this.
This is another project from Abney with her signature style calling for racial justice after all of the injustices in recent years. [4] She also wants to call attention to cultural and gender based hate through this exhibition and mural in Toronto. I think this is an effective way to get across the message, people walking across it won't be able to ignore it. This is such a modern and unique way of encouraging positive social action and I feel like it is taking protest art another step further which is always a good thing.
The Days of this Society is Numbered
I saw this in an exhibition in the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York in 2014 and it has always stuck with me. It is acrylic on newspaper designed by Rirkrit Tiravanija and shows an anti capitalist message. [5] The piece is essentially saying that capitalism can't last forever and it is coming to an end soon. I think using the newspaper helps route it in a time and place and allows the viewer to imaging the exact circumstances that it is referring to. Tiravanija used Guy Debord's quote “The days of this society are numbered; its reasons and its merits have been weighed in the balance and have been found wanting; its inhabitants are divided into two sides, one of which wants this society to disappear.” This shows his political leanings and gives even more depth to the piece.
If art can change the world, starting by changing the whole way a society functions is a great, and very ambitious, way to start.
Workshop Challenge
Task 1: Research User-Centred Design Processes or Tools
Research three user-centred design processes or tools that can be used to discover a core need or problem e.g. customer journey maps, service safaris, a day in the life, cultural probe, double diamond.
Select one process and write a short 100-word description to illustrate how it can be used to discover an insight or challenge.
Task 2: Research Existing Campaign or Service Design Project
Research and select one existing campaign or service design project that tackles a social problem and analyse its effectiveness. Please remember to include information about any user-centred design processes that may have been used and the impact it brought about.
Write a 300 – 400 word description with screen grabs to illustrate your research findings.
Task 1: Research User-Centred Design Processes or Tools
Co creation session
This involves people from the whole process coming together and sharing ideas to guide the design process. It's usually people with different roles and skillsets to get a more holistic view of what a service should include. It means that you get a lot of different opinions and some people may see things others don't.
Issue Cards
Issue cards are used to promote discussion, to suggest new avenues of exploration, to structure thinking, and to spark ideas. They can be especially useful when the group feels stuck, or is unable to move away from familiar thinking. The basic concept behind issue cards is to isolate a specific element into each card, and then use the cards as starting point for a 1:1 or group conversation. An issue card can contain an insight, a picture, a drawing, a feature, a keyword, a description, etc. based on the specific need. They act as prompts to suggest new interpretations of a problem and induce considering a different perspective; they can be used in many different ways, from identifying priorities to discussing relationships or simply facilitating the conversation. [6]
Empathy Map
The empathy map is a canvas split into four quadrants (says, thinks, does, and feels), all positioned around the user. Filling the map allows to produce an overview of who the user is, and to identify inconsistencies in the perception of the same user from various team members (and so intervene to mitigate the conflict). [7]
Empathy Map (100 words)
Empathy mapping is an interesting way to explore the thoughts and feelings of the people who will be interacting with your design. It allows you to really understand where people are coming from and identify trends and inconsistencies in the thought process. This is particularly important when looking at political posters and propaganda because a lot of political opinions are based on emotional response. It is well documented that to encourage certain actions, emotions are the best way to do this. For example, charity campaigns often play on emotions to encourage people to donate. Empathy mapping can help you do this in a powerful way.
Task 2: Research Existing Campaign or Service Design Project
Ai Weiwei Refugee Art Installation At Konzerthaus Berlin
(500 words)
The intention of the art installation is to not only bring attention the refugee crisis itself, but to highlight “the countless lives changed by the crisis, with every single vest reflecting the individual life of a man, woman or child whose landing at Lesbos is just the beginning.” A lifeboat hangs in the centre of the installation, with a sign that reads #safepassage.
The lifejackets were actually used by refugees who were en route to Europe via the Greek island of Lesbos.
