Past OPEN Lectures

 

Machine learning systems are all around us, silently underpinning the fabric of our digital infrastructure. When we think of machine learning or artificial intelligence, we often think of automation, not creative opportunities. In this joint open lecture Andreas Refsgaard and Gene Kogan will explore how artistic metaphors can help clarify that which is otherwise shrouded by layers of academic jargon, making these highly specialised subjects more accessible to everyday people. Taking such an approach, we can repurpose these academic tools and harness their capabilities for creative expression and empowerment.

Andreas Refsgaard is an interaction designer, artist and teacher from Denmark. His work switches between commercial projects and artistic installations. Recently Andreas has been exploring creative applications of machine learning and spent a lot of time teaching other designers how to use machine learning for real-time interactive projects.

Gene Kogan is an artist and a programmer who is interested in generative systems, computer science, and software for creativity and self-expression. He is a collaborator within numerous open-source software projects, and gives workshops and lectures on topics at the intersection of code and art. Gene initiated ml4a, a free book about machine learning for artists, activists, and citizen scientists, and regularly publishes video lectures, writings, and tutorials to facilitate a greater public understanding of the subject.

When: Tues. May 15th 2018, 17-18.

 

We have become increasingly polarized with the help of misleading and false information that quickly and easily spreads online with the help of social media, sensational headlines, and nefarious actors. Because of this it is becoming exponentially more important for us as designers, technologist and media consumers to drown out the digital noise with truth and facts.

Like the majority of America (and the rest of the world), Danne Woo was shocked by the 2016 United States Presidential election and how shady data mining tactics, targeted online advertising and absurdly false stories fead on our fears and ultimately helped sway the outcome.

In this talk Danne will be presenting some of the projects that he has worked on over the last year that were inspired by the spread of misinformation and digital social engineering.

Danne is an Assistant Professor of Interaction Design at Queens College, CUNY in Queens, NY; the Founder of Datavisual (www.datavisu.al), an online platform for designing data driven graphics; and a Ford Foundation/Media Democracy Fund Tech Exchange Creative Technologist Fellow at the Color of Change in New York, NY.

www.dannewoo.com

When: Tues. April 24th 2018, 17-18.

 

We’ve all heard about bitcoin and the mysterious blockchain, but how can we as designers use this new technology in applications beyond ‘just’ transactions?

Today, blockchain remains a technology first sector, however just as the internet before it, the role of designers will become increasingly important as everyday uses of blockchain technology become common-place.

In this talk John Ferreira and Cyrus Clarke (both CIID alumni) will present their thoughts as designers on how we can use decentralized technology to create a new breed of products and services that tackle some of the key issues in society.

They will discuss their experience developing Media Sifter – the Fact-Based News Platform on the Blockchain, to explain how this technology offers us new ways to tackle the underlying issues inherent to the media; decentralising influence, validating facts, preventing censorship and transforming the digital economy from one built on attention, to an evidence economy.

John Ferreira and Cyrus Clarke are Co-Founders of Media Sifter. They believe in decentralizing influence and working to distribute truth. They are CIID alumni and share over 15 years of experience working in Innovation and Design at Samsung Design Europe, L’Oreal and EA Games. They also run What the Block? a Blockchain education and advisory platform to help individuals and organizations of all sizes.

When: Tues. April 17th 2018, 17-18.

 

Text is everywhere. We read more than ever, probably consuming more written content from glass than from paper. Designing a quality reading experience for dynamic text requires a mindset and workflow different from traditional print typography. All digital text is processed by algorithms, so every aspect of how words and sentences are displayed can be shaped with code. This makes programming an essential and powerful skill for designers and typographers. It’s time to explore and embrace methods that will make digital reading interfaces better than printed paper. In his talk, Frank will show details from his work and speculate about the typographic workflows of the future.

Frank Rausch is a user interface designer, app developer, and typographer. He is co-founder and managing partner at Raureif, an award-winning interaction design consultancy based in Berlin. In his work, Frank Rausch explores how technology and code can shape high-quality digital reading experiences. He teaches app design and typography at design schools in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland.

When: Wed. April 11th 2018, 17-18.

 

Everything is designed and everyone is a designer are mantras that get shared everywhere these days. But how do we design? How do we setup projects for success and what can we do to make sure that our greatest talents, aka you, stay interested and motivated? So in this talk I would like to share the meta process of design and how we approach this design opportunity at IDEO and more importantly discuss with you where this differs from your processes.

When: Wed. March 14th 2018, 17-18.