Weiwei, who’s visited the island multiple times since the crisis began shipped the lifejackets to Berlin for use in his art project. Thousands of these lifejackets still remain on beaches and landfills in Lesbos.[8]
Ai Weiwei revealed the installation about halfway through the annual Berlinale film festival, choosing the time with the intention of maximising media coverage.
The installation proved very divisive. On one side, people praised Ai Wewei for bringing worldwide attention to the refugee crisis in Europe and encouraging conversation about the conditions suffered by people just trying to find a safer more secure life. However, critics have said it would have been far more useful to send the life jackets to North Africa to help people stay safe on their journey.
I also think in a way it seems like preaching to the choir, Germany accepted almost 1 million refugees in 2016, more than any other EU member - so why here? Also, the Konzerthaus is located at Berlin’s Gendarmenmarkt, the focal point of the Huguenot population that fled religious persecution in Catholic France in the 17th century. This area has been a symbol of German tolerance and acceptance since the 1600s, why not stage it somewhere like the UK who has a negative view of refugees because of the press? Or America which at the time had just elected Donald Trump in a show of intolerance and bigotry.
As part of Ai Weiwei's research he spent a lot of time in Lesbos among the refugee camps hearing first hand stories ad collecting the life jackets personally. This Service Safari clearly encouraged Ai Weiwei's passion for the project and led to him creating several other installations along the same lines. I think by doing the service Safari it allowed Ai Weiwei to really experience the suffering and arduous journey of the refugees and actually collect the items used in the installation. In a way, it brought the installation to life and allowed him to meet the people behind the sentiment. Ai Weiwei also conducted contextual interviews with people in the refugee camps adding further dimension to his project and allowing him to speak about it with personal knowledge of the people concerned.
[9] [10]
References
[1] TEDx, Carol A. Wells, (2015) Can Art Stop a War and Save the Planet? [Online video]. Available at: Can Art Stop a War and Save the Planet? | Carol A. Wells | TEDxLoyolaMarymountU [Accessed 11 March 2019].
[2] Kennard, P (2019). Visual Dissent. London: Pluto Press. p165 - 175.
[3]Solway, D. (2016). The Art of Politics: What Happens When 15 Artists Take On the Campaign Poster. Available: https://www.wmagazine.com/gallery/the-art-of-politics-what-happens-when-15-artists-take-on-the-campaign-poster. Last accessed 25/3/22.
[4] Valentine, V. (2021). A Call for Justice and Healing. Available: https://www.culturetype.com/2021/06/17/a-call-for-justice-and-healing-nina-chanel-abneys-first-public-art-installation-in-canada-declares-stop-dont-kill-and-love/. Last accessed 25/3/22.
[5] MoMA. (2014). The days of this society is numbered. Available: https://www.moma.org/collection/works/185749. Last accessed 25/3/22.
[6] Service Design Tools. (2021). Issue Cards. Available: https://servicedesigntools.org/tools/issue-cards#:~:text=The%20basic%20concept%20behind%20issue,keyworkd%2C%20a%20description%2C%20etc.. Last accessed 25/3/22.
[7] Service Design Tools. (2021). Empathy Map. Available: https://servicedesigntools.org/tools/empathy-map. Last accessed 25/3/22.
[8] Howard, C. (2017). Ai Weiwei Refugee Art Installation At Konzerthaus Berlin. Available: https://cherylhoward.medium.com/ai-weiwei-refugee-art-installation-at-konzerthaus-berlin-80f000490817. Last accessed 26/3/22.
[9] Pierce, B. (2017). Ai Weiwei Covers Berlin's Konzerthaus In Refugee Life Jackets. Available: https://theculturetrip.com/europe/germany/berlin/articles/ai-weiwei-covers-berlins-konzerthaus-in-refugee-life-jackets/. Last accessed 26/3/22.
[10] Statistics. (2017). Germany - Refugee Statistics. Available: https://asylumineurope.org/reports/country/germany/statistics/. Last accessed 26/3/22.
